Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic ZS5

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.

This is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus SH-50 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5. The complete galleries are provided at Olympus SH-50 Gallery and Panasonic ZS5 Gallery.

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.

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.

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

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.