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Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5

Portability
91
Imaging
40
Features
42
Overall
40
Olympus Stylus Tough TG-860 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5 front
Portability
88
Imaging
35
Features
44
Overall
38

Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 Key Specs

Olympus TG-860
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 21-105mm (F3.5-5.7) lens
  • 224g - 110 x 64 x 28mm
  • Introduced February 2015
  • Later Model is Olympus TG-870
Panasonic LX5
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/1.63" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 12800
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 24-90mm (F2.0-3.3) lens
  • 271g - 110 x 65 x 43mm
  • Revealed December 2011
  • Older Model is Panasonic LX3
  • Newer Model is Panasonic LX7
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Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 Overview

Its time to take a closer look at the Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5, former being a Waterproof while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by brands Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a substantial gap between the sensor resolutions of the TG-860 (16MP) and LX5 (10MP) and the TG-860 (1/2.3") and LX5 (1/1.63") posses different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The TG-860 was revealed 3 years later than the LX5 and that is quite a big difference as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus TG-860 being a Ultracompact camera and the Panasonic LX5 being a Compact camera.

Before diving right into a step-by-step comparison, here is a simple introduction of how the TG-860 scores versus the LX5 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus TG-860 over the Panasonic LX5

 TG-860 LX5 
RevealedFebruary 2015December 2011Fresher by 39 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen

Reasons to pick Panasonic LX5 over the Olympus TG-860

 LX5 TG-860 
Manually focus Very accurate focus

Common features in the Olympus TG-860 and Panasonic LX5

 TG-860 LX5 
Screen size3"3"Same screen dimensions
Screen resolution460k460kEqual screen resolution
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen
Touch screen Absent Touch screen

Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is planning to carry your camera frequently, you need to factor its weight and dimensions. The Olympus TG-860 comes with outside measurements of 110mm x 64mm x 28mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.1") and a weight of 224 grams (0.49 lbs) whilst the Panasonic LX5 has dimensions of 110mm x 65mm x 43mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.7") with a weight of 271 grams (0.60 lbs).

Check the Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you are using at that moment. Below is a front view measurements comparison of the TG-860 compared to the LX5.

Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the TG-860 and LX5 is 91 and 88 respectively.

Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 top view buttons comparison

Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, it is very hard to visualize the gap between sensor sizing merely by looking at technical specs. The graphic here will help provide you a clearer sense of the sensor sizing in the TG-860 and LX5.

As you have seen, both of these cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The TG-860 with its tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF tougher and the Olympus TG-860 will give you more detail because of its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will allow you to crop pictures a good deal more aggressively. The younger TG-860 should have an advantage with regard to sensor tech.

Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 sensor size comparison

Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus TG-860 Portrait photography advice
Panasonic LX5 Portrait photography advice
35
decent MP (16 megapixels)
comes with face detection autofocus
no manual focus
manual exposure not possible
external flash not possible
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
41
has manual focus
supports RAW formats
low resolution (10 megapixels)
very small sensor (1/1.63")
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Street Comparison

Olympus TG-860 Street photography info
Panasonic LX5 Street photography info
69
screen tilts
built in image stabilization (Optical)
environment proof
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
59
built in image stabilization (Optical)
supports RAW formats
no articulating screen
very small sensor (1/1.63")
more heavy than others (271 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus TG-860 Sports photography info
Panasonic LX5 Sports photography info
48
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (16 megapixels)
comes with tracking autofocus
environment proof
no shutter priority
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect autofocus
27
built in image stabilization (Optical)
max frames per second very slow (3.0 frames per second)
low resolution (10 megapixels)
very small sensor (1/1.63")
has no phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus TG-860
Travel photography with Panasonic LX5
71
environment proof
decent MP (16MP)
flash built-in
reasonably wide (21mm)
screen is not selfie friendly
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
59
has built in flash
quite wide (24mm)
great max aperture (f2.0)
missing Timelapse function
more heavy than others (271g)
low resolution (10MP)
display is not selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus TG-860 Landscape photography highlights
Panasonic LX5 Landscape photography highlights
47
reasonably wide (21mm)
pretty good screen size (3")
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (16MP)
environment proof
no manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
manual exposure not possible
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
52
has manual focus
quite wide (24mm)
great max aperture (f2.0)
good sized screen (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
supports RAW formats
can't switch lens (fixed lens mount)
low resolution (10MP)
very small sensor (1/1.63")
missing Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus TG-860 as a Vlogging camera
Panasonic LX5 as a Vlogging camera
33
reasonably wide (21mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detection autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen is not selfie friendly
doesn't have external microphone port
29
quite wide (24mm)
great max aperture (f2.0)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
display is not selfie friendly
video resolution low (1280 x 720 pxls)
missing external microphone support
more heavy than others (271 grams)
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Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX5 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus TG-860 and Panasonic LX5
 Olympus Stylus Tough TG-860Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus Stylus Tough TG-860 Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5
Type Waterproof Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2015-02-06 2011-12-15
Physical type Ultracompact Compact
Sensor Information
Chip TruePic VII Venus Engine FHD
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/1.63"
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 8.07 x 5.56mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 44.9mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 10MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4608 x 3456 3648 x 2736
Maximum native ISO 6400 12800
Min native ISO 125 80
RAW files
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
AF continuous
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Total focus points - 23
Lens
Lens mount type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens zoom range 21-105mm (5.0x) 24-90mm (3.8x)
Maximum aperture f/3.5-5.7 f/2.0-3.3
Macro focusing distance 1cm 1cm
Crop factor 5.8 4.5
Screen
Display type Tilting Fixed Type
Display sizing 3" 3"
Resolution of display 460k dots 460k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None Electronic (optional)
Features
Min shutter speed 4 seconds 60 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/2000 seconds 1/4000 seconds
Continuous shutter rate 7.0fps 3.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation - Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 4.00 m (at ISO 1600) 7.20 m
Flash options Auto, redeye reduction, fill flash, off, LED illuminator Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60p), 1280 x 720 (60p), 640 x 480 (60p) 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video format H.264 AVCHD Lite
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS Yes None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 224g (0.49 lb) 271g (0.60 lb)
Physical dimensions 110 x 64 x 28mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.1") 110 x 65 x 43mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.7")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested 41
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 19.6
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 10.8
DXO Low light rating not tested 132
Other
Battery life 300 photographs -
Battery style Battery Pack -
Battery ID Li-50B -
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots One One
Cost at release $279 $294