Panasonic S5 vs Sony A6500

Following is a in-depth review of the Panasonic S5 and Sony A6500, former is a Pro Mirrorless while the latter is a Advanced Mirrorless by competitors Panasonic and Sony. The sensor resolution of the S5 (24MP) and the A6500 (24MP) is pretty comparable but the S5 (Full frame) and A6500 (APS-C) provide totally different sensor dimensions.

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The S5 was brought out 3 years after the A6500 which is a fairly big difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic S5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A6500 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before delving straight to a thorough comparison, here is a concise summary of how the S5 grades versus the A6500 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a preview of the gallery images for Panasonic Lumix DC-S5 & Sony Alpha a6500. The entire galleries are provided at Panasonic S5 Gallery & Sony A6500 Gallery.

When you are intending to carry around your camera frequently, you will have to factor its weight and proportions. The Panasonic S5 comes with external dimensions of 133mm x 97mm x 82mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 3.2") along with a weight of 714 grams (1.57 lbs) whilst the Sony A6500 has measurements of 120mm x 67mm x 53mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 2.1") along with a weight of 453 grams (1.00 lbs).

Check the Panasonic S5 and Sony A6500 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you are working with at the time. Underneath is a front view measurement comparison of the S5 and the A6500.

Looking at size and weight, the portability score of the S5 and A6500 is 60 and 81 respectively.

Oftentimes, it is very difficult to visualise the gap in sensor sizes merely by going through a spec sheet. The image here may give you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the S5 and A6500.

Clearly, both cameras feature the identical MP albeit not the same sensor sizes. The S5 uses the bigger sensor which should make achieving shallow DOF simpler. The more recent S5 is going to have a benefit when it comes to sensor technology.