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Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3

Portability
91
Imaging
54
Features
62
Overall
57
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ3 front
Portability
96
Imaging
40
Features
29
Overall
35

Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Key Specs

Panasonic GM5
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 211g - 99 x 60 x 36mm
  • Revealed September 2014
  • Old Model is Panasonic GM1
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
  • Announced January 2013
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Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Overview

Below, we will be contrasting the Panasonic GM5 versus Panasonic SZ3, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and both are built by Panasonic. The resolution of the GM5 (16MP) and the SZ3 (16MP) is pretty well matched but the GM5 (Four Thirds) and SZ3 (1/2.3") feature different sensor sizing.

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The GM5 was released 21 months after the SZ3 which makes the cameras a generation away from each other. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Panasonic GM5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic SZ3 being a Compact camera.

Before we go straight into a full comparison, below is a quick introduction of how the GM5 grades vs the SZ3 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GM5 over the Panasonic SZ3

 GM5 SZ3 
AnnouncedSeptember 2014January 2013More modern by 21 months
Manually focus More precise focusing
Screen dimension3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution921k230kSharper screen (+691k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Panasonic SZ3 over the Panasonic GM5

 SZ3 GM5 

Common features in the Panasonic GM5 and Panasonic SZ3

 GM5 SZ3 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen

Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Physical Comparison

If you're looking to carry around your camera frequently, you'll need to think about its weight and volume. The Panasonic GM5 enjoys outside measurements of 99mm x 60mm x 36mm (3.9" x 2.4" x 1.4") and a weight of 211 grams (0.47 lbs) and the Panasonic SZ3 has sizing of 95mm x 56mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") along with a weight of 126 grams (0.28 lbs).

Compare the Panasonic GM5 versus Panasonic SZ3 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are working with at the time. Following is the front view overall size comparison of the GM5 versus the SZ3.

Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 size comparison

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability score of the GM5 and SZ3 is 91 and 96 respectively.

Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Sensor Comparison

Oftentimes, its hard to picture the gap between sensor sizes only by reading through technical specs. The pic below should give you a clearer sense of the sensor sizing in the GM5 and SZ3.

As you can tell, both of these cameras posses the exact same resolution albeit different sensor sizes. The GM5 contains the bigger sensor which is going to make getting shallower DOF simpler. The newer GM5 provides a benefit with regard to sensor technology.

Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 sensor size comparison

Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic GM5 Portrait photography highlights
Panasonic SZ3 Portrait photography highlights
72
manual focus
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
includes face detection focus
saves RAW formats
30
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
lack of manual focus
no manual mode
external flash not possible
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
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Street Comparison

Panasonic GM5 Street photography information
Panasonic SZ3 Street photography information
76
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
has focus by touch
lighter than competition in class (211 grams)
very good ISO range (25,600)
screen does not articulate
lack of image stabilization
64
has image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than others in class (126 grams)
screen is fixed
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic GM5 Sports photography information
Panasonic SZ3 Sports photography information
49
quiet shutter (1/16,000s)
resolution is good (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
includes tracking autofocus
maximum shutter speed is a little low (1/500s)
very slow continuous shooting (5.8 fps)
lack of image stabilization
bad battery (220 shots)
no phase detect auto focus
41
has image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
includes tracking focus
very slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic GM5 Travel photography advice
Panasonic SZ3 Travel photography advice
71
lighter than competition in class (211 grams)
has focus by touch
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
bad battery (220 shots)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
71
lighter than others in class (126 grams)
resolution is good (16MP)
built-in flash
relatively wide (25mm)
long zoom (250mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
doesn't have selfie friendly display
slow maximum aperture (f3.1)
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic GM5 as a Landscape photography camera
Panasonic SZ3 as a Landscape photography camera
69
manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sized screen (3")
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
very good ISO range (25,600)
saves RAW formats
lack of image stabilization
bad battery (220 shots)
39
relatively wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
lack of manual focus
cannot switch lens (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.1)
small screen (2.7")
no manual mode
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
doesn't have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic GM5 Vlogging factors
Panasonic SZ3 Vlogging factors
35
has touchscreen
includes face detection focus
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
lighter than competition in class (211 grams)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
lack of image stabilization
does not have external mic port
31
relatively wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than others in class (126 grams)
slow maximum aperture (f3.1)
doesn't have selfie friendly display
low quality video (1280 x 720 pixels)
doesn't have mic port
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Panasonic GM5 vs Panasonic SZ3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GM5 and Panasonic SZ3
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ3
General Information
Manufacturer Panasonic Panasonic
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5 Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ3
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Revealed 2014-09-15 2013-01-07
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Venus Engine -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 16MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 -
Full resolution 4592 x 3448 4608 x 3456
Max native ISO 25600 6400
Lowest native ISO 200 100
RAW data
Lowest boosted ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
AF continuous
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points 23 23
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-250mm (10.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.1-5.9
Macro focus range - 5cm
Available lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.9
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display sizing 3" 2.7"
Resolution of display 921 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Display technology - TFT LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 1,166 thousand dot -
Viewfinder coverage 100% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x -
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60s 60s
Maximum shutter speed 1/500s 1/1600s
Maximum quiet shutter speed 1/16000s -
Continuous shooting speed 5.8 frames per second 1.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range no built-in flash 4.10 m
Flash options Auto, auto w/redeye reduction, on, on w/redeye reduction, slow sync, slow sync w/redeye reduction, off Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 50p, 50i, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (30p, 25p), 640 x 480 (30p, 25p) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video data format MPEG-4, AVCHD Motion JPEG
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 211g (0.47 pounds) 126g (0.28 pounds)
Dimensions 99 x 60 x 36mm (3.9" x 2.4" x 1.4") 95 x 56 x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 66 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 22.1 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 11.7 not tested
DXO Low light score 721 not tested
Other
Battery life 220 pictures 250 pictures
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model DMW-BLH7 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images)) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots 1 1
Retail cost $966 $150