Panasonic FH27 vs Sony A390

Below is a detailed review of the Panasonic FH27 and Sony A390, one being a Small Sensor Compact and the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Panasonic and Sony. The resolution of the FH27 (16MP) and the A390 (14MP) is very comparable but the FH27 (1/2.3") and A390 (APS-C) boast different sensor measurements.

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The FH27 was manufactured 6 months later than the A390 and they are both of a similar generation. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Panasonic FH27 being a Compact camera and the Sony A390 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving right into a thorough comparison, here is a short highlight of how the FH27 scores vs the A390 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH27 and Sony Alpha DSLR-A390. The entire galleries are viewable at Panasonic FH27 Gallery and Sony A390 Gallery.

When you are aiming to lug around your camera frequently, you will need to think about its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic FH27 has outer dimensions of 99mm x 57mm x 28mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.1") and a weight of 152 grams (0.34 lbs) and the Sony A390 has dimensions of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") having a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs).

Contrast the Panasonic FH27 and Sony A390 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you select at the time. Here is a front view dimension comparison of the FH27 and the A390.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the FH27 and A390 is 94 and 66 respectively.

Normally, it is very difficult to picture the difference in sensor measurements merely by seeing specifications. The graphic below should provide you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the FH27 and A390.

Plainly, both of these cameras have different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The FH27 due to its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF more challenging and the Panasonic FH27 will provide more detail due to its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also enable you to crop photos a bit more aggressively.