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Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37

Portability
94
Imaging
36
Features
21
Overall
30
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH3 front
 
Sony SLT-A37 front
Portability
67
Imaging
57
Features
65
Overall
60

Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 Key Specs

Panasonic FH3
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-140mm (F2.8-6.9) lens
  • 165g - 98 x 55 x 24mm
  • Announced January 2010
  • Also referred to as Lumix DMC-FS11
Sony A37
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 2.6" Tilting Display
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 506g - 124 x 92 x 85mm
  • Introduced May 2012
  • Earlier Model is Sony A35
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Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 Overview

Its time to take a deeper look at the Panasonic FH3 versus Sony A37, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by rivals Panasonic and Sony. The image resolution of the FH3 (14MP) and the A37 (16MP) is very comparable but the FH3 (1/2.3") and A37 (APS-C) provide different sensor measurements.

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The FH3 was released 3 years earlier than the A37 and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Panasonic FH3 being a Compact camera and the Sony A37 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving straight to a in depth comparison, here is a brief synopsis of how the FH3 scores against the A37 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic FH3 over the Sony A37

 FH3 A37 
Display dimensions2.7"2.6"Larger display (+0.1")

Reasons to pick Sony A37 over the Panasonic FH3

 A37 FH3 
IntroducedMay 2012January 2010More recent by 28 months
Manually focus More exact focusing
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display

Common features in the Panasonic FH3 and Sony A37

 FH3 A37 
Display resolution230k230kExact same display resolution
Selfie screen Neither contains selfie screen
Touch friendly display Missing Touch friendly display

Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 Physical Comparison

When you are looking to lug around your camera frequently, you should take into account its weight and measurements. The Panasonic FH3 has got exterior dimensions of 98mm x 55mm x 24mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 165 grams (0.36 lbs) whilst the Sony A37 has proportions of 124mm x 92mm x 85mm (4.9" x 3.6" x 3.3") with a weight of 506 grams (1.12 lbs).

Compare the Panasonic FH3 versus Sony A37 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you are utilizing at the time. Below is a front view measurements comparison of the FH3 against the A37.

Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the FH3 and A37 is 94 and 67 respectively.

Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it is very difficult to imagine the difference in sensor measurements purely by seeing a spec sheet. The graphic below might provide you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the FH3 and A37.

As you can see, both the cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The FH3 because of its smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF more difficult and the Sony A37 will produce extra detail as a result of its extra 2MP. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop pics a bit more aggressively. The older FH3 will be disadvantaged in sensor technology.

Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 sensor size comparison

Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic FH3 Portrait photography advice
Sony A37 Portrait photography advice
28
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
lack of manual focus
manual exposure not available
cannot use external flash
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
74
focusing manually
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
offers face detect autofocus
supports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Panasonic FH3 Street photography highlights
Sony A37 Street photography highlights
56
has image stabilization (Optical)
no moving screen
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
77
has a tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
very good ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic FH3 as a Sports photography camera
Sony A37 as a Sports photography camera
34
has image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
max frames per second very slow (6.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority mode
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect auto focus
61
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (16MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
comes with phase detect autofocus
slow continuous shooting (6.0 fps)
not so great battery pack (500 shots)
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Panasonic FH3
Travel photography with Sony A37
64
MP count decent (14MP)
built-in flash
rather wide (28mm)
does not have Time Lapse recording
does not have a selfie friendly screen
slow max aperture (f2.8)
54
MP count decent (16MP)
has built in flash
missing Time Lapse recording
not so great battery pack (500 CIPA)
screen isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic FH3 Landscape photography info
Sony A37 Landscape photography info
37
rather wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
lack of manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inches)
manual exposure not available
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
does not have Time Lapse recording
64
focusing manually
change lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (16MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
very good ISO range (25,600)
supports RAW files
small screen (2.6")
not so great battery pack (500 shots)
missing Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic FH3 as a Vlogging camera
Sony A37 as a Vlogging camera
29
rather wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
does not have a selfie friendly screen
low quality video (1280 x 720 pixels)
does not have external mic socket
35
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detect autofocus
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
does have mic port
screen isn't selfie friendly
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Panasonic FH3 vs Sony A37 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic FH3 and Sony A37
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH3Sony SLT-A37
General Information
Make Panasonic Sony
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH3 Sony SLT-A37
Also referred to as Lumix DMC-FS11 -
Type Small Sensor Compact Entry-Level DSLR
Announced 2010-01-06 2012-05-16
Body design Compact Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" APS-C
Sensor dimensions 6.08 x 4.56mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 27.7mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 14MP 16MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4320 x 3240 4912 x 3264
Highest native ISO 6400 25600
Lowest native ISO 80 100
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Number of focus points 9 15
Cross focus points - 3
Lens
Lens mount fixed lens Sony/Minolta Alpha
Lens focal range 28-140mm (5.0x) -
Maximal aperture f/2.8-6.9 -
Macro focus range 5cm -
Available lenses - 143
Crop factor 5.9 1.5
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Tilting
Screen diagonal 2.7 inch 2.6 inch
Screen resolution 230k dot 230k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 1,440k dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.73x
Features
Min shutter speed 60s 30s
Max shutter speed 1/1600s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter speed 6.0fps 6.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation - Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 6.80 m 12.00 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Max flash sync - 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60, 29.97 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30fps), 640 x 424 (29.97 fps)
Highest video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 165 gr (0.36 lbs) 506 gr (1.12 lbs)
Physical dimensions 98 x 55 x 24mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9") 124 x 92 x 85mm (4.9" x 3.6" x 3.3")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested 75
DXO Color Depth score not tested 23.3
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 12.9
DXO Low light score not tested 799
Other
Battery life - 500 photographs
Battery form - Battery Pack
Battery model - NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec 3 or 5 images)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC card, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Cost at release $160 $522