Panasonic FS15 vs Sony NEX-5T

Let's take a more detailed look at the Panasonic FS15 vs Sony NEX-5T, former being a Ultracompact while the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by rivals Panasonic and Sony. There is a noticeable difference among the image resolutions of the FS15 (12MP) and NEX-5T (16MP) and the FS15 (1/2.3") and NEX-5T (APS-C) enjoy totally different sensor sizing.

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The FS15 was released 5 years prior to the NEX-5T and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both the cameras come with different body type with the Panasonic FS15 being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony NEX-5T being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before we go through a detailed comparison, below is a simple highlight of how the FS15 scores vs the NEX-5T when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

The following is a preview of the gallery images for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS15 & Sony Alpha NEX-5T. The complete galleries are viewable at Panasonic FS15 Gallery & Sony NEX-5T Gallery.

In case you're intending to carry your camera frequently, you will have to factor in its weight and size. The Panasonic FS15 has got physical measurements of 97mm x 54mm x 22mm (3.8" x 2.1" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 136 grams (0.30 lbs) whilst the Sony NEX-5T has specifications of 111mm x 59mm x 39mm (4.4" x 2.3" x 1.5") along with a weight of 276 grams (0.61 lbs).

Compare the Panasonic FS15 vs Sony NEX-5T in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you choose at the time. Below is the front view proportions comparison of the FS15 against the NEX-5T.

Looking at size and weight, the portability rating of the FS15 and NEX-5T is 95 and 89 respectively.

Usually, its tough to visualise the gap in sensor sizing merely by researching technical specs. The visual below should give you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the FS15 and NEX-5T.

As you can tell, both cameras posses different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The FS15 due to its smaller sensor will make getting shallow DOF trickier and the Sony NEX-5T will render greater detail as a result of its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop photographs somewhat more aggressively. The older FS15 will be behind in sensor tech.