Panasonic ZS5 vs Sony A6400

Lets look a bit more closely at the Panasonic ZS5 and Sony A6400, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Advanced Mirrorless by brands Panasonic and Sony. There is a considerable difference between the resolutions of the ZS5 (12MP) and A6400 (24MP) and the ZS5 (1/2.3") and A6400 (APS-C) boast different sensor size.

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The ZS5 was unveiled 9 years before the A6400 and that is quite a large difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Panasonic ZS5 being a Compact camera and the Sony A6400 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight to a full comparison, here is a brief view of how the ZS5 scores against the A6400 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5 & Sony Alpha a6400. The full galleries are viewable at Panasonic ZS5 Gallery & Sony A6400 Gallery.

If you're intending to carry your camera frequently, you should think about its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic ZS5 comes with outer dimensions of 103mm x 60mm x 32mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 214 grams (0.47 lbs) whilst the Sony A6400 has dimensions of 120mm x 67mm x 50mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 2.0") having a weight of 403 grams (0.89 lbs).

Check the Panasonic ZS5 and Sony A6400 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have attached at the time. The following is a front view dimension comparison of the ZS5 compared to the A6400.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability rating of the ZS5 and A6400 is 92 and 83 respectively.

Often, it's difficult to imagine the gap between sensor sizing only by going over specs. The visual underneath may offer you a better sense of the sensor sizes in the ZS5 and A6400.

All in all, both cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The ZS5 with its tinier sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF trickier and the Sony A6400 will deliver extra detail having an extra 12 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop shots a bit more aggressively. The older ZS5 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.