Panasonic FZ80 vs Panasonic ZS15

Its time to look more closely at the Panasonic FZ80 and Panasonic ZS15, both Small Sensor Superzoom digital cameras and they are both built by Panasonic. There is a large difference between the sensor resolutions of the FZ80 (18MP) and ZS15 (12MP) but both cameras posses the identical sensor dimensions (1/2.3").

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The FZ80 was brought out 4 years after the ZS15 which is quite a serious difference as far as tech is concerned. The two cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic FZ80 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Panasonic ZS15 being a Compact camera.

Before getting into a comprehensive comparison, here is a simple introduction of how the FZ80 matches up against the ZS15 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

The following is a sample of the gallery pics for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ80 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15. The entire galleries are viewable at Panasonic FZ80 Gallery & Panasonic ZS15 Gallery.

If you're intending to travel with your camera frequently, you are going to need to factor in its weight and size. The Panasonic FZ80 has outer dimensions of 130mm x 94mm x 119mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 4.7") with a weight of 616 grams (1.36 lbs) and the Panasonic ZS15 has specifications of 105mm x 58mm x 33mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.3") along with a weight of 208 grams (0.46 lbs).

Take a look at the Panasonic FZ80 and Panasonic ZS15 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you select at the time. Here is a front view sizing comparison of the FZ80 versus the ZS15.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability rating of the FZ80 and ZS15 is 63 and 92 respectively.

Often, it is very difficult to visualize the difference between sensor dimensions simply by going over technical specs. The image underneath may provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the FZ80 and ZS15.

As you can tell, each of these cameras come with the identical sensor size but different MP. You can expect to see the Panasonic FZ80 to offer you more detail having its extra 6 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also help you crop photos a good deal more aggressively. The more modern FZ80 should have an advantage when it comes to sensor innovation.