Panasonic G10 vs Pentax K-5

Following is a extended review of the Panasonic G10 and Pentax K-5, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Advanced DSLR by competitors Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a sizeable gap between the resolutions of the G10 (12MP) and K-5 (16MP) and the G10 (Four Thirds) and K-5 (APS-C) posses totally different sensor sizes.

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The G10 was introduced 4 months before the K-5 and they are of a similar generation. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Panasonic G10 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-5 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before diving right into a detailed comparison, here is a concise summary of how the G10 scores vs the K-5 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a sample of the gallery pictures for Panasonic Lumix DMC-G10 and Pentax K-5. The whole galleries are available at Panasonic G10 Gallery and Pentax K-5 Gallery.

If you're planning to carry around your camera frequently, you have to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic G10 provides external dimensions of 124mm x 90mm x 74mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 2.9") accompanied by a weight of 388 grams (0.86 lbs) while the Pentax K-5 has dimensions of 131mm x 97mm x 73mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 2.9") along with a weight of 740 grams (1.63 lbs).

Check out the Panasonic G10 and Pentax K-5 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you are utilising at that moment. Here is a front view proportions comparison of the G10 against the K-5.

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the G10 and K-5 is 72 and 60 respectively.

Normally, its hard to visualise the gap between sensor sizes merely by reading technical specs. The image below may give you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the G10 and K-5.

As you can tell, both of these cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The G10 having a tinier sensor will make getting bokeh more difficult and the Pentax K-5 will offer you greater detail using its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also help you crop pics a bit more aggressively.