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Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3

Portability
89
Imaging
49
Features
54
Overall
51
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ3 front
Portability
96
Imaging
40
Features
29
Overall
35

Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Key Specs

Panasonic GF5
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 160 - 12800
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 267g - 108 x 67 x 37mm
  • Introduced April 2012
  • Previous Model is Panasonic GF3
  • Newer Model is Panasonic GF6
Panasonic SZ3
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-250mm (F3.1-5.9) lens
  • 126g - 95 x 56 x 22mm
  • Revealed January 2013
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Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Overview

Here is a thorough analysis of the Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and both are produced by Panasonic. There exists a substantial gap between the sensor resolutions of the GF5 (12MP) and SZ3 (16MP) and the GF5 (Four Thirds) and SZ3 (1/2.3") posses totally different sensor size.

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The GF5 was unveiled 9 months earlier than the SZ3 which means that they are both of a similar age. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Panasonic GF5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic SZ3 being a Compact camera.

Before delving right into a complete comparison, here is a short view of how the GF5 grades vs the SZ3 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GF5 over the Panasonic SZ3

 GF5 SZ3 
Manual focus Very accurate focus
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution920k230kClearer screen (+690k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Panasonic SZ3 over the Panasonic GF5

 SZ3 GF5 
RevealedJanuary 2013April 2012Fresher by 9 months

Common features in the Panasonic GF5 and Panasonic SZ3

 GF5 SZ3 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Lacking selfie screen

Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Physical Comparison

In case you're planning to carry your camera, you should think about its weight and volume. The Panasonic GF5 enjoys exterior dimensions of 108mm x 67mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.5") accompanied by a weight of 267 grams (0.59 lbs) and the Panasonic SZ3 has sizing of 95mm x 56mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 126 grams (0.28 lbs).

Contrast the Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you use at that moment. Below is a front view size comparison of the GF5 versus the SZ3.

Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the GF5 and SZ3 is 89 and 96 respectively.

Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, its difficult to envision the contrast between sensor sizing simply by reviewing a spec sheet. The visual here should offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the GF5 and SZ3.

Clearly, the two cameras have different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The GF5 with its bigger sensor will make shooting shallow DOF less difficult and the Panasonic SZ3 will offer extra detail having an extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop photographs a bit more aggressively. The older GF5 is going to be behind with regard to sensor technology.

Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 sensor size comparison

Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Portrait photography info
Panasonic SZ3 Portrait photography info
56
has manual focus
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers face detect autofocus
saves RAW files
cannot use external flash
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
30
MP count good (16MP)
no manual focus
no manual exposure
no external flash support
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
no RAW format
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Panasonic GF5
Street photography with Panasonic SZ3
70
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
offers touch to focus
no articulating screen
does not have image stabilization
64
built in image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competitors in class (126g)
no articulating screen
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
no RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Sports photography features
Panasonic SZ3 Sports photography features
41
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers tracking focus
max frames per second low (4.0 frames/s)
does not have image stabilization
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
has no phase detect autofocus
41
built in image stabilization (Optical)
MP count good (16MP)
has tracking focus
painfully slow continuous shooting (1.0 fps)
no shutter priority
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
no phase detect autofocus
Photography Glossary

Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Panasonic GF5
Travel photography with Panasonic SZ3
61
offers touch to focus
flash built-in
missing Time Lapse recording
megapixel count low (12MP)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
71
lighter than competitors in class (126 grams)
MP count good (16MP)
built-in flash
quite wide (25mm)
long zoom (250mm)
lack of Timelapse function
display isn't selfie friendly
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Landscape photography advice
Panasonic SZ3 Landscape photography advice
59
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a good size (3")
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
does not have image stabilization
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
missing Time Lapse recording
39
quite wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
MP count good (16 megapixels)
no manual focus
cannot swap lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
screen is small (2.7 inches)
no manual exposure
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
no RAW format
lack of Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Vlogging factors
Panasonic SZ3 Vlogging factors
32
built-in touchscreen
offers face detect autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 resolution)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
does not have image stabilization
missing mic port
31
quite wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competitors in class (126g)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
display isn't selfie friendly
video quality not great (1280 x 720 resolution)
lack of microphone support
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Panasonic GF5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GF5 and Panasonic SZ3
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ3
General Information
Brand Name Panasonic Panasonic
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ3
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2012-04-05 2013-01-07
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Venus Engine FHD -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor 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 -
Highest resolution 4000 x 3000 4608 x 3456
Highest native ISO 12800 6400
Lowest native ISO 160 100
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detect autofocus
Contract detect autofocus
Phase detect autofocus
Number of focus points 23 23
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-250mm (10.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.1-5.9
Macro focus distance - 5cm
Total lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.9
Screen
Type of display Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display size 3" 2.7"
Resolution of display 920 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Display tech TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle TFT LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None None
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60 seconds 60 seconds
Highest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/1600 seconds
Continuous shooting rate 4.0fps 1.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 6.30 m 4.10 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/160 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60, 50 fps), 1280 x 720p (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video data format MPEG-4, AVCHD Motion JPEG
Microphone support
Headphone support
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 267g (0.59 lbs) 126g (0.28 lbs)
Physical dimensions 108 x 67 x 37mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.5") 95 x 56 x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 50 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 20.5 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 10.0 not tested
DXO Low light score 573 not tested
Other
Battery life 360 photos 250 photos
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images)) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots One One
Price at launch $600 $150