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Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV

Portability
96
Imaging
37
Features
24
Overall
31
Panasonic Lumix DMC-S3 front
 
Ricoh GR Digital IV front
Portability
92
Imaging
35
Features
47
Overall
39

Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV Key Specs

Panasonic S3
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-112mm (F3.1-5.6) lens
  • 117g - 99 x 59 x 21mm
  • Released January 2011
Ricoh GR Digital IV
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/1.7" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 28mm (F1.9) lens
  • 190g - 109 x 59 x 33mm
  • Revealed September 2011
  • Succeeded the Ricoh GR Digital III
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Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV Overview

Lets look a little more closely at the Panasonic S3 and Ricoh GR Digital IV, both Small Sensor Compact digital cameras by rivals Panasonic and Ricoh. There is a significant difference between the resolutions of the S3 (14MP) and GR Digital IV (10MP) and the S3 (1/2.3") and GR Digital IV (1/1.7") feature different sensor sizing.

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The S3 was unveiled 8 months earlier than the GR Digital IV and they are both of a similar generation. Each of these cameras come with the identical body type (Compact).

Before delving in to a comprehensive comparison, below is a concise overview of how the S3 matches up against the GR Digital IV for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Photography Glossary
	
	

Reasons to pick Panasonic S3 over the Ricoh GR Digital IV

 S3 GR Digital IV 

Reasons to pick Ricoh GR Digital IV over the Panasonic S3

 GR Digital IV S3 
RevealedSeptember 2011January 2011More recent by 8 months
Manual focus More accurate focus
Display dimension3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution1230k230kSharper display (+1000k dot)

Common features in the Panasonic S3 and Ricoh GR Digital IV

 S3 GR Digital IV 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Selfie screen Neither features selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither features Touch friendly display

Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV Physical Comparison

For anybody who is planning to lug around your camera frequently, you'll have to consider its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic S3 enjoys physical dimensions of 99mm x 59mm x 21mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.8") with a weight of 117 grams (0.26 lbs) whilst the Ricoh GR Digital IV has dimensions of 109mm x 59mm x 33mm (4.3" x 2.3" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 190 grams (0.42 lbs).

Look at the Panasonic S3 and Ricoh GR Digital IV in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you use at that moment. Underneath is the front view dimension comparison of the S3 compared to the GR Digital IV.

Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV size comparison

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability score of the S3 and GR Digital IV is 96 and 92 respectively.

Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV top view buttons comparison

Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV Sensor Comparison

Often, it is difficult to visualize the difference between sensor measurements merely by going over specs. The visual underneath will help provide you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the S3 and GR Digital IV.

As you can plainly see, each of the cameras have got different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The S3 with its tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field more challenging and the Panasonic S3 will deliver greater detail having an extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will help you crop pics much more aggressively. The older S3 is going to be behind in sensor technology.

Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV sensor size comparison

Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic S3 as a Portrait photography camera
Ricoh GR Digital IV as a Portrait photography camera
28
good MP (14 megapixels)
focusing manually not possible
lack of manual exposure
can't use external flash
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
41
focusing manually
delivers RAW files
sensor resolution not great (10MP)
tiny sensor size (1/1.7")
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Street Comparison

Panasonic S3 as a Street photography camera
Ricoh GR Digital IV as a Street photography camera
63
has image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competition in class (117 grams)
screen does not articulate
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
65
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
delivers RAW files
screen is fixed
tiny sensor size (1/1.7")
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic S3 Sports photography features
Ricoh GR Digital IV Sports photography features
35
has image stabilization (Optical)
good MP (14MP)
continuous shooting slow (2.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
has no phase detect autofocus
34
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
great battery life (390 CIPA)
fixed focal length (28mm)
sensor resolution not great (10 megapixels)
tiny sensor size (1/1.7")
lacks phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic S3 Travel photography details
Ricoh GR Digital IV Travel photography details
68
lighter than competition in class (117g)
good MP (14 megapixels)
flash built-in
fairly wide (28mm)
doesn't have Timelapse function
doesn't have a selfie friendly display
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
67
great battery life (390 per charge)
flash built-in
good max aperture (f1.9)
sensor resolution not great (10 megapixels)
does not have selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic S3 Landscape photography advice
Ricoh GR Digital IV Landscape photography advice
38
fairly wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
good MP (14MP)
focusing manually not possible
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
screen is small (2.7 inches)
lack of manual exposure
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
doesn't have Timelapse function
53
focusing manually
good max aperture (f1.9)
decent sized screen (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
delivers RAW files
great battery life (390 per charge)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
fixed focal length (28mm)
sensor resolution not great (10MP)
tiny sensor size (1/1.7")
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Panasonic S3
Vlogging with Ricoh GR Digital IV
31
fairly wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competition in class (117 grams)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
doesn't have a selfie friendly display
low video resolution (1280 x 720 resolution)
doesn't have microphone support
29
good max aperture (f1.9)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
does not have selfie friendly screen
video quality not great (640 x 480 resolution)
no mic jack
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Panasonic S3 vs Ricoh GR Digital IV Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic S3 and Ricoh GR Digital IV
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-S3Ricoh GR Digital IV
General Information
Brand Name Panasonic Ricoh
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-S3 Ricoh GR Digital IV
Class Small Sensor Compact Small Sensor Compact
Released 2011-01-05 2011-09-15
Body design Compact Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Venus Engine IV -
Sensor type CCD CCD
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/1.7"
Sensor dimensions 6.08 x 4.56mm 7.44 x 5.58mm
Sensor area 27.7mm² 41.5mm²
Sensor resolution 14MP 10MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3 and 3:2
Highest Possible resolution 4320 x 3240 3648 x 2736
Maximum native ISO 6400 3200
Lowest native ISO 100 80
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Tracking autofocus
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Autofocus live view
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Number of focus points 11 -
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 28-112mm (4.0x) 28mm (1x)
Highest aperture f/3.1-5.6 f/1.9
Macro focus range 5cm 1cm
Focal length multiplier 5.9 4.8
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen size 2.7" 3"
Resolution of screen 230k dot 1,230k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Screen technology TFT LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Optical (optional)
Features
Minimum shutter speed 8 secs 1 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/1600 secs 1/2000 secs
Continuous shutter speed 2.0 frames/s -
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation - Yes
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 3.30 m 3.00 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Manual
Hot shoe
AEB
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 640x480
Video data format MPEG-4 Motion JPEG
Mic input
Headphone input
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 seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 117 gr (0.26 lb) 190 gr (0.42 lb)
Dimensions 99 x 59 x 21mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.8") 109 x 59 x 33mm (4.3" x 2.3" x 1.3")
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 250 shots 390 shots
Battery format Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - DB65
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal SD/SDHC, Internal
Storage slots One One
Launch price $110 $599