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Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5

Portability
88
Imaging
40
Features
48
Overall
43
Olympus SH-50 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5 front
Portability
92
Imaging
35
Features
30
Overall
33

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 Key Specs

Olympus SH-50
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 269g - 112 x 63 x 42mm
  • Released January 2013
Panasonic ZS5
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-300mm (F3.3-4.9) lens
  • 214g - 103 x 60 x 32mm
  • Introduced June 2010
  • Other Name is Lumix DMC-TZ8
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Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 Overview

Lets take a deeper look at the Olympus SH-50 versus Panasonic ZS5, both Small Sensor Superzoom cameras by brands Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a significant gap among the image resolutions of the SH-50 (16MP) and ZS5 (12MP) but both cameras provide the identical sensor sizes (1/2.3").

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The SH-50 was released 2 years after the ZS5 which is a fairly sizable gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of these cameras feature the same body design (Compact).

Before going straight to a complete comparison, here is a concise view of how the SH-50 grades vs the ZS5 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SH-50 over the Panasonic ZS5

 SH-50 ZS5 
IntroducedJanuary 2013June 2010More modern by 32 months
Manually focus Very exact focusing
Screen size3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution460k230kCrisper screen (+230k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Panasonic ZS5 over the Olympus SH-50

 ZS5 SH-50 

Common features in the Olympus SH-50 and Panasonic ZS5

 SH-50 ZS5 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither features selfie screen

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 Physical Comparison

If you are going to carry around your camera frequently, you have to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus SH-50 enjoys physical measurements of 112mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.7") and a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs) and the Panasonic ZS5 has dimensions of 103mm x 60mm x 32mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3") and a weight of 214 grams (0.47 lbs).

Look at the Olympus SH-50 versus Panasonic ZS5 in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you are using at the time. Following is a front view size comparison of the SH-50 vs the ZS5.

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 size comparison

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the SH-50 and ZS5 is 88 and 92 respectively.

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, its difficult to visualise the difference in sensor sizes just by checking out specs. The picture here should provide you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the SH-50 and ZS5.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras come with the identical sensor size albeit not the same resolution. You should count on the Olympus SH-50 to provide more detail as a result of its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop photographs a good deal more aggressively. The more recent SH-50 is going to have an advantage with regard to sensor technology.

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 sensor size comparison

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus SH-50
Portrait photography with Panasonic ZS5
44
manual focus
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
comes with face detection autofocus
no external flash support
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
27
features face detect autofocus
lack of manual focus
no external flash support
low resolution sensor (12 megapixels)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus SH-50
Street photography with Panasonic ZS5
64
image stabilization (Optical)
supports touch focus
lighter than competitors in class (269 grams)
no moving screen
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
61
has image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competition (214g)
no articulating screen
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus SH-50
Sports photography with Panasonic ZS5
48
excellent zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
comes with tracking autofocus
no shutter priority
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no phase detect autofocus
31
has image stabilization (Optical)
features tracking focus
maximum shutter speed is a little low (1/1,300 seconds)
slow frames per second (2.0 frames per second)
low resolution sensor (12 megapixels)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SH-50 as a Travel photography camera
Panasonic ZS5 as a Travel photography camera
69
lighter than competitors in class (269g)
supports touch focus
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
rather wide (25mm)
long reach (600mm)
missing Timelapse recording
does not posses selfie friendly screen
sluggish max aperture (f3.0)
63
lighter than competition (214g)
built-in flash
really wide (25mm)
very long reach (300mm)
doesn't have Timelapse recording
low resolution sensor (12MP)
does not contain selfie friendly screen
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus SH-50
Landscape photography with Panasonic ZS5
49
manual focus
rather wide (25mm)
screen size is decent (3 inch)
image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f3.0)
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
missing Timelapse recording
33
really wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
lack of manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
small screen (2.7")
low resolution sensor (12 megapixels)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
doesn't have Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SH-50 as a Vlogging camera
Panasonic ZS5 as a Vlogging camera
34
rather wide (25mm)
built-in touchscreen
image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detection autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
lighter than competitors in class (269g)
sluggish max aperture (f3.0)
does not posses selfie friendly screen
missing external microphone support
31
really wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
features face detect autofocus
lighter than competition (214g)
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
does not contain selfie friendly screen
low res video (1280 x 720 pixels)
doesn't have microphone jack
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Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SH-50 and Panasonic ZS5
 Olympus SH-50Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5
General Information
Manufacturer Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus SH-50 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5
Otherwise known as - Lumix DMC-TZ8
Class Small Sensor Superzoom Small Sensor Superzoom
Released 2013-01-08 2010-06-16
Body design Compact Compact
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic VI Venus Engine HD II
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CCD
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 12MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4608 x 3456 4000 x 3000
Highest native ISO 6400 6400
Min native ISO 125 80
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points - 11
Lens
Lens support fixed lens fixed lens
Lens zoom range 25-600mm (24.0x) 25-300mm (12.0x)
Maximum aperture f/3.0-6.9 f/3.3-4.9
Macro focusing distance 5cm 3cm
Crop factor 5.8 5.9
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inch 2.7 inch
Resolution of screen 460 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Minimum shutter speed 15s 60s
Fastest shutter speed 1/2000s 1/1300s
Continuous shutter speed 12.0 frames per sec 2.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 4.00 m 5.30 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 480fps (176 x 128), 240fps (384 x 288) 1280 x 720 (30fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video format MPEG-4, H.264 Motion JPEG
Microphone input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 269 gr (0.59 pounds) 214 gr (0.47 pounds)
Physical dimensions 112 x 63 x 42mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.7") 103 x 60 x 32mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth rating not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested not tested
DXO Low light rating not tested not tested
Other
Battery ID SLB-10A -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, Pet Auto Shutter) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots 1 1
Cost at release $300 $300