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Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500

Portability
74
Imaging
59
Features
84
Overall
69
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX8 front
 
Pentax Optio RS1500 front
Portability
93
Imaging
37
Features
30
Overall
34

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 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
  • Launched July 2015
  • Earlier Model is Panasonic GX7
Pentax RS1500
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-110mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 157g - 114 x 58 x 28mm
  • Launched March 2011
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Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 Overview

Its time to look more in depth at the Panasonic GX8 versus Pentax RS1500, former is a Advanced Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by rivals Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a noticeable gap among the resolutions of the GX8 (20MP) and RS1500 (14MP) and the GX8 (Four Thirds) and RS1500 (1/2.3") posses different sensor sizing.

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The GX8 was launched 4 years after the RS1500 which is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic GX8 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax RS1500 being a Compact camera.

Before going right into a comprehensive comparison, here is a short summary of how the GX8 matches up vs the RS1500 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GX8 over the Pentax RS1500

 GX8 RS1500 
LaunchedJuly 2015March 2011Newer by 53 months
Display typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating display
Display size3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution1040k230kSharper display (+810k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies
Touch display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax RS1500 over the Panasonic GX8

 RS1500 GX8 

Common features in the Panasonic GX8 and Pentax RS1500

 GX8 RS1500 
Manually focus More accurate focusing

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 Physical Comparison

For those who are planning to travel with your camera frequently, you will need to think about its weight and volume. The Panasonic GX8 comes with exterior dimensions of 133mm x 78mm x 63mm (5.2" x 3.1" x 2.5") with a weight of 487 grams (1.07 lbs) and the Pentax RS1500 has sizing of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") with a weight of 157 grams (0.35 lbs).

Contrast the Panasonic GX8 versus Pentax RS1500 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you use at that time. Below is a front view size comparison of the GX8 against the RS1500.

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the GX8 and RS1500 is 74 and 93 respectively.

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it is very hard to visualize the gap in sensor dimensions merely by researching technical specs. The image here will help give you a greater sense of the sensor dimensions in the GX8 and RS1500.

As you can tell, both of the cameras come with different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The GX8 because of its larger sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field easier and the Panasonic GX8 will result in extra detail utilizing its extra 6MP. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop pics a good deal more aggressively. The more modern GX8 should have an advantage with regard to sensor tech.

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 sensor size comparison

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Panasonic GX8
Portrait photography with Pentax RS1500
75
manual focus
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
offers face detection focus
exports RAW formats
35
has manual focus
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
manual mode not possible
can't use external flash
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Panasonic GX8
Street photography with Pentax RS1500
80
fully articulated screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
features focus via touch
weather proofing
above average ISO range (25,600)
54
environment sealing
no articulating screen
does not have image stabilization
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic GX8 Sports photography information
Pentax RS1500 Sports photography information
68
max shutter speed is good (1/8,000s)
silent shutter (1/16,000s)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent megapixels (20MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
offers tracking autofocus
weather proofing
terrible battery power (330 shots)
lacks phase detect auto focus
37
MP count decent (14MP)
features tracking focus
environment sealing
max fps very slow (1.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
does not have image stabilization
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic GX8 Travel photography information
Pentax RS1500 Travel photography information
73
weather proofing
features focus via touch
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
selfie friendly display
terrible battery power (330 per charge)
67
environment sealing
MP count decent (14MP)
built-in flash
pretty wide (28mm)
doesn't have Timelapse function
screen is not selfie friendly
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic GX8 Landscape photography features
Pentax RS1500 Landscape photography features
76
manual focus
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent megapixels (20MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
above average ISO range (25,600)
exports RAW formats
weather proofing
terrible battery power (330 shots)
40
has manual focus
pretty wide (28mm)
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
environment sealing
can't change lenses (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
tiny screen (2.7")
manual mode not possible
does not have image stabilization
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
doesn't have Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic GX8 as a Vlogging camera
Pentax RS1500 as a Vlogging camera
81
selfie friendly display
touchscreen capability
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection focus
good video quality (3840 x 2160 resolution)
comes with external mic socket
25
pretty wide (28mm)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen is not selfie friendly
does not have image stabilization
low res video (1280 x 720 pxls)
doesn't have microphone jack
Photography Glossary

Panasonic GX8 vs Pentax RS1500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GX8 and Pentax RS1500
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX8Pentax Optio RS1500
General Information
Make Panasonic Pentax
Model type Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX8 Pentax Optio RS1500
Class Advanced Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Launched 2015-07-16 2011-03-16
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Venus Engine -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
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 20 megapixel 14 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 5184 x 3888 4288 x 3216
Highest native ISO 25600 6400
Min native ISO 200 80
RAW support
Min enhanced 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 detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 49 9
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-110mm (3.9x)
Max aperture - f/3.5-5.5
Macro focusing range - 1cm
Available lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Screen type Fully Articulated Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3 inches 2.7 inches
Screen resolution 1,040k dot 230k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Screen tech - TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 2,360k dot -
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.77x -
Features
Min shutter speed 60 seconds 4 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/8000 seconds 1/1500 seconds
Max silent shutter speed 1/16000 seconds -
Continuous shutter speed 12.0 frames/s 1.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 3.90 m
Flash modes 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, Soft
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
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) 1280 x 720 (30, 15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Highest video resolution 3840x2160 1280x720
Video file format MPEG-4, AVCHD Motion JPEG
Microphone 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 None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 487 grams (1.07 lbs) 157 grams (0.35 lbs)
Physical dimensions 133 x 78 x 63mm (5.2" x 3.1" x 2.5") 114 x 58 x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 75 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 23.5 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.6 not tested
DXO Low light rating 806 not tested
Other
Battery life 330 photographs 260 photographs
Battery format Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID - D-LI92
Self timer Yes Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots One One
Pricing at release $898 $150