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Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500

Portability
67
Imaging
45
Features
35
Overall
41
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ40 front
 
Pentax Optio RS1500 front
Portability
93
Imaging
37
Features
30
Overall
34

Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 Key Specs

Panasonic LZ40
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 1600 (Raise to 6400)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 22-924mm (F3.0-6.5) lens
  • 524g - 126 x 87 x 94mm
  • Launched January 2014
  • Superseded the Panasonic LZ30
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
  • Revealed March 2011
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Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 Overview

Following is a thorough assessment of the Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500, former is a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Panasonic and Pentax. There is a noticeable difference among the resolutions of the LZ40 (20MP) and RS1500 (14MP) but they use the exact same sensor dimensions (1/2.3").

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The LZ40 was launched 2 years after the RS1500 which is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both the cameras come with different body type with the Panasonic LZ40 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Pentax RS1500 being a Compact camera.

Before going straight into a more detailed comparison, below is a concise overview of how the LZ40 scores against the RS1500 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic LZ40 over the Pentax RS1500

 LZ40 RS1500 
RevealedJanuary 2014March 2011More modern by 35 months
Display dimension3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution460k230kSharper display (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Pentax RS1500 over the Panasonic LZ40

 RS1500 LZ40 
Manually focus Dial exact focusing

Common features in the Panasonic LZ40 and Pentax RS1500

 LZ40 RS1500 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Selfie screen No selfie screen
Touch friendly display No Touch friendly display

Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 Physical Comparison

If you are planning to carry around your camera frequently, you will need to take into account its weight and proportions. The Panasonic LZ40 features physical dimensions of 126mm x 87mm x 94mm (5.0" x 3.4" x 3.7") accompanied by a weight of 524 grams (1.16 lbs) whilst the Pentax RS1500 has measurements of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") along with a weight of 157 grams (0.35 lbs).

Contrast the Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you are using at that moment. The following is the front view over all size comparison of the LZ40 against the RS1500.

Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 size comparison

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability score of the LZ40 and RS1500 is 67 and 93 respectively.

Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 Sensor Comparison

Often, it is tough to visualise the contrast in sensor sizes just by viewing a spec sheet. The pic here might offer you a clearer sense of the sensor dimensions in the LZ40 and RS1500.

As you can see, both of the cameras posses the exact same sensor measurements but not the same resolution. You can anticipate the Panasonic LZ40 to render extra detail utilizing its extra 6 Megapixels. Greater resolution will let you crop images somewhat more aggressively. The newer LZ40 is going to have a benefit when it comes to sensor innovation.

Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 sensor size comparison

Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic LZ40 Portrait photography info
Pentax RS1500 Portrait photography info
40
sensor resolution is decent (20 megapixels)
comes with face detection focus
no manual focus
external flash not possible
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
35
manual focus
decent MP (14 megapixels)
no manual control
external flash not possible
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
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Street Comparison

Panasonic LZ40 Street photography features
Pentax RS1500 Street photography features
45
built in image stabilization (Optical)
fixed screen
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
heavier than others (524 grams)
54
environment sealing
no moving screen
lack of image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic LZ40 Sports photography details
Pentax RS1500 Sports photography details
47
incredible zoom range (22-924mm 42.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (20 megapixels)
comes with tracking autofocus
slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority mode
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
37
decent MP (14 megapixels)
includes tracking autofocus
environment sealing
painfully slow continuous shooting (1.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
lack of image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic LZ40 Travel photography advice
Pentax RS1500 Travel photography advice
55
sensor resolution is decent (20 megapixels)
flash built-in
pretty wide (22mm)
great zoom (924mm)
no Time Lapse mode
heavier than others (524g)
does not have selfie friendly screen
slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
67
environment sealing
decent MP (14MP)
built-in flash
reasonably wide (28mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
does not posses selfie friendly screen
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Panasonic LZ40
Landscape photography with Pentax RS1500
44
pretty wide (22mm)
nice screen size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (20MP)
no manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
no Time Lapse mode
40
manual focus
reasonably wide (28mm)
decent MP (14MP)
environment sealing
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inch)
no manual control
lack of image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic LZ40 Vlogging highlights
Pentax RS1500 Vlogging highlights
27
pretty wide (22mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detection focus
does have external mic port
slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
does not have selfie friendly screen
video quality not great (1280 x 720 resolution)
heavier than others (524g)
25
reasonably wide (28mm)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
does not posses selfie friendly screen
lack of image stabilization
low video resolution (1280 x 720 pixels)
doesn't have external mic socket
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Panasonic LZ40 vs Pentax RS1500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic LZ40 and Pentax RS1500
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ40Pentax Optio RS1500
General Information
Make Panasonic Pentax
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ40 Pentax Optio RS1500
Type Small Sensor Superzoom Small Sensor Compact
Launched 2014-01-06 2011-03-16
Physical type SLR-like (bridge) Compact
Sensor Information
Sensor type CCD CCD
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 20MP 14MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 5152 x 3864 4288 x 3216
Highest native ISO 1600 6400
Highest enhanced ISO 6400 -
Lowest native ISO 100 80
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 9 9
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 22-924mm (42.0x) 28-110mm (3.9x)
Largest aperture f/3.0-6.5 f/3.5-5.5
Macro focus distance 1cm 1cm
Focal length multiplier 5.8 5.8
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen diagonal 3 inches 2.7 inches
Resolution of screen 460 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Screen technology TFT LCD TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Min shutter speed 15s 4s
Max shutter speed 1/1500s 1/1500s
Continuous shutter rate 1.0fps 1.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 10.80 m 3.90 m
Flash settings Auto, Auto/Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Slow Sync./Red-eye Reduction, Forced Off Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p), 320 x 240 (30p) 1280 x 720 (30, 15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Highest video resolution 1280x720 1280x720
Video format Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 524 grams (1.16 lbs) 157 grams (0.35 lbs)
Dimensions 126 x 87 x 94mm (5.0" x 3.4" x 3.7") 114 x 58 x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life 320 photos 260 photos
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - D-LI92
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots 1 1
Launch price $219 $150