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Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1

Portability
85
Imaging
47
Features
47
Overall
47
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ1 front
Portability
95
Imaging
39
Features
34
Overall
37

Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 Key Specs

Panasonic GF1
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 385g - 119 x 71 x 36mm
  • Introduced October 2009
  • Replacement is Panasonic GF2
Panasonic SZ1
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-250mm (F3.1-5.9) lens
  • 131g - 99 x 59 x 21mm
  • Announced January 2012
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Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 Overview

Here, we will be analyzing the Panasonic GF1 and Panasonic SZ1, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and both are designed by Panasonic. There exists a sizable gap between the sensor resolutions of the GF1 (12MP) and SZ1 (16MP) and the GF1 (Four Thirds) and SZ1 (1/2.3") posses totally different sensor dimensions.

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The GF1 was brought out 3 years earlier than the SZ1 and that is quite a significant difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic GF1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic SZ1 being a Compact camera.

Before delving straight to a in-depth comparison, here is a concise overview of how the GF1 scores vs the SZ1 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GF1 over the Panasonic SZ1

 GF1 SZ1 
Focus manually More precise focusing
Screen resolution460k230kClearer screen (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Panasonic SZ1 over the Panasonic GF1

 SZ1 GF1 
AnnouncedJanuary 2012October 2009More recent by 27 months

Common features in the Panasonic GF1 and Panasonic SZ1

 GF1 SZ1 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen size3"3"Same screen sizing
Selfie screen Neither contains selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Neither contains Touch friendly screen

Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 Physical Comparison

When you are aiming to lug around your camera often, you will have to consider its weight and volume. The Panasonic GF1 has got physical dimensions of 119mm x 71mm x 36mm (4.7" x 2.8" x 1.4") and a weight of 385 grams (0.85 lbs) while the Panasonic SZ1 has sizing of 99mm x 59mm x 21mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.8") having a weight of 131 grams (0.29 lbs).

Contrast the Panasonic GF1 and Panasonic SZ1 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you are working with during that time. Here is a front view overall size comparison of the GF1 versus the SZ1.

Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the GF1 and SZ1 is 85 and 95 respectively.

Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, it is tough to see the difference between sensor measurements simply by reviewing a spec sheet. The graphic below should provide you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the GF1 and SZ1.

Clearly, both the cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The GF1 featuring a bigger sensor will make getting shallow depth of field less difficult and the Panasonic SZ1 will offer you more detail having its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also let you crop pictures a good deal more aggressively. The older GF1 is going to be behind in sensor innovation.

Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 sensor size comparison

Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic GF1 Portrait photography features
Panasonic SZ1 Portrait photography features
60
focusing manually
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
features face detect focusing
delivers RAW formats
sensor resolution not great (12 megapixels)
34
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
has face detection autofocus
manual focus not available
no manual control
no external flash support
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
no RAW files
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Panasonic GF1
Street photography with Panasonic SZ1
64
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
no articulating screen
lack of image stabilization
63
image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competitors (131 grams)
screen is fixed
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
no RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic GF1 as a Sports photography camera
Panasonic SZ1 as a Sports photography camera
44
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
features tracking focus
better than average battery life (380 CIPA)
painfully slow continuous shooting (3.0 fps)
lack of image stabilization
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
lack of phase detect AF
40
image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
has tracking autofocus
continuous shooting slow (1.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Panasonic GF1
Travel photography with Panasonic SZ1
59
better than average battery life (380 per charge)
built-in flash
missing Time Lapse function
sensor resolution not great (12 megapixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
70
lighter than competitors (131g)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
has built in flash
pretty wide (25mm)
long zoom (250mm)
doesn't have Timelapse mode
doesn't have a selfie friendly screen
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic GF1 as a Landscape photography camera
Panasonic SZ1 as a Landscape photography camera
60
focusing manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a decent size (3 inches)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
better than average battery life (380 per charge)
lack of image stabilization
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
missing Time Lapse function
43
pretty wide (25mm)
screen is a decent size (3 inches)
image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
manual focus not available
cannot swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
no manual control
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
no RAW files
doesn't have Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic GF1 as a Vlogging camera
Panasonic SZ1 as a Vlogging camera
25
features face detect focusing
screen is not selfie friendly
lack of image stabilization
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pixels)
missing mic jack
32
pretty wide (25mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
has face detection autofocus
lighter than competitors (131 grams)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
doesn't have a selfie friendly screen
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pixels)
doesn't have external microphone socket
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Panasonic GF1 vs Panasonic SZ1 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GF1 and Panasonic SZ1
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ1
General Information
Manufacturer Panasonic Panasonic
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ1
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2009-10-14 2012-01-09
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Chip Venus Engine HD -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 16 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4000 x 3000 4608 x 3456
Max native ISO 3200 6400
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW data
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Autofocus continuous
Autofocus single
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Number of focus points 23 23
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-250mm (10.0x)
Largest aperture - f/3.1-5.9
Macro focus distance - 4cm
Amount of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.9
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen diagonal 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 460k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen tech TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle TFT Color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 seconds 8 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/1600 seconds
Continuous shooting rate 3.0fps 1.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 6.00 m 5.60 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/160 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1280x720 1280x720
Video data format AVCHD Lite MPEG-4
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 385g (0.85 pounds) 131g (0.29 pounds)
Physical dimensions 119 x 71 x 36mm (4.7" x 2.8" x 1.4") 99 x 59 x 21mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.8")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 54 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 21.2 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 10.3 not tested
DXO Low light score 513 not tested
Other
Battery life 380 images 250 images
Battery type Battery Pack Battery Pack
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images)) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage type SD/SDHC/MMC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots Single Single
Pricing at launch $400 $179