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Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS

Portability
89
Imaging
48
Features
54
Overall
50
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 front
 
Pentax Optio WG-2 GPS front
Portability
91
Imaging
39
Features
37
Overall
38

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Key Specs

Panasonic GF5
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 160 - 12800
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 267g - 108 x 67 x 37mm
  • Introduced April 2012
  • Earlier Model is Panasonic GF3
  • Replacement is Panasonic GF6
Pentax WG-2 GPS
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 198g - 122 x 61 x 30mm
  • Revealed February 2012
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Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Overview

Its time to look much closer at the Panasonic GF5 and Pentax WG-2 GPS, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Waterproof by manufacturers Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a big gap among the image resolutions of the GF5 (12MP) and WG-2 GPS (16MP) and the GF5 (Four Thirds) and WG-2 GPS (1/2.3") enjoy different sensor sizes.

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The GF5 was brought out 2 months later than the WG-2 GPS so they are both of a similar generation. Both cameras offer different body type with the Panasonic GF5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax WG-2 GPS being a Compact camera.

Before going through a full comparison, below is a brief highlight of how the GF5 scores vs the WG-2 GPS when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GF5 over the Pentax WG-2 GPS

 GF5 WG-2 GPS 
Display resolution920k460kSharper display (+460k dot)
Touch display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax WG-2 GPS over the Panasonic GF5

 WG-2 GPS GF5 

Common features in the Panasonic GF5 and Pentax WG-2 GPS

 GF5 WG-2 GPS 
RevealedApril 2012February 2012Same generation
Manually focus More accurate focusing
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Display sizing3"3"Equivalent display dimensions
Selfie screen Lacking selfie screen

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Physical Comparison

For those who are looking to lug around your camera often, you will need to factor in its weight and measurements. The Panasonic GF5 comes with external 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) whilst the Pentax WG-2 GPS has proportions of 122mm x 61mm x 30mm (4.8" x 2.4" x 1.2") accompanied by a weight of 198 grams (0.44 lbs).

Check the Panasonic GF5 and Pentax WG-2 GPS in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you use at the time. Underneath is the front view size comparison of the GF5 versus the WG-2 GPS.

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS size comparison

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the GF5 and WG-2 GPS is 89 and 91 respectively.

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, its hard to picture the contrast in sensor measurements purely by researching technical specs. The photograph here will give you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the GF5 and WG-2 GPS.

As you have seen, both cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The GF5 because of its larger sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field simpler and the Pentax WG-2 GPS will provide you with more detail having its extra 4MP. Greater resolution can also help you crop photos a little more aggressively.

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS sensor size comparison

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Portrait photography info
Pentax WG-2 GPS Portrait photography info
55
focusing manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
provides face detection focusing
exports RAW formats
can't use external flash
low megapixels (12MP)
40
has manual focus
decent megapixels (16MP)
offers face detection focusing
no manual exposure
can't use external flash
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
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Street Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Street photography highlights
Pentax WG-2 GPS Street photography highlights
70
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
supports touch to focus
screen does not articulate
does not have image stabilization
54
environment proofing
no articulating screen
no image stabilization
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Panasonic GF5
Sports photography with Pentax WG-2 GPS
40
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
provides tracking autofocus
slow frames per second (4.0 frames/s)
does not have image stabilization
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
does not have phase detect AF
38
decent megapixels (16MP)
offers tracking autofocus
environment proofing
max frames per second low (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority mode
no image stabilization
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Travel photography highlights
Pentax WG-2 GPS Travel photography highlights
61
supports touch to focus
flash built-in
doesn't have Timelapse recording
low megapixels (12MP)
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
70
environment proofing
decent megapixels (16MP)
has built in flash
rather wide (28mm)
screen is not selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Landscape photography highlights
Pentax WG-2 GPS Landscape photography highlights
59
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice screen size (3")
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
does not have image stabilization
low megapixels (12MP)
doesn't have Timelapse recording
47
has manual focus
rather wide (28mm)
nice screen size (3 inch)
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
environment proofing
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.5)
no manual exposure
no image stabilization
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Vlogging factors
Pentax WG-2 GPS Vlogging factors
32
built-in touchscreen
provides face detection focusing
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
does not have image stabilization
doesn't have external microphone socket
30
rather wide (28mm)
offers face detection focusing
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
slow max aperture (f3.5)
screen is not selfie friendly
no image stabilization
missing external mic support
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Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GF5 and Pentax WG-2 GPS
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5Pentax Optio WG-2 GPS
General Information
Brand Panasonic Pentax
Model type Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 Pentax Optio WG-2 GPS
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Waterproof
Introduced 2012-04-05 2012-02-07
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Chip Venus Engine FHD -
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 16MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9
Full resolution 4000 x 3000 4288 x 3216
Max native ISO 12800 6400
Lowest native ISO 160 125
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
AF continuous
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points 23 9
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-140mm (5.0x)
Highest aperture - f/3.5-5.5
Macro focusing distance - 1cm
Amount of lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inch 3 inch
Screen resolution 920 thousand dots 460 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Screen technology TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle Widescreen TFT color LCD with anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None None
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60 secs 4 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/4000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 4.0 frames per sec 1.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 6.30 m 5.40 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/160 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
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) 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video data format MPEG-4, AVCHD MPEG-4, H.264
Mic support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None BuiltIn
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 267g (0.59 lb) 198g (0.44 lb)
Dimensions 108 x 67 x 37mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.5") 122 x 61 x 30mm (4.8" x 2.4" x 1.2")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 50 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 20.5 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.0 not tested
DXO Low light rating 573 not tested
Other
Battery life 360 shots 260 shots
Battery style Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID - D-LI92
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images)) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC card, Internal
Card slots Single Single
Launch cost $600 $300