Canon SX210 IS vs Panasonic ZS30

Its time to look more closely at the Canon SX210 IS and Panasonic ZS30, both Small Sensor Superzoom digital cameras by competitors Canon and Panasonic. There exists a considerable gap between the sensor resolutions of the SX210 IS (14MP) and ZS30 (18MP) but both cameras have the identical sensor sizes (1/2.3").

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The SX210 IS was brought out 3 years prior to the ZS30 which is quite a large difference as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras feature the same body design (Compact).

Before diving into a more detailed comparison, here is a simple highlight of how the SX210 IS grades vs the ZS30 for portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a preview of the gallery images for Canon PowerShot SX210 IS & Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS30. The entire galleries are available at Canon SX210 IS Gallery & Panasonic ZS30 Gallery.

In case you're intending to carry around your camera often, you have to think about its weight and proportions. The Canon SX210 IS offers outside dimensions of 103mm x 61mm x 38mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.5") with a weight of 220 grams (0.49 lbs) and the Panasonic ZS30 has measurements of 105mm x 59mm x 28mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.1") having a weight of 198 grams (0.44 lbs).

Take a look at the Canon SX210 IS and Panasonic ZS30 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you have at the time. Following is a front view over all size comparison of the SX210 IS and the ZS30.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SX210 IS and ZS30 is 90 and 92 respectively.

Quite often, its difficult to picture the gap between sensor sizes only by reading specs. The image below may give you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the SX210 IS and ZS30.

As you can plainly see, both of these cameras come with the identical sensor size albeit different MP. You can expect the Panasonic ZS30 to offer greater detail having its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop pictures a good deal more aggressively. The more aged SX210 IS is going to be disadvantaged in sensor tech.