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Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II

Portability
95
Imaging
33
Features
10
Overall
23
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS42 front
 
Pentax K-3 II front
Portability
59
Imaging
66
Features
84
Overall
73

Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II Key Specs

Panasonic FS42
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/2.5" Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 1000 (Expand to 6400)
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 33-132mm (F2.8-5.9) lens
  • 132g - 98 x 55 x 22mm
  • Introduced April 2009
Pentax K-3 II
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3.2" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 51200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 800g - 131 x 100 x 77mm
  • Released April 2015
  • Superseded the Pentax K-3
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Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II Overview

Here, we are looking at the Panasonic FS42 and Pentax K-3 II, one being a Ultracompact and the other is a Advanced DSLR by companies Panasonic and Pentax. There is a huge difference among the resolutions of the FS42 (10MP) and K-3 II (24MP) and the FS42 (1/2.5") and K-3 II (APS-C) offer totally different sensor measurements.

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The FS42 was unveiled 7 years prior to the K-3 II and that is a fairly significant gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic FS42 being a Ultracompact camera and the Pentax K-3 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before getting straight to a complete comparison, here is a concise introduction of how the FS42 grades vs the K-3 II for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic FS42 over the Pentax K-3 II

 FS42 K-3 II 

Reasons to pick Pentax K-3 II over the Panasonic FS42

 K-3 II FS42 
ReleasedApril 2015April 2009Fresher by 73 months
Focus manually More precise focus
Display size3.2"2.5"Larger display (+0.7")
Display resolution1037k230kSharper display (+807k dot)

Common features in the Panasonic FS42 and Pentax K-3 II

 FS42 K-3 II 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Selfie screen Neither contains selfie screen
Touch friendly display Lack of Touch friendly display

Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II Physical Comparison

When you are planning to carry your camera frequently, you are going to need to consider its weight and volume. The Panasonic FS42 has got outside dimensions of 98mm x 55mm x 22mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 132 grams (0.29 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-3 II has sizing of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") and a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

Contrast the Panasonic FS42 and Pentax K-3 II in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you choose at that moment. Following is a front view over all size comparison of the FS42 and the K-3 II.

Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II size comparison

Considering size and weight, the portability score of the FS42 and K-3 II is 95 and 59 respectively.

Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II top view buttons comparison

Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II Sensor Comparison

In many cases, its difficult to see the gap in sensor sizing just by going through a spec sheet. The photograph underneath will help provide you a clearer sense of the sensor dimensions in the FS42 and K-3 II.

Clearly, the 2 cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The FS42 with its smaller sensor will make achieving shallow DOF tougher and the Pentax K-3 II will provide greater detail having an extra 14 Megapixels. Greater resolution will allow you to crop pics a good deal more aggressively. The older FS42 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor technology.

Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II sensor size comparison

Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic FS42 Portrait photography information
Pentax K-3 II Portrait photography information
19
manual focus not available
no manual exposure
no external flash support
resolution not great (10 megapixels)
tiny sensor size (1/2.5")
doesn't have RAW files
79
has manual focus
megapixel count good (24 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
offers face detection autofocus
exports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Panasonic FS42 Street photography advice
Pentax K-3 II Street photography advice
47
fixed screen
lack of image stabilization
tiny sensor size (1/2.5")
doesn't have RAW files
maximum ISO low (1,000)
69
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
weather sealing
good high ISO (51,200)
fixed screen
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Panasonic FS42
Sports photography with Pentax K-3 II
16
max frames per second very slow (2.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
lack of image stabilization
resolution not great (10MP)
tiny sensor size (1/2.5")
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
76
high shutter speed (1/8,000s)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (24 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
offers tracking autofocus
weather sealing
comes with phase detect autofocus
terrible battery power (720 CIPA)
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic FS42 as a Travel photography camera
Pentax K-3 II as a Travel photography camera
51
has built in flash
missing Time Lapse recording
resolution not great (10 megapixels)
display isn't selfie friendly
wide angle not great (33mm)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
56
weather sealing
megapixel count good (24 megapixels)
terrible battery power (720 per charge)
display is not selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic FS42 Landscape photography info
Pentax K-3 II Landscape photography info
22
manual focus not available
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not great (33mm)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
small screen (2.5")
no manual exposure
lack of image stabilization
resolution not great (10MP)
tiny sensor size (1/2.5")
maximum ISO low (1,000)
doesn't have RAW files
missing Time Lapse recording
78
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
good sized screen (3.2")
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (24MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
no low pass filter
good high ISO (51,200)
exports RAW formats
weather sealing
has dual storage slots
terrible battery power (720 shots)
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Panasonic FS42
Vlogging with Pentax K-3 II
22
wide angle not great (33mm)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
display isn't selfie friendly
lack of image stabilization
video resolution low (640 x 480 pxls)
missing external mic port
34
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection autofocus
good video quality (1920 x 1080 pixels)
does have external mic jack
display is not selfie friendly
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Panasonic FS42 vs Pentax K-3 II Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic FS42 and Pentax K-3 II
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS42Pentax K-3 II
General Information
Make Panasonic Pentax
Model type Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS42 Pentax K-3 II
Type Ultracompact Advanced DSLR
Introduced 2009-04-17 2015-04-23
Body design Ultracompact Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Powered by - Prime III
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.5" APS-C
Sensor dimensions 5.744 x 4.308mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 24.7mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 10MP 24MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2
Maximum resolution 3648 x 2736 6016 x 4000
Maximum native ISO 1000 51200
Maximum boosted ISO 6400 -
Lowest native ISO 80 100
RAW files
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points - 27
Cross type focus points - 25
Lens
Lens support fixed lens Pentax KAF2
Lens zoom range 33-132mm (4.0x) -
Max aperture f/2.8-5.9 -
Macro focusing distance 5cm -
Number of lenses - 151
Crop factor 6.3 1.5
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display diagonal 2.5" 3.2"
Display resolution 230k dot 1,037k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.64x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Highest shutter speed 1/2000 seconds 1/8000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 2.0 frames per second 8.3 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 6.30 m no built-in flash
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Sync Auto Flash Discharge, Auto Flash + Red-eye Reduction, Flash On, Flash On + Red-eye Reduction, Slow-speed Sync, Slow-speed Sync + Red-eye, P-TTL, Trailing Curtain Sync, Contrast-control-sync, High-speed sync, Wireless sync (available with dedicated external flash)
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash sync - 1/180 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 (60i, 50i, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p)
Maximum video resolution 640x480 1920x1080
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, H.264
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None Optional
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec)
GPS None BuiltIn
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 132 gr (0.29 pounds) 800 gr (1.76 pounds)
Physical dimensions 98 x 55 x 22mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9") 131 x 100 x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested 80
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 23.6
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 13.6
DXO Low light rating not tested 1106
Other
Battery life - 720 photographs
Type of battery - Battery Pack
Battery ID - D-LI90
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC card, Internal Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots One Dual
Price at launch $580 $829