Panasonic ZS200 vs Sony a5100

Its time to look more closely at the Panasonic ZS200 and Sony a5100, one is a Large Sensor Compact and the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by rivals Panasonic and Sony. The image resolution of the ZS200 (20MP) and the a5100 (24MP) is very similar but the ZS200 (1") and a5100 (APS-C) offer different sensor sizes.

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The ZS200 was brought out 3 years after the a5100 which is quite a big gap as far as tech is concerned. The two cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic ZS200 being a Large Sensor Compact camera and the Sony a5100 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting right into a full comparison, here is a simple introduction of how the ZS200 matches up vs the a5100 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Panasonic Lumix DC-ZS200 and Sony Alpha a5100. The entire galleries are available at Panasonic ZS200 Gallery and Sony a5100 Gallery.

For those who are planning to travel with your camera regularly, you have to factor its weight and volume. The Panasonic ZS200 offers outer measurements of 111mm x 66mm x 45mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.8") with a weight of 340 grams (0.75 lbs) and the Sony a5100 has sizing of 110mm x 63mm x 36mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.4") having a weight of 283 grams (0.62 lbs).

Take a look at the Panasonic ZS200 and Sony a5100 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you are utilizing at the time. Below is a front view measurement comparison of the ZS200 against the a5100.

Using size and weight, the portability score of the ZS200 and a5100 is 86 and 89 respectively.

In many cases, it's tough to imagine the difference between sensor dimensions purely by reading a spec sheet. The image below should give you a better sense of the sensor measurements in the ZS200 and a5100.

Clearly, both the cameras come with different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The ZS200 due to its tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF more difficult and the Sony a5100 will deliver extra detail having its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also allow you to crop images a good deal more aggressively. The newer ZS200 should have an advantage when it comes to sensor technology.