Panasonic FP1 vs Sony S950

Below, we are evaluating the Panasonic FP1 and Sony S950, former being a Ultracompact while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by rivals Panasonic and Sony. The image resolution of the FP1 (12MP) and the S950 (10MP) is very close and they come with the exact same sensor size (1/2.3").

Photography Glossary

The FP1 was announced 11 months later than the S950 so they are both of a similar age. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Panasonic FP1 being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony S950 being a Compact camera.

Before diving straight into a in-depth comparison, below is a brief highlight of how the FP1 grades against the S950 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

This is a sample of the gallery pics for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FP1 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S950. The whole galleries are available at Panasonic FP1 Gallery & Sony S950 Gallery.

When you are aiming to carry your camera often, you're going to have to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic FP1 has external dimensions of 99mm x 59mm x 19mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.7") accompanied by a weight of 151 grams (0.33 lbs) while the Sony S950 has dimensions of 93mm x 56mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") and a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs).

Check the Panasonic FP1 and Sony S950 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you are utilising at that time. Below is the front view overall size comparison of the FP1 against the S950.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability rating of the FP1 and S950 is 95 and 94 respectively.

Generally, it is very tough to imagine the gap in sensor sizing purely by viewing specs. The visual here might provide you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the FP1 and S950.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras have got the exact same sensor measurements but different megapixels. You can expect to see the Panasonic FP1 to result in greater detail with its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop images much more aggressively. The more recent FP1 provides a benefit with regard to sensor innovation.