Panasonic FS12 vs Sony NEX-3

Let's look a little more closely at the Panasonic FS12 and Sony NEX-3, one being a Ultracompact and the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by companies Panasonic and Sony. The resolution of the FS12 (12MP) and the NEX-3 (14MP) is very similar but the FS12 (1/2.3") and NEX-3 (APS-C) have totally different sensor measurements.

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The FS12 was introduced 13 months earlier than the NEX-3 making them a generation apart from each other. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Panasonic FS12 being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony NEX-3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before going straight to a complete comparison, here is a quick synopsis of how the FS12 scores vs the NEX-3 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS12 and Sony Alpha NEX-3. The whole galleries are available at Panasonic FS12 Gallery and Sony NEX-3 Gallery.

If you are going to lug around your camera, you'll have to factor in its weight and proportions. The Panasonic FS12 features exterior dimensions of 97mm x 55mm x 22mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 129 grams (0.28 lbs) whilst the Sony NEX-3 has measurements of 117mm x 62mm x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3") with a weight of 297 grams (0.65 lbs).

Analyze the Panasonic FS12 and Sony NEX-3 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you are utilising at that time. Following is a front view dimension comparison of the FS12 and the NEX-3.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the FS12 and NEX-3 is 95 and 89 respectively.

Usually, its hard to envision the gap between sensor measurements just by reading specs. The photograph below will give you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the FS12 and NEX-3.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The FS12 using its tinier sensor will make getting shallow DOF tougher and the Sony NEX-3 will offer you more detail using its extra 2MP. Greater resolution will also let you crop images more aggressively. The older FS12 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.