Panasonic FX580 vs Pentax K-3 II

On this page, we will be comparing the Panasonic FX580 and Pentax K-3 II, one is a Small Sensor Compact and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by competitors Panasonic and Pentax. There is a huge difference among the image resolutions of the FX580 (12MP) and K-3 II (24MP) and the FX580 (1/2.3") and K-3 II (APS-C) provide totally different sensor dimensions.

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The FX580 was unveiled 7 years before the K-3 II which is a fairly significant gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Panasonic FX580 being a Compact camera and the Pentax K-3 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before we go into a step-by-step comparison, here is a short summary of how the FX580 grades vs the K-3 II in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Here is a preview of the gallery photos for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX580 and Pentax K-3 II. The full galleries are provided at Panasonic FX580 Gallery and Pentax K-3 II Gallery.

In case you're going to carry around your camera regularly, you will need to factor in its weight and volume. The Panasonic FX580 has exterior measurements of 95mm x 57mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-3 II has sizing of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") having a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

Examine the Panasonic FX580 and Pentax K-3 II in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you have during that time. Following is a front view scale comparison of the FX580 vs the K-3 II.

Looking at size and weight, the portability rating of the FX580 and K-3 II is 95 and 59 respectively.

Often, its difficult to see the difference in sensor sizes just by going through a spec sheet. The picture below will help offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the FX580 and K-3 II.

Clearly, each of the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The FX580 having a smaller sensor will make getting shallow depth of field more difficult and the Pentax K-3 II will produce greater detail having an extra 12MP. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The more aged FX580 will be disadvantaged in sensor technology.