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Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3

Portability
95
Imaging
36
Features
31
Overall
34
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX78 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 front
Portability
66
Imaging
52
Features
80
Overall
63

Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 Key Specs

Panasonic FX78
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3.5" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 24-120mm (F2.5-5.9) lens
  • 142g - 100 x 55 x 21mm
  • Revealed January 2011
  • Also Known as Lumix DMC-FX77
Panasonic GH3
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 550g - 133 x 93 x 82mm
  • Released September 2012
  • Superseded the Panasonic GH2
  • Successor is Panasonic GH4
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Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 Overview

On this page, we are comparing the Panasonic FX78 versus Panasonic GH3, one is a Small Sensor Compact and the other is a Advanced Mirrorless and both of them are built by Panasonic. There exists a big gap among the image resolutions of the FX78 (12MP) and GH3 (16MP) and the FX78 (1/2.3") and GH3 (Four Thirds) provide different sensor measurements.

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The FX78 was unveiled 20 months earlier than the GH3 making them a generation away from one another. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Panasonic FX78 being a Compact camera and the Panasonic GH3 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before going straight to a in depth comparison, here is a quick overview of how the FX78 matches up versus the GH3 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic FX78 over the Panasonic GH3

 FX78 GH3 
Display dimensions3.5"3"Larger display (+0.5")

Reasons to pick Panasonic GH3 over the Panasonic FX78

 GH3 FX78 
ReleasedSeptember 2012January 2011Newer by 20 months
Focus manually More accurate focus
Display typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating display
Display resolution614k230kSharper display (+384k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies

Common features in the Panasonic FX78 and Panasonic GH3

 FX78 GH3 
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is planning to travel with your camera regularly, you need to consider its weight and size. The Panasonic FX78 has got physical measurements of 100mm x 55mm x 21mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.8") having a weight of 142 grams (0.31 lbs) while the Panasonic GH3 has specifications of 133mm x 93mm x 82mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 3.2") along with a weight of 550 grams (1.21 lbs).

Take a look at the Panasonic FX78 versus Panasonic GH3 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are utilising during that time. Here is a front view physical size comparison of the FX78 and the GH3.

Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability score of the FX78 and GH3 is 95 and 66 respectively.

Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, its hard to picture the gap in sensor dimensions purely by going through a spec sheet. The image below might give you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the FX78 and GH3.

Clearly, both cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The FX78 using its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field tougher and the Panasonic GH3 will provide more detail having an extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop photos more aggressively. The more aged FX78 will be behind when it comes to sensor tech.

Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 sensor size comparison

Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic FX78 Portrait photography highlights
Panasonic GH3 Portrait photography highlights
21
manual focus not available
no manual mode
can't use external flash
MP count low (12MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lacks RAW format
71
manual focus
good MP (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
has face detect autofocus
supports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Panasonic FX78 Street photography features
Panasonic GH3 Street photography features
57
image stabilization (Optical)
screen does not articulate
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lacks RAW format
65
fully articulated screen
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
boasts focus by touch
weather proofing
does not have image stabilization
more heavy than competition in class (550g)
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic FX78 Sports photography advice
Panasonic GH3 Sports photography advice
29
image stabilization (Optical)
offers tracking autofocus
max shutter speed is low (1/1,400s)
max fps very slow (4.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
MP count low (12 megapixels)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
terrible battery (200 CIPA)
lacks phase detect autofocus
63
max frames per second high (20.0 frames per second)
good MP (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
has tracking focus
weather proofing
good battery pack (540 CIPA)
does not have image stabilization
has no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Panasonic FX78
Travel photography with Panasonic GH3
56
has built in flash
pretty wide (24mm)
missing Timelapse mode
terrible battery (200 CIPA)
MP count low (12MP)
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
slow maximum aperture (f2.5)
71
good battery pack (540 shots)
weather proofing
boasts focus by touch
good MP (16MP)
built-in flash
screen is selfie friendly
more heavy than competition in class (550 grams)
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic FX78 Landscape photography information
Panasonic GH3 Landscape photography information
36
pretty wide (24mm)
lovely big screen (3.5 inch)
image stabilization (Optical)
manual focus not available
can't switch lenses (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f2.5)
no manual mode
MP count low (12MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lacks RAW format
terrible battery (200 CIPA)
missing Timelapse mode
71
manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sized screen (3 inches)
good MP (16 megapixels)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
weather proofing
good battery pack (540 per charge)
does not have image stabilization
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic FX78 Vlogging information
Panasonic GH3 Vlogging information
34
pretty wide (24mm)
touchscreen
image stabilization (Optical)
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
slow maximum aperture (f2.5)
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
missing external microphone port
65
screen is selfie friendly
has touchscreen
has face detect autofocus
high res video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
includes microphone jack
does not have image stabilization
more heavy than competition in class (550 grams)
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Panasonic FX78 vs Panasonic GH3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic FX78 and Panasonic GH3
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX78Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3
General Information
Brand Panasonic Panasonic
Model type Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX78 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3
Otherwise known as Lumix DMC-FX77 -
Category Small Sensor Compact Advanced Mirrorless
Revealed 2011-01-25 2012-09-17
Body design Compact SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Venus Engine FHD Venus Engine VII FHD
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" Four Thirds
Sensor measurements 6.08 x 4.56mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor surface area 27.7mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4000 x 3000 4608 x 3456
Maximum native ISO 6400 12800
Min native ISO 100 200
RAW files
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Total focus points 11 23
Lens
Lens mount type fixed lens Micro Four Thirds
Lens zoom range 24-120mm (5.0x) -
Max aperture f/2.5-5.9 -
Macro focusing distance 5cm -
Total lenses - 107
Crop factor 5.9 2.1
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fully Articulated
Display diagonal 3.5 inch 3 inch
Display resolution 230 thousand dot 614 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Display tech TFT LCD OLED Monitor with static touch control
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 1,744 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.67x
Features
Min shutter speed 60s 60s
Max shutter speed 1/1400s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter speed 4.0 frames per sec 20.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 5.60 m 12.00 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Max flash sync - 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60, 50, 30, 25 24 fps) 1280 x 720 (60, 50, 30, 25fps), 640 x 480 (30, 25fps
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video data format MPEG-4, AVCHD MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Microphone input
Headphone input
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
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 142g (0.31 lbs) 550g (1.21 lbs)
Physical dimensions 100 x 55 x 21mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.8") 133 x 93 x 82mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 3.2")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested 71
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 22.7
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 12.4
DXO Low light rating not tested 812
Other
Battery life 200 pictures 540 pictures
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images))
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots Single Single
Retail pricing $210 $799