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Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS

Portability
92
Imaging
35
Features
30
Overall
33
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5 front
 
Pentax Optio WG-2 GPS front
Portability
91
Imaging
39
Features
37
Overall
38

Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Key Specs

Panasonic ZS5
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-300mm (F3.3-4.9) lens
  • 214g - 103 x 60 x 32mm
  • Introduced June 2010
  • Also referred to as Lumix DMC-TZ8
Pentax WG-2 GPS
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 198g - 122 x 61 x 30mm
  • Revealed February 2012
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Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Overview

Lets take a more detailed look at the Panasonic ZS5 and Pentax WG-2 GPS, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Waterproof by competitors Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a substantial gap between the image resolutions of the ZS5 (12MP) and WG-2 GPS (16MP) but they enjoy the exact same sensor measurements (1/2.3").

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The ZS5 was released 20 months before the WG-2 GPS which makes the cameras a generation apart from one another. The two cameras come with the identical body type (Compact).

Before going straight into a comprehensive comparison, below is a short view of how the ZS5 grades against the WG-2 GPS with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic ZS5 over the Pentax WG-2 GPS

 ZS5 WG-2 GPS 

Reasons to pick Pentax WG-2 GPS over the Panasonic ZS5

 WG-2 GPS ZS5 
RevealedFebruary 2012June 2010More recent by 20 months
Manually focus Dial exact focusing
Screen dimension3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution460k230kClearer screen (+230k dot)

Common features in the Panasonic ZS5 and Pentax WG-2 GPS

 ZS5 WG-2 GPS 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Lack of selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Lack of Touch friendly screen

Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Physical Comparison

For anybody who is going to lug around your camera often, you are going to need to consider its weight and size. The Panasonic ZS5 offers external measurements of 103mm x 60mm x 32mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 214 grams (0.47 lbs) and the Pentax WG-2 GPS has specifications of 122mm x 61mm x 30mm (4.8" x 2.4" x 1.2") accompanied by a weight of 198 grams (0.44 lbs).

Analyze the Panasonic ZS5 and Pentax WG-2 GPS in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you are employing at that moment. The following is the front view physical size comparison of the ZS5 against the WG-2 GPS.

Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the ZS5 and WG-2 GPS is 92 and 91 respectively.

Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS top view buttons comparison

Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Sensor Comparison

More often than not, it is tough to envision the contrast between sensor measurements only by reading specs. The visual below may offer you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the ZS5 and WG-2 GPS.

All in all, both of these cameras posses the exact same sensor measurements albeit not the same megapixels. You can expect the Pentax WG-2 GPS to deliver greater detail as a result of its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop photographs somewhat more aggressively. The older ZS5 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor tech.

Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS sensor size comparison

Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic ZS5 as a Portrait photography camera
Pentax WG-2 GPS as a Portrait photography camera
27
offers face detect autofocus
no manual focus
cannot use external flash
sensor resolution low (12MP)
small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
40
has manual focus
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
offers face detection autofocus
no manual control
no external flash support
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
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Street Comparison

Panasonic ZS5 as a Street photography camera
Pentax WG-2 GPS as a Street photography camera
61
image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competition in class (214 grams)
no moving screen
small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
54
weather sealing
no moving screen
lack of image stabilization
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic ZS5 Sports photography information
Pentax WG-2 GPS Sports photography information
31
image stabilization (Optical)
offers tracking focus
maximum shutter speed is a little low (1/1,300s)
max fps low (2.0 frames per second)
sensor resolution low (12MP)
small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
38
megapixel count good (16MP)
offers tracking autofocus
weather sealing
painfully slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority mode
lack of image stabilization
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lacks phase detect autofocus
Photography Glossary

Travel Comparison

Panasonic ZS5 Travel photography advice
Pentax WG-2 GPS Travel photography advice
63
lighter than competition in class (214 grams)
flash built-in
really wide (25mm)
very long zoom (300mm)
lack of Time Lapse recording
sensor resolution low (12MP)
screen isn't selfie friendly
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
70
weather sealing
megapixel count good (16MP)
has built in flash
fairly wide (28mm)
display isn't selfie friendly
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic ZS5 Landscape photography information
Pentax WG-2 GPS Landscape photography information
33
really wide (25mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
no manual focus
cannot switch lenses (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
screen is small (2.7 inch)
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
lack of Time Lapse recording
47
has manual focus
fairly wide (28mm)
nice screen size (3 inches)
megapixel count good (16MP)
weather sealing
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
no manual control
lack of image stabilization
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic ZS5 as a Vlogging camera
Pentax WG-2 GPS as a Vlogging camera
31
really wide (25mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
offers face detect autofocus
lighter than competition in class (214 grams)
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
screen isn't selfie friendly
low res video (1280 x 720 pixels)
lack of mic socket
30
fairly wide (28mm)
offers face detection autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
display isn't selfie friendly
lack of image stabilization
lack of external microphone jack
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Panasonic ZS5 vs Pentax WG-2 GPS Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic ZS5 and Pentax WG-2 GPS
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5Pentax Optio WG-2 GPS
General Information
Brand Panasonic Pentax
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5 Pentax Optio WG-2 GPS
Also referred to as Lumix DMC-TZ8 -
Class Small Sensor Superzoom Waterproof
Introduced 2010-06-16 2012-02-07
Body design Compact Compact
Sensor Information
Chip Venus Engine HD II -
Sensor type CCD BSI-CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 6.08 x 4.56mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 27.7mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 16MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4000 x 3000 4288 x 3216
Maximum native ISO 6400 6400
Minimum native ISO 80 125
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Autofocus continuous
Autofocus single
Autofocus tracking
Selective autofocus
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Autofocus live view
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Number of focus points 11 9
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 25-300mm (12.0x) 28-140mm (5.0x)
Maximum aperture f/3.3-4.9 f/3.5-5.5
Macro focus distance 3cm 1cm
Crop factor 5.9 5.8
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display sizing 2.7" 3"
Resolution of display 230k dot 460k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Display tech - Widescreen TFT color LCD with anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Min shutter speed 60 seconds 4 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/1300 seconds 1/4000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 2.0 frames/s 1.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 5.30 m 5.40 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
Hot shoe
AEB
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None BuiltIn
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 214 gr (0.47 lb) 198 gr (0.44 lb)
Dimensions 103 x 60 x 32mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3") 122 x 61 x 30mm (4.8" x 2.4" x 1.2")
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 - 260 pictures
Form of battery - Battery Pack
Battery model - D-LI92
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC card, Internal
Storage slots One One
Price at release $300 $300