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Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III

Portability
95
Imaging
35
Features
14
Overall
26
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS12 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III front
Portability
53
Imaging
52
Features
77
Overall
62

Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III Key Specs

Panasonic FS12
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 1600 (Increase to 6400)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 31-124mm (F2.8-5.9) lens
  • 129g - 97 x 55 x 22mm
  • Released April 2009
Sony RX10 III
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Boost to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-600mm (F2.4-4.0) lens
  • 1051g - 133 x 94 x 127mm
  • Launched March 2016
  • Earlier Model is Sony RX10 II
  • Renewed by Sony RX10 IV
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Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III Overview

On this page, we will be analyzing the Panasonic FS12 and Sony RX10 III, one being a Ultracompact and the latter is a Large Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Panasonic and Sony. There is a huge difference among the sensor resolutions of the FS12 (12MP) and RX10 III (20MP) and the FS12 (1/2.3") and RX10 III (1") have different sensor sizes.

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The FS12 was launched 8 years before the RX10 III and that is a fairly significant gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Panasonic FS12 being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony RX10 III being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before getting straight to a thorough comparison, here is a simple introduction of how the FS12 grades against the RX10 III when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic FS12 over the Sony RX10 III

 FS12 RX10 III 

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 III over the Panasonic FS12

 RX10 III FS12 
LaunchedMarch 2016April 2009More recent by 84 months
Manually focus More accurate focusing
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution1229k230kClearer screen (+999k dot)

Common features in the Panasonic FS12 and Sony RX10 III

 FS12 RX10 III 
Selfie screen Neither provides selfie screen
Touch screen Neither provides Touch screen

Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III Physical Comparison

If you are aiming to lug around your camera frequently, you will need to factor in its weight and size. The Panasonic FS12 provides physical dimensions of 97mm x 55mm x 22mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.9") along with a weight of 129 grams (0.28 lbs) and the Sony RX10 III has specifications of 133mm x 94mm x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0") having a weight of 1051 grams (2.32 lbs).

Compare the Panasonic FS12 and Sony RX10 III in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you use at the time. The following is a front view size comparison of the FS12 versus the RX10 III.

Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III size comparison

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability rating of the FS12 and RX10 III is 95 and 53 respectively.

Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III top view buttons comparison

Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III Sensor Comparison

Often, it is hard to visualize the difference in sensor measurements just by going through technical specs. The graphic below may give you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the FS12 and RX10 III.

As you have seen, each of these cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The FS12 because of its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF more challenging and the Sony RX10 III will produce extra detail utilizing its extra 8MP. Higher resolution will help you crop photographs more aggressively. The older FS12 will be behind in sensor tech.

Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III sensor size comparison

Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic FS12 Portrait photography details
Sony RX10 III Portrait photography details
21
focusing manually not possible
manual mode not available
can't use external flash
MP count low (12MP)
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
71
focusing manually
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
good sensor size (1")
includes face detection focusing
saves RAW formats
Photography Glossary

Street Comparison

Panasonic FS12 as a Street photography camera
Sony RX10 III as a Street photography camera
57
has image stabilization (Optical)
screen does not articulate
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
64
screen tilts up and down
image stabilization (Optical)
good sensor size (1")
saves RAW formats
environment sealing
heavier than others (1,051 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic FS12 as a Sports photography camera
Sony RX10 III as a Sports photography camera
25
has image stabilization (Optical)
very slow continuous shooting (2.0 frames/s)
lack of shutter priority mode
MP count low (12 megapixels)
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no phase detect autofocus
70
great zoom range (24-600mm 25.0 x zoom)
silent shutter (1/32,000s)
image stabilization (Optical)
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
good sensor size (1")
includes tracking autofocus
environment sealing
great battery (420 shots)
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic FS12 as a Travel photography camera
Sony RX10 III as a Travel photography camera
51
built-in flash
does not have Timelapse function
MP count low (12 megapixels)
does not posses selfie friendly display
wide angle not the best (31mm)
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.8)
55
great battery (420 shots)
environment sealing
decent megapixels (20MP)
flash built-in
reasonably wide (24mm)
great reach (600mm)
does not have Time Lapse recording
heavier than others (1,051 grams)
screen is not selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f2.4)
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic FS12 Landscape photography info
Sony RX10 III Landscape photography info
28
has image stabilization (Optical)
focusing manually not possible
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not the best (31mm)
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.8)
small screen (2.7 inches)
manual mode not available
MP count low (12MP)
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
does not have Timelapse function
63
focusing manually
reasonably wide (24mm)
screen size is decent (3")
image stabilization (Optical)
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
good sensor size (1")
saves RAW formats
environment sealing
great battery (420 per charge)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f2.4)
does not have Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic FS12 Vlogging information
Sony RX10 III Vlogging information
25
has image stabilization (Optical)
wide angle not the best (31mm)
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.8)
does not posses selfie friendly display
low res video (640 x 480 pixels)
does not have external microphone support
28
reasonably wide (24mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
includes face detection focusing
high quality video (3840 x 2160 pxls)
includes external mic socket
slow max aperture (f2.4)
screen is not selfie friendly
heavier than others (1,051g)
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Panasonic FS12 vs Sony RX10 III Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic FS12 and Sony RX10 III
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS12Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
General Information
Company Panasonic Sony
Model type Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS12 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
Category Ultracompact Large Sensor Superzoom
Released 2009-04-17 2016-03-29
Physical type Ultracompact SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Powered by - Bionz X
Sensor type CCD BSI-CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1"
Sensor dimensions 6.08 x 4.56mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor surface area 27.7mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 20 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 4000 x 3000 5472 x 3648
Maximum native ISO 1600 12800
Maximum boosted ISO 6400 25600
Lowest native ISO 80 125
RAW photos
Lowest boosted ISO - 64
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
AF continuous
AF single
AF tracking
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points - 25
Lens
Lens support fixed lens fixed lens
Lens zoom range 31-124mm (4.0x) 24-600mm (25.0x)
Maximal aperture f/2.8-5.9 f/2.4-4.0
Macro focusing range 5cm 3cm
Focal length multiplier 5.9 2.7
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Tilting
Screen sizing 2.7" 3"
Screen resolution 230 thousand dots 1,229 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dots
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.7x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60s 30s
Maximum shutter speed 1/2000s 1/2000s
Maximum silent shutter speed - 1/32000s
Continuous shooting rate 2.0fps 14.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 6.30 m 10.80 m (at Auto ISO)
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Sync Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Maximum video resolution 640x480 3840x2160
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 129g (0.28 lbs) 1051g (2.32 lbs)
Physical dimensions 97 x 55 x 22mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.9") 133 x 94 x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested 70
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 23.1
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 12.6
DXO Low light rating not tested 472
Other
Battery life - 420 shots
Battery type - Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC card, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Card slots 1 1
Launch cost $228 $1,398