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Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III

Portability
60
Imaging
76
Features
92
Overall
82
Panasonic Lumix DC-S5 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III front
Portability
53
Imaging
52
Features
77
Overall
62

Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III Key Specs

Panasonic S5
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - Full frame Sensor
  • 3.0" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 100 - 51200 (Push to 204800)
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Leica L Mount
  • 714g - 133 x 97 x 82mm
  • Announced August 2020
  • Later Model is Panasonic S5 II
Sony RX10 III
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Boost to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-600mm (F2.4-4.0) lens
  • 1051g - 133 x 94 x 127mm
  • Launched March 2016
  • Succeeded the Sony RX10 II
  • Successor is Sony RX10 IV
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Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III Overview

Lets look closer at the Panasonic S5 and Sony RX10 III, former being a Pro Mirrorless while the latter is a Large Sensor Superzoom by rivals Panasonic and Sony. The sensor resolution of the S5 (24MP) and the RX10 III (20MP) is relatively close but the S5 (Full frame) and RX10 III (1") have different sensor sizing.

Photography Glossary

The S5 was revealed 4 years later than the RX10 III and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Panasonic S5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony RX10 III being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before we go straight to a in depth comparison, here is a quick summation of how the S5 matches up vs the RX10 III in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic S5 over the Sony RX10 III

 S5 RX10 III 
LaunchedAugust 2020March 2016More recent by 54 months
Screen typeFully ArticulatedTiltingFully Articulating screen
Screen resolution1840k1229kCrisper screen (+611k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 III over the Panasonic S5

 RX10 III S5 

Common features in the Panasonic S5 and Sony RX10 III

 S5 RX10 III 
Manual focus Dial accurate focus
Screen dimensions3.0"3"Equal screen measurement

Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III Physical Comparison

For those who are intending to lug around your camera often, you will need to think about its weight and volume. The Panasonic S5 comes with external measurements of 133mm x 97mm x 82mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 3.2") with a weight of 714 grams (1.57 lbs) while the Sony RX10 III has sizing of 133mm x 94mm x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0") along with a weight of 1051 grams (2.32 lbs).

Check out the Panasonic S5 and Sony RX10 III in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you choose at the time. Here is a front view overall size comparison of the S5 vs the RX10 III.

Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III size comparison

Considering size and weight, the portability rating of the S5 and RX10 III is 60 and 53 respectively.

Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III top view buttons comparison

Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III Sensor Comparison

Generally, it is very hard to picture the contrast in sensor measurements only by viewing specs. The graphic here should offer you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the S5 and RX10 III.

As you can plainly see, the 2 cameras have different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The S5 having a bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallower DOF less difficult and the Panasonic S5 will render more detail because of its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The fresher S5 provides an edge when it comes to sensor technology.

Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III sensor size comparison

Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic S5 Portrait photography features
Sony RX10 III Portrait photography features
85
manual focus
good MP (24MP)
great sensor size (Full frame)
provides face detection focus
supports RAW files
71
focusing manually
MP count good (20MP)
sensor size is nice (1")
includes face detect autofocus
exports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Panasonic S5
Street photography with Sony RX10 III
78
screen articulates
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
great sensor size (Full frame)
supports RAW files
has touch to focus
environment sealing
above average high ISO (51,200)
64
screen tilts
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor size is nice (1")
exports RAW files
weather sealing
more heavy than competition (1,051 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Panasonic S5
Sports photography with Sony RX10 III
81
high shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
quiet mode (1/8,000 seconds)
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good MP (24MP)
great sensor size (Full frame)
provides tracking autofocus
environment sealing
does not have phase detect auto focus
70
amazing zoom range (24-600mm 25.0 x zoom)
quiet shutter (1/32,000s)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
MP count good (20 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (1")
includes tracking focus
weather sealing
good battery power (420 per charge)
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Panasonic S5
Travel photography with Sony RX10 III
79
environment sealing
supports bluetooth
has touch to focus
good MP (24 megapixels)
screen is selfie friendly
55
good battery power (420 shots)
weather sealing
MP count good (20 megapixels)
has built in flash
relatively wide (24mm)
long zoom (600mm)
lack of Timelapse mode
more heavy than competition (1,051 grams)
display isn't selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f2.4)
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic S5 Landscape photography highlights
Sony RX10 III Landscape photography highlights
86
manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Leica L mount)
screen is a good size (3.0 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good MP (24MP)
great sensor size (Full frame)
does not have anti-alias filter
above average high ISO (51,200)
supports RAW files
environment sealing
two card slots
63
focusing manually
relatively wide (24mm)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
MP count good (20MP)
sensor size is nice (1")
exports RAW files
weather sealing
good battery power (420 per charge)
cannot switch lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f2.4)
lack of Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic S5 Vlogging highlights
Sony RX10 III Vlogging highlights
79
screen is selfie friendly
touchscreen
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
provides face detection focus
high res video (3840 x 2160 pixels)
has external microphone socket
28
relatively wide (24mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
includes face detect autofocus
video res high (3840 x 2160 pxls)
includes microphone socket
slow max aperture (f2.4)
display isn't selfie friendly
more heavy than competition (1,051 grams)
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Panasonic S5 vs Sony RX10 III Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic S5 and Sony RX10 III
 Panasonic Lumix DC-S5Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
General Information
Manufacturer Panasonic Sony
Model Panasonic Lumix DC-S5 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
Category Pro Mirrorless Large Sensor Superzoom
Announced 2020-08-14 2016-03-29
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Processor - Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Full frame 1"
Sensor measurements 35.6 x 23.8mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor area 847.3mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 24 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 6000 x 4000 5472 x 3648
Maximum native ISO 51200 12800
Maximum boosted ISO 204800 25600
Minimum native ISO 100 125
RAW photos
Minimum boosted ISO 50 64
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 225 25
Lens
Lens mount Leica L fixed lens
Lens focal range - 24-600mm (25.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/2.4-4.0
Macro focus distance - 3cm
Available lenses 31 -
Crop factor 1 2.7
Screen
Type of display Fully Articulated Tilting
Display sizing 3.0" 3"
Resolution of display 1,840k dots 1,229k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic Electronic
Viewfinder resolution 2,360k dots 2,359k dots
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.74x 0.7x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 30s
Highest shutter speed 1/8000s 1/2000s
Highest quiet shutter speed 1/8000s 1/32000s
Continuous shooting rate 7.0fps 14.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range no built-in flash 10.80 m (at Auto ISO)
Flash settings Auto, Auto/Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Forced On/Red-eye Reduction, Slow Sync, Slow Sync w/Red-eye Reduction, Forced Off Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/250s -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 3840 x 2160 @ 60p / 200 Mbps, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Maximum video resolution 3840x2160 3840x2160
Video file format MPEG-4, H.264, H.265 MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB Yes (can be charged with high-power laptop/tablet chargers or portable power banks) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 714 gr (1.57 lb) 1051 gr (2.32 lb)
Physical dimensions 133 x 97 x 82mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 3.2") 133 x 94 x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 70
DXO Color Depth score not tested 23.1
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 12.6
DXO Low light score not tested 472
Other
Battery life 440 images 420 images
Battery type Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - NP-FW50
Self timer Yes Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse recording
Storage type SD Memory Card, SDHC Memory Card, SDXC Memory Card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Card slots Dual 1
Price at launch $1,999 $1,398