Panasonic ZS100 vs Sony A390

Lets examine more closely at the Panasonic ZS100 vs Sony A390, one being a Large Sensor Compact and the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Panasonic and Sony. There exists a sizeable gap between the image resolutions of the ZS100 (20MP) and A390 (14MP) and the ZS100 (1") and A390 (APS-C) possess different sensor dimensions.

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The ZS100 was unveiled 5 years later than the A390 and that is quite a large gap as far as technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Panasonic ZS100 being a Large Sensor Compact camera and the Sony A390 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before getting through a in-depth comparison, below is a short summary of how the ZS100 grades vs the A390 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS100 and Sony Alpha DSLR-A390. The full galleries are available at Panasonic ZS100 Gallery and Sony A390 Gallery.

For anyone who is intending to carry your camera, you're going to have to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic ZS100 has got outer dimensions of 111mm x 65mm x 44mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.7") accompanied by a weight of 312 grams (0.69 lbs) and the Sony A390 has dimensions of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") having a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs).

See the Panasonic ZS100 vs Sony A390 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you have chosen at the time. Following is the front view scale comparison of the ZS100 against the A390.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the ZS100 and A390 is 87 and 66 respectively.

Quite often, its difficult to imagine the difference between sensor sizing merely by checking specs. The photograph underneath may provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the ZS100 and A390.

All in all, the two cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The ZS100 using its tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallower DOF tougher and the Panasonic ZS100 will give you more detail having an extra 6 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also enable you to crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The younger ZS100 should have a benefit when it comes to sensor tech.