Panasonic GF5 vs Sony WX500
89 Imaging
48 Features
54 Overall
50


91 Imaging
43 Features
56 Overall
48
Panasonic GF5 vs Sony WX500 Key Specs
(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
- Released April 2012
- Earlier Model is Panasonic GF3
- Replacement is Panasonic GF6
(Full Review)
- 18MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 3" Tilting Display
- ISO 80 - 12800
- Optical Image Stabilization
- 1920 x 1080 video
- 24-720mm (F3.5-6.4) lens
- 236g - 102 x 58 x 36mm
- Introduced April 2015
- Earlier Model is Sony WX350

Panasonic GF5 vs Sony WX500 Overview
On this page, we are evaluating the Panasonic GF5 and Sony WX500, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by rivals Panasonic and Sony. There is a huge difference between the resolutions of the GF5 (12MP) and WX500 (18MP) and the GF5 (Four Thirds) and WX500 (1/2.3") offer totally different sensor sizing.

The GF5 was launched 4 years before the WX500 and that is quite a significant gap as far as tech is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Panasonic GF5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony WX500 being a Compact camera.
Before we go straight to a full comparison, here is a quick summation of how the GF5 scores versus the WX500 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Panasonic GF5 vs Sony WX500 Gallery
The following is a sample of the gallery pics for Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX500. The complete galleries are provided at Panasonic GF5 Gallery and Sony WX500 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Panasonic GF5 over the Sony WX500
GF5 | WX500 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Manual focus | ![]() | Very exact focusing | ||
Touch display | ![]() | Easily navigate |
Reasons to pick Sony WX500 over the Panasonic GF5
WX500 | GF5 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Introduced | April 2015 | ![]() | April 2012 | More recent by 36 months |
Display type | Tilting | ![]() | Fixed | Tilting display |
Display resolution | 921k | ![]() | 920k | Sharper display (+1k dot) |
Common features in the Panasonic GF5 and Sony WX500
GF5 | WX500 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Display dimensions | 3" | ![]() | 3" | Equal display measurement |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Lacking selfie screen |
Panasonic GF5 vs Sony WX500 Physical Comparison
For anyone who is looking to lug around your camera, you'll need to think about its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic GF5 enjoys outer measurements 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 Sony WX500 has dimensions of 102mm x 58mm x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4") having a weight of 236 grams (0.52 lbs).
Check out the Panasonic GF5 and Sony WX500 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you have chosen at the time. Below is a front view measurement comparison of the GF5 compared to the WX500.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability grade of the GF5 and WX500 is 89 and 91 respectively.

Panasonic GF5 vs Sony WX500 Sensor Comparison
Usually, its hard to see the gap between sensor measurements just by looking at technical specs. The visual here might give you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the GF5 and WX500.
As you have seen, both of these cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The GF5 because of its larger sensor will make shooting shallower depth of field simpler and the Sony WX500 will give you more detail utilizing its extra 6 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also let you crop pics a bit more aggressively. The older GF5 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor technology.

Panasonic GF5 vs Sony WX500 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic GF5 vs Sony WX500 Specifications
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 | Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX500 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Brand | Panasonic | Sony |
Model type | Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 | Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX500 |
Class | Entry-Level Mirrorless | Small Sensor Superzoom |
Released | 2012-04-05 | 2015-04-14 |
Physical type | Rangefinder-style mirrorless | Compact |
Sensor Information | ||
Powered by | Venus Engine FHD | Bionz X |
Sensor type | CMOS | BSI-CMOS |
Sensor size | Four Thirds | 1/2.3" |
Sensor measurements | 17.3 x 13mm | 6.17 x 4.55mm |
Sensor surface area | 224.9mm² | 28.1mm² |
Sensor resolution | 12MP | 18MP |
Anti alias filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 | 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 |
Max resolution | 4000 x 3000 | 4896 x 3672 |
Max native ISO | 12800 | 12800 |
Lowest native ISO | 160 | 80 |
RAW data | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Manual focusing | ||
Touch to focus | ||
AF continuous | ||
AF single | ||
Tracking AF | ||
AF selectice | ||
Center weighted AF | ||
Multi area AF | ||
Live view AF | ||
Face detect AF | ||
Contract detect AF | ||
Phase detect AF | ||
Total focus points | 23 | - |
Lens | ||
Lens mount type | Micro Four Thirds | fixed lens |
Lens zoom range | - | 24-720mm (30.0x) |
Largest aperture | - | f/3.5-6.4 |
Macro focusing distance | - | 5cm |
Number of lenses | 107 | - |
Crop factor | 2.1 | 5.8 |
Screen | ||
Type of display | Fixed Type | Tilting |
Display sizing | 3 inch | 3 inch |
Display resolution | 920 thousand dots | 921 thousand dots |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch functionality | ||
Display tech | TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle | - |
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | None | None |
Features | ||
Minimum shutter speed | 60s | 30s |
Fastest shutter speed | 1/4000s | 1/2000s |
Continuous shutter rate | 4.0fps | 10.0fps |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manually set exposure | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | Yes |
Set WB | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Integrated flash | ||
Flash distance | 6.30 m | 5.40 m (with Auto ISO) |
Flash modes | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync | Auto, flash on, slow sync, flash off, rear sync |
External flash | ||
Auto exposure bracketing | ||
WB bracketing | ||
Fastest flash synchronize | 1/160s | - |
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) | 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 30p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (30p) |
Max video resolution | 1920x1080 | 1920x1080 |
Video file format | MPEG-4, AVCHD | AVCHD, XAVC S |
Microphone port | ||
Headphone port | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | None | Built-In |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | None |
Physical | ||
Environment sealing | ||
Water proofing | ||
Dust proofing | ||
Shock proofing | ||
Crush proofing | ||
Freeze proofing | ||
Weight | 267 gr (0.59 lbs) | 236 gr (0.52 lbs) |
Physical dimensions | 108 x 67 x 37mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.5") | 102 x 58 x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO Overall 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 photos | 360 photos |
Form of battery | Battery Pack | Battery Pack |
Battery ID | - | NP-BX1 |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images)) | Yes |
Time lapse recording | ||
Storage type | SD/SDHC/SDXC | SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo |
Card slots | One | One |
Pricing at release | $600 | $348 |