Panasonic ZS1 vs Sony A290

Lets look more in depth at the Panasonic ZS1 vs Sony A290, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by competitors Panasonic and Sony. There exists a significant gap among the sensor resolutions of the ZS1 (10MP) and A290 (14MP) and the ZS1 (1/2.5") and A290 (APS-C) posses different sensor sizing.

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The ZS1 was unveiled 13 months prior to the A290 which makes them a generation apart from one another. Both cameras have different body design with the Panasonic ZS1 being a Compact camera and the Sony A290 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving right into a thorough comparison, here is a quick view of how the ZS1 scores versus the A290 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a preview of the gallery photos for Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS1 and Sony Alpha DSLR-A290. The full galleries are provided at Panasonic ZS1 Gallery and Sony A290 Gallery.

When you are looking to lug around your camera frequently, you'll need to take into account its weight and proportions. The Panasonic ZS1 enjoys physical measurements of 103mm x 60mm x 33mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3") along with a weight of 229 grams (0.50 lbs) while the Sony A290 has measurements of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") having a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs).

Check the Panasonic ZS1 vs Sony A290 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you have attached at the time. Here is a front view over all size comparison of the ZS1 vs the A290.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the ZS1 and A290 is 91 and 66 respectively.

Sometimes, it is very hard to visualize the contrast in sensor measurements simply by viewing a spec sheet. The photograph underneath will help give you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the ZS1 and A290.

Clearly, the 2 cameras provide different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The ZS1 having a smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field harder and the Sony A290 will provide you with more detail having an extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop shots more aggressively. The older ZS1 will be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.