Panasonic S1 vs Sony A500

Its time to look a bit more closely at the Panasonic S1 versus Sony A500, former is a Pro Mirrorless while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by manufacturers Panasonic and Sony. There is a substantial difference between the image resolutions of the S1 (24MP) and A500 (12MP) and the S1 (Full frame) and A500 (APS-C) have totally different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The S1 was unveiled 9 years after the A500 which is quite a big difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Panasonic S1 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A500 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before going right into a full comparison, here is a brief highlight of how the S1 grades vs the A500 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a preview of the gallery images for Panasonic Lumix DC-S1 & Sony Alpha DSLR-A500. The full galleries are viewable at Panasonic S1 Gallery & Sony A500 Gallery.

In case you're intending to carry around your camera often, you will have to take into account its weight and measurements. The Panasonic S1 provides exterior measurements of 149mm x 110mm x 97mm (5.9" x 4.3" x 3.8") and a weight of 1021 grams (2.25 lbs) whilst the Sony A500 has proportions of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") with a weight of 630 grams (1.39 lbs).

Check out the Panasonic S1 versus Sony A500 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you choose at the time. Following is a front view proportions comparison of the S1 against the A500.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the S1 and A500 is 54 and 63 respectively.

Often, it can be difficult to visualise the contrast between sensor sizes simply by looking at specs. The picture here will offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the S1 and A500.

As you can plainly see, both cameras have different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The S1 using its bigger sensor will make achieving bokeh simpler and the Panasonic S1 will give greater detail having an extra 12 Megapixels. Higher resolution will let you crop photographs a bit more aggressively. The more recent S1 is going to have an advantage with regard to sensor technology.