Panasonic FS15 vs Sony A55
95 Imaging
34 Features
17 Overall
27


67 Imaging
55 Features
80 Overall
65
Panasonic FS15 vs Sony A55 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 2.7" Fixed Screen
- ISO 80 - 1600 (Bump to 6400)
- Optical Image Stabilization
- 640 x 480 video
- 29-145mm (F3.3-5.9) lens
- 136g - 97 x 54 x 22mm
- Revealed January 2009
(Full Review)
- 16MP - APS-C Sensor
- 3" Fully Articulated Screen
- ISO 100 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
- Sensor based Image Stabilization
- 1920 x 1080 video
- Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
- 500g - 124 x 92 x 85mm
- Released August 2010
- Refreshed by Sony A57

Panasonic FS15 vs Sony A55 Overview
Below is a comprehensive assessment of the Panasonic FS15 and Sony A55, former being a Ultracompact while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Panasonic and Sony. There exists a sizable gap among the image resolutions of the FS15 (12MP) and A55 (16MP) and the FS15 (1/2.3") and A55 (APS-C) use different sensor sizing.

The FS15 was announced 19 months earlier than the A55 which makes the cameras a generation apart from one another. Both cameras offer different body type with the Panasonic FS15 being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony A55 being a Compact SLR camera.
Before getting in to a full comparison, below is a brief introduction of how the FS15 matches up against the A55 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Panasonic FS15 vs Sony A55 Gallery
This is a preview of the gallery images for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS15 & Sony SLT-A55. The whole galleries are viewable at Panasonic FS15 Gallery & Sony A55 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Panasonic FS15 over the Sony A55
FS15 | A55 |
---|
Reasons to pick Sony A55 over the Panasonic FS15
A55 | FS15 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Released | August 2010 | ![]() | January 2009 | More recent by 19 months |
Manually focus | ![]() | Dial exact focus | ||
Screen type | Fully Articulated | ![]() | Fixed | Fully Articulating screen |
Screen sizing | 3" | ![]() | 2.7" | Bigger screen (+0.3") |
Screen resolution | 921k | ![]() | 230k | Clearer screen (+691k dot) |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Easy selfies |
Common features in the Panasonic FS15 and Sony A55
FS15 | A55 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Touch screen | ![]() | Neither features Touch screen |
Panasonic FS15 vs Sony A55 Physical Comparison
When you are intending to lug around your camera regularly, you need to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic FS15 enjoys outside dimensions of 97mm x 54mm x 22mm (3.8" x 2.1" x 0.9") and a weight of 136 grams (0.30 lbs) whilst the Sony A55 has dimensions of 124mm x 92mm x 85mm (4.9" x 3.6" x 3.3") having a weight of 500 grams (1.10 lbs).
See the Panasonic FS15 and Sony A55 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you use at that moment. Underneath is the front view dimension comparison of the FS15 against the A55.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the FS15 and A55 is 95 and 67 respectively.

Panasonic FS15 vs Sony A55 Sensor Comparison
Sometimes, it's tough to picture the gap in sensor measurements merely by viewing technical specs. The visual below will help offer you a better sense of the sensor sizes in the FS15 and A55.
As you have seen, both of these cameras offer different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The FS15 having a smaller sensor is going to make achieving bokeh trickier and the Sony A55 will render more detail with its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also help you crop shots a little more aggressively. The older FS15 will be behind in sensor tech.

Panasonic FS15 vs Sony A55 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic FS15 vs Sony A55 Specifications
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS15 | Sony SLT-A55 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Make | Panasonic | Sony |
Model | Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS15 | Sony SLT-A55 |
Category | Ultracompact | Entry-Level DSLR |
Revealed | 2009-01-16 | 2010-08-24 |
Body design | Ultracompact | Compact SLR |
Sensor Information | ||
Processor Chip | - | Bionz |
Sensor type | CCD | CMOS |
Sensor size | 1/2.3" | APS-C |
Sensor measurements | 6.08 x 4.56mm | 23.5 x 15.6mm |
Sensor area | 27.7mm² | 366.6mm² |
Sensor resolution | 12 megapixels | 16 megapixels |
Anti aliasing filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 16:9, 4:3 and 3:2 | 3:2 and 16:9 |
Full resolution | 4000 x 3000 | 4912 x 3264 |
Max native ISO | 1600 | 12800 |
Max boosted ISO | 6400 | 25600 |
Min native ISO | 80 | 100 |
RAW pictures | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Manual focus | ||
Autofocus touch | ||
Autofocus continuous | ||
Single autofocus | ||
Autofocus tracking | ||
Selective autofocus | ||
Center weighted autofocus | ||
Multi area autofocus | ||
Autofocus live view | ||
Face detection focus | ||
Contract detection focus | ||
Phase detection focus | ||
Number of focus points | 11 | 15 |
Cross focus points | - | 3 |
Lens | ||
Lens mounting type | fixed lens | Sony/Minolta Alpha |
Lens focal range | 29-145mm (5.0x) | - |
Highest aperture | f/3.3-5.9 | - |
Macro focus distance | 5cm | - |
Total lenses | - | 143 |
Crop factor | 5.9 | 1.5 |
Screen | ||
Screen type | Fixed Type | Fully Articulated |
Screen sizing | 2.7" | 3" |
Resolution of screen | 230k dot | 921k dot |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch function | ||
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | None | Electronic |
Viewfinder resolution | - | 1,150k dot |
Viewfinder coverage | - | 100 percent |
Viewfinder magnification | - | 0.73x |
Features | ||
Slowest shutter speed | 60 seconds | 30 seconds |
Maximum shutter speed | 1/2000 seconds | 1/4000 seconds |
Continuous shooting speed | 2.0 frames/s | 10.0 frames/s |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Expose Manually | ||
Exposure compensation | - | Yes |
Set white balance | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Inbuilt flash | ||
Flash range | - | 10.00 m (@ ISO 100) |
Flash modes | Auto, Auto Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Forced Off | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless |
Hot shoe | ||
AEB | ||
WB bracketing | ||
Maximum flash sync | - | 1/160 seconds |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment metering | ||
Average metering | ||
Spot metering | ||
Partial metering | ||
AF area metering | ||
Center weighted metering | ||
Video features | ||
Video resolutions | 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) | 1920 x 1080 (60, 29.97 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30fps), 640 x 424 (29.97 fps) |
Max video resolution | 640x480 | 1920x1080 |
Video data format | Motion JPEG | MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264 |
Microphone input | ||
Headphone input | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | None | Eye-Fi Connected |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | BuiltIn |
Physical | ||
Environment seal | ||
Water proof | ||
Dust proof | ||
Shock proof | ||
Crush proof | ||
Freeze proof | ||
Weight | 136 grams (0.30 lb) | 500 grams (1.10 lb) |
Dimensions | 97 x 54 x 22mm (3.8" x 2.1" x 0.9") | 124 x 92 x 85mm (4.9" x 3.6" x 3.3") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO All around score | not tested | 73 |
DXO Color Depth score | not tested | 23.0 |
DXO Dynamic range score | not tested | 12.4 |
DXO Low light score | not tested | 816 |
Other | ||
Battery life | - | 380 images |
Type of battery | - | Battery Pack |
Battery model | - | NP-FW50 |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 10 sec) | Yes (2 or 10 sec) |
Time lapse feature | ||
Type of storage | SD/MMC/SDHC card, Internal | SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo |
Storage slots | 1 | 1 |
Price at launch | $180 | $800 |