Panasonic FP7 vs Pentax K-3 II

Below, we are evaluating the Panasonic FP7 and Pentax K-3 II, one being a Ultracompact and the other is a Advanced DSLR by rivals Panasonic and Pentax. There is a sizeable difference among the sensor resolutions of the FP7 (16MP) and K-3 II (24MP) and the FP7 (1/2.3") and K-3 II (APS-C) come with different sensor sizing.

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The FP7 was revealed 5 years before the K-3 II and that is a fairly large gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Panasonic FP7 being a Ultracompact camera and the Pentax K-3 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before going straight into a step-by-step comparison, below is a concise view of how the FP7 grades against the K-3 II when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a sample of the gallery pictures for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FP7 and Pentax K-3 II. The full galleries are viewable at Panasonic FP7 Gallery and Pentax K-3 II Gallery.

When you are looking to lug around your camera regularly, you're going to have to consider its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic FP7 provides physical measurements of 101mm x 59mm x 18mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 0.7") with a weight of 147 grams (0.32 lbs) while the Pentax K-3 II has dimensions of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") accompanied by a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

Look at the Panasonic FP7 and Pentax K-3 II in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you have attached at the time. Underneath is the front view over all size comparison of the FP7 versus the K-3 II.

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the FP7 and K-3 II is 95 and 59 respectively.

Generally, its hard to visualize the contrast in sensor measurements simply by researching specifications. The graphic here might give you a clearer sense of the sensor sizing in the FP7 and K-3 II.

To sum up, both of the cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The FP7 having a smaller sensor is going to make getting shallow depth of field harder and the Pentax K-3 II will render more detail because of its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop pics much more aggressively. The older FP7 will be behind in sensor technology.