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Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50

Portability
74
Imaging
59
Features
84
Overall
69
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX8 front
 
Pentax K-50 front
Portability
63
Imaging
58
Features
65
Overall
60

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 Key Specs

Panasonic GX8
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 487g - 133 x 78 x 63mm
  • Released July 2015
  • Earlier Model is Panasonic GX7
Pentax K-50
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 51600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/6000s Maximum Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 650g - 130 x 97 x 71mm
  • Revealed November 2013
  • Superseded the Pentax K-30
Photography Glossary

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 Overview

Lets look closer at the Panasonic GX8 versus Pentax K-50, former is a Advanced Mirrorless while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by rivals Panasonic and Pentax. There is a noticeable difference between the sensor resolutions of the GX8 (20MP) and K-50 (16MP) and the GX8 (Four Thirds) and K-50 (APS-C) come with different sensor measurements.

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The GX8 was announced 20 months after the K-50 which makes the cameras a generation away from each other. The two cameras offer different body type with the Panasonic GX8 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-50 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before getting in to a more detailed comparison, below is a quick overview of how the GX8 matches up against the K-50 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GX8 over the Pentax K-50

 GX8 K-50 
RevealedJuly 2015November 2013More modern by 20 months
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Screen resolution1040k921kCrisper screen (+119k dot)
Selfie screen Easy selfies
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax K-50 over the Panasonic GX8

 K-50 GX8 

Common features in the Panasonic GX8 and Pentax K-50

 GX8 K-50 
Focus manually Very exact focus
Screen sizing3"3"Equivalent screen measurements

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 Physical Comparison

For those who are planning to carry around your camera frequently, you are going to need to think about its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic GX8 has outside measurements of 133mm x 78mm x 63mm (5.2" x 3.1" x 2.5") along with a weight of 487 grams (1.07 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-50 has dimensions of 130mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8") accompanied by a weight of 650 grams (1.43 lbs).

Analyze the Panasonic GX8 versus Pentax K-50 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you are using at that moment. Underneath is the front view overall size comparison of the GX8 compared to the K-50.

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the GX8 and K-50 is 74 and 63 respectively.

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 Sensor Comparison

Oftentimes, it's difficult to visualize the gap between sensor sizes purely by looking at a spec sheet. The pic underneath will help provide you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the GX8 and K-50.

Clearly, both cameras offer different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The GX8 having a tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallow depth of field more challenging and the Panasonic GX8 will resolve greater detail with its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop photographs a little more aggressively. The fresher GX8 provides a benefit with regard to sensor tech.

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 sensor size comparison

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic GX8 as a Portrait photography camera
Pentax K-50 as a Portrait photography camera
75
you can focus manually
decent MP (20MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
comes with face detection autofocus
exports RAW formats
74
manual focus
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
comes with face detection autofocus
delivers RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Panasonic GX8 Street photography highlights
Pentax K-50 Street photography highlights
80
screen can move to multiple angles
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
provides touch focus
weather proof
above average ISO range (25,600)
65
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
delivers RAW formats
environment sealing
good ISO range (51,600)
screen is fixed
heavier than competitors in class (650 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic GX8 Sports photography factors
Pentax K-50 Sports photography factors
68
maximum shutter speed is high (1/8,000s)
silent shutter (1/16,000s)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent MP (20 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking autofocus
weather proof
terrible battery power (330 per charge)
does not have phase detect autofocus
67
max shutter speed is good (1/6,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
comes with tracking autofocus
environment sealing
has phase detect autofocus
very slow continuous shooting (6.0 frames/s)
bad battery life (410 shots)
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic GX8 as a Travel photography camera
Pentax K-50 as a Travel photography camera
73
weather proof
provides touch focus
decent MP (20MP)
selfie friendly display
terrible battery power (330 CIPA)
56
environment sealing
decent sensor resolution (16MP)
flash built-in
bad battery life (410 shots)
heavier than competitors in class (650g)
does not have selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Panasonic GX8
Landscape photography with Pentax K-50
76
you can focus manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
decent sized screen (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent MP (20 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
above average ISO range (25,600)
exports RAW formats
weather proof
terrible battery power (330 CIPA)
74
manual focus
change lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
screen size is good (3 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor resolution (16MP)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
good ISO range (51,600)
delivers RAW formats
environment sealing
bad battery life (410 shots)
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic GX8 Vlogging features
Pentax K-50 Vlogging features
81
selfie friendly display
has touchscreen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detection autofocus
video res high (3840 x 2160 pxls)
does have external mic socket
28
image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detection autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
does not have selfie friendly screen
does not have external mic jack
heavier than competitors in class (650g)
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Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax K-50 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GX8 and Pentax K-50
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX8Pentax K-50
General Information
Company Panasonic Pentax
Model type Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX8 Pentax K-50
Class Advanced Mirrorless Entry-Level DSLR
Released 2015-07-16 2013-11-27
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Powered by Venus Engine PRIME M
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 23.7 x 15.7mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 372.1mm²
Sensor resolution 20MP 16MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2
Highest Possible resolution 5184 x 3888 4928 x 3264
Maximum native ISO 25600 51600
Min native ISO 200 100
RAW format
Min enhanced ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
AF continuous
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points 49 11
Cross type focus points - 9
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds Pentax KAF2
Number of lenses 107 151
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1.5
Screen
Screen type Fully Articulated Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 1,040k dot 921k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Screen technology - TFT LCD monitor with brightness/color adjustment and AR coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder resolution 2,360k dot -
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.77x 0.61x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60s 30s
Fastest shutter speed 1/8000s 1/6000s
Fastest silent shutter speed 1/16000s -
Continuous shutter speed 12.0fps 6.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 12.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash settings Auto, auto w/redeye reduction, forced on, forced on w/redeye reduction, slow sync, slow sync w/redeye reduction, forced off Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Sync, Slow Sync+Redeye, Trailing Curtain Sync, Wireless
Hot shoe
AEB
WB bracketing
Fastest flash sync - 1/180s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 3840 x 2160 (30p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 30p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p) 1920 x 1080 (30,25,24 fps), 1280 x 720 (60,50,30,25,24 fps), 640 x 424 (30,25,24 fps)
Maximum video resolution 3840x2160 1920x1080
Video file format MPEG-4, AVCHD MPEG-4, H.264
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None Optional
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 487g (1.07 pounds) 650g (1.43 pounds)
Dimensions 133 x 78 x 63mm (5.2" x 3.1" x 2.5") 130 x 97 x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 75 79
DXO Color Depth rating 23.5 23.7
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.6 13.0
DXO Low light rating 806 1120
Other
Battery life 330 photographs 410 photographs
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID - D-LI109
Self timer Yes Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC card SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots 1 1
Launch cost $898 $610