Panasonic S3 vs Sony QX30

Here, we will be looking at the Panasonic S3 and Sony QX30, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Lens-style by manufacturers Panasonic and Sony. There is a substantial difference among the image resolutions of the S3 (14MP) and QX30 (20MP) but both cameras offer the identical sensor size (1/2.3").

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The S3 was announced 4 years before the QX30 and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic S3 being a Compact camera and the Sony QX30 being a Lens-style camera.

Before diving straight to a comprehensive comparison, here is a short summation of how the S3 matches up versus the QX30 for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Here is a preview of the gallery images for Panasonic Lumix DMC-S3 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-QX30. The whole galleries are viewable at Panasonic S3 Gallery & Sony QX30 Gallery.

If you're intending to carry your camera frequently, you will have to consider its weight and size. The Panasonic S3 offers physical dimensions of 99mm x 59mm x 21mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.8") along with a weight of 117 grams (0.26 lbs) while the Sony QX30 has specifications of 68mm x 65mm x 58mm (2.7" x 2.6" x 2.3") accompanied by a weight of 193 grams (0.43 lbs).

Contrast the Panasonic S3 and Sony QX30 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you have chosen at the time. Here is a front view dimension comparison of the S3 compared to the QX30.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the S3 and QX30 is 96 and 91 respectively.

In many cases, its tough to visualise the gap in sensor sizing purely by researching a spec sheet. The visual here should give you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the S3 and QX30.

As you can see, the two cameras come with the identical sensor size albeit not the same MP. You can expect the Sony QX30 to render greater detail with its extra 6MP. Higher resolution can also let you crop pictures a good deal more aggressively. The older S3 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.