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Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N

Portability
70
Imaging
50
Features
65
Overall
56
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2 front
 
Sony Alpha NEX-3N front
Portability
89
Imaging
56
Features
52
Overall
54

Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N Key Specs

Panasonic GH2
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 160 - 12800
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 442g - 124 x 90 x 76mm
  • Introduced March 2011
  • Previous Model is Panasonic GH1
  • New Model is Panasonic GH3
Sony NEX-3N
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 16000
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 269g - 110 x 62 x 35mm
  • Introduced February 2013
  • Old Model is Sony NEX-F3
  • Refreshed by Sony a5000
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Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N Overview

Let's take a more detailed look at the Panasonic GH2 versus Sony NEX-3N, former is a Advanced Mirrorless while the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by companies Panasonic and Sony. The image resolution of the GH2 (16MP) and the NEX-3N (16MP) is relatively comparable but the GH2 (Four Thirds) and NEX-3N (APS-C) have different sensor sizing.

Photography Glossary

The GH2 was manufactured 23 months earlier than the NEX-3N which makes them a generation away from one another. Both cameras have different body design with the Panasonic GH2 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony NEX-3N being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before going straight to a full comparison, here is a simple introduction of how the GH2 scores versus the NEX-3N when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GH2 over the Sony NEX-3N

 GH2 NEX-3N 
Screen typeFully ArticulatedTiltingFully Articulating screen
Selfie screen Take selfies
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Sony NEX-3N over the Panasonic GH2

 NEX-3N GH2 
IntroducedFebruary 2013March 2011More modern by 23 months

Common features in the Panasonic GH2 and Sony NEX-3N

 GH2 NEX-3N 
Manual focus More exact focusing
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen measurement
Screen resolution460k460kThe same screen resolution

Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N Physical Comparison

If you're planning to carry around your camera, you'll have to think about its weight and size. The Panasonic GH2 has external measurements of 124mm x 90mm x 76mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 3.0") with a weight of 442 grams (0.97 lbs) while the Sony NEX-3N has specifications of 110mm x 62mm x 35mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.4") having a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs).

Contrast the Panasonic GH2 versus Sony NEX-3N in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have at the time. Below is a front view dimensions comparison of the GH2 and the NEX-3N.

Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N size comparison

Using dimensions and weight, the portability score of the GH2 and NEX-3N is 70 and 89 respectively.

Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N Sensor Comparison

Typically, it can be difficult to visualize the contrast in sensor sizes only by seeing specifications. The pic underneath should offer you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the GH2 and NEX-3N.

To sum up, both of those cameras have the same megapixel count albeit different sensor sizes. The GH2 includes the smaller sensor which should make achieving shallow DOF more difficult. The more aged GH2 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.

Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N sensor size comparison

Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic GH2 Portrait photography information
Sony NEX-3N Portrait photography information
70
manual focus
decent MP (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with face detect focus
supports RAW formats
65
focusing manually
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW files
no external flash support
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Street Comparison

Panasonic GH2 as a Street photography camera
Sony NEX-3N as a Street photography camera
67
screen articulates fully
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
no image stabilization
77
screen tilts
good sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW files
does not have image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic GH2 Sports photography info
Sony NEX-3N Sports photography info
46
decent MP (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking focus
continuous shooting slow (3.0 frames/s)
no image stabilization
low battery pack (330 per charge)
has no phase detect auto focus
53
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
great battery power (480 per charge)
slow frames per second (4.0 frames per second)
does not have image stabilization
no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic GH2 as a Travel photography camera
Sony NEX-3N as a Travel photography camera
62
decent MP (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
selfie friendly screen
no Timelapse function
low battery pack (330 per charge)
70
great battery power (480 shots)
decent sensor resolution (16MP)
built-in flash
lack of Timelapse mode
screen isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic GH2 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony NEX-3N as a Landscape photography camera
60
manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3 inch)
decent MP (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
no image stabilization
low battery pack (330 per charge)
no Timelapse function
70
focusing manually
swap lenses (Sony E mount)
screen size is decent (3")
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW files
great battery power (480 shots)
does not have image stabilization
lack of Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic GH2 Vlogging info
Sony NEX-3N Vlogging info
71
selfie friendly screen
touch screen
comes with face detect focus
good video quality (1920 x 1080 pixels)
includes microphone support
no image stabilization
28
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
screen isn't selfie friendly
does not have image stabilization
lack of microphone support
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Panasonic GH2 vs Sony NEX-3N Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GH2 and Sony NEX-3N
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2Sony Alpha NEX-3N
General Information
Make Panasonic Sony
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2 Sony Alpha NEX-3N
Class Advanced Mirrorless Entry-Level Mirrorless
Introduced 2011-03-23 2013-02-25
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Venus Engine FHD Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixels 16 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4608 x 3456 4912 x 3264
Max native ISO 12800 16000
Minimum native ISO 160 200
RAW format
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
Continuous autofocus
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Autofocus multi area
Live view autofocus
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Number of focus points 23 25
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds Sony E
Available lenses 107 121
Crop factor 2.1 1.5
Screen
Type of screen Fully Articulated Tilting
Screen size 3" 3"
Resolution of screen 460k dots 460k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Screen tech TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic None
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.71x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 30s
Highest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/4000s
Continuous shooting rate 3.0fps 4.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 15.60 m -
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync -
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/160s 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (24, 30, 60fps) 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30fps), 320 x 240 (30fps) 1920 x 1080
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video format AVCHD, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD
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 442 gr (0.97 pounds) 269 gr (0.59 pounds)
Physical dimensions 124 x 90 x 76mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 3.0") 110 x 62 x 35mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.4")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 60 74
DXO Color Depth score 21.2 22.8
DXO Dynamic range score 11.3 12.5
DXO Low light score 655 1067
Other
Battery life 330 photos 480 photos
Battery style Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - NPFW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) -
Time lapse shooting
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Card slots Single Single
Launch price $1,000 $399