Panasonic S3 vs Sony H400

Lets look a bit more closely at the Panasonic S3 vs Sony H400, former is a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by competitors Panasonic and Sony. There exists a large gap between the sensor resolutions of the S3 (14MP) and H400 (20MP) but they possess the exact same sensor dimensions (1/2.3").

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The S3 was manufactured 4 years earlier than the H400 which is quite a serious difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Panasonic S3 being a Compact camera and the Sony H400 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before delving in to a detailed comparison, below is a short introduction of how the S3 grades versus the H400 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Following is a preview of the gallery images for Panasonic Lumix DMC-S3 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H400. The entire galleries are viewable at Panasonic S3 Gallery & Sony H400 Gallery.

If you are going to carry around your camera regularly, you need to consider its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic S3 features outside measurements of 99mm x 59mm x 21mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.8") with a weight of 117 grams (0.26 lbs) while the Sony H400 has dimensions of 130mm x 95mm x 122mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 4.8") and a weight of 628 grams (1.38 lbs).

Take a look at the Panasonic S3 vs Sony H400 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you have during that time. Here is the front view overall size comparison of the S3 against the H400.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the S3 and H400 is 96 and 62 respectively.

More often than not, its tough to visualise the gap between sensor sizes simply by going over specifications. The picture here may offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the S3 and H400.

To sum up, both the cameras posses the exact same sensor measurements albeit not the same megapixels. You can expect the Sony H400 to deliver more detail due to its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop shots somewhat more aggressively. The more aged S3 is going to be behind with regard to sensor tech.