Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3

40

Reasons to buy the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3

Screen size
Large screen
3.0"
Longest exposure
Long exposures
60 seconds
Canon PowerShot S3 IS

30

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot S3 IS

Aperture
Wide aperture
f/2.7
Screen flips out
Flip-out screen
Great for movies
Viewfinder
Great viewfinder
Digital
Fastest shutter speed
Fast shutter speed
1/3200 of a second

differences

Advantages of the Canon S3 IS

Aperture Significantly wider aperture f/2.7 vs f/3.3
Help
At its widest zoom, the S3 IS's lens captures slightly more light (0.6 f-stops)
Screen flips out Has a flip-out screen Yes vs No
Help
Flip-out screens can be helpful when composing tricky shots or taking movies
Viewfinder Has a viewfinder Digital vs None
Help
A viewfinder can help save battery life by keeping the screen turned off
Fastest shutter speed Significantly faster max shutter speed 1/3200s vs 1/2000s
Help
Around 40% faster max shutter speed
Canon PowerShot S3 IS Learn more about
the Canon S3 IS

Advantages of the Panasonic DMC-ZS3

Wide angle Much better wide angle 25 mm vs 36 mm
Help
More than 30% better wide angle
Screen size Much larger screen 3.0" vs 2.0"
Help
More than 50% larger screen
True resolution Much higher true resolution 9.8 MP vs 5.9 MP
Help
Capture more than 60% more detail in your photos
Size Significantly smaller 103x60x33 mm vs 113x78x76 mm
Help
3.3x smaller
Screen resolution Significantly higher resolution screen 460k dots vs 115k dots
Help
4x higher resolution screen
Movie format Higher resolution movies 720p @ 30fps vs 480p @ 30fps
Help
Shoots high resolution HD (720p) video
Macro focus Much better macro capability 3 cm vs 10 cm
Help
Focus on subjects 3.3x closer to the lens
Weight Much lighter 229 g vs 510 g
Help
2.2x lighter
Sensor size Larger sensor 1/2.3" 6.1x4.6mm vs 1/2.5" 5.8x4.3mm
Help
More than 10% larger sensor
Thickness Significantly thinner 1.3" vs 3"
Help
2.3x thinner
Light sensitivity (boost) Has boost ISO 6,400 ISO vs None
Help
Allows taking photos in darker situations, often at the cost of additional noise in the image
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity 1,600 ISO vs 800 ISO
Help
The DMC-ZS3's maximum light sensitivity is 1 f-stop better
Longest exposure Much longer exposures 60s vs 15s
Help
4x longer exposures
Continuous shooting Shoots slightly faster 2.3 fps vs 1.5 fps
Help
More than 50% faster continuous shooting
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3 Learn more about
the Panasonic DMC-ZS3
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent digicams, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot S3 IS Canon PowerShot S3 IS
30 vs 40
Explain scores
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3. This recommendation, however, should be taken with a grain of salt since it doesn't always make sense to compare a super zoom with a travel zoom.

advice

Need help deciding?

Ask the community!

I am considering either the Canon S3 IS or the Panasonic DMC-ZS3,
For example: Taking photos in low light or great family photos or ability to take great photos underwater

Select aspects that are most important to you: (max 3)

Popular tags:

similarities

Compared to recent digicams

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Image stabilization Good image stabilization Help
Lens
Panorama Neither camera stitches together panoramas Help
You could stitch photos in post
Sensor type Lower-end sensor types Help
CCD
HDR Neither has in-camera HDR Help
You could do HDR manually
Light sensitivity Poor maximum light sensitivity Help
S3 IS:800 ISO
DMC-ZS3:1,600 ISO
3D Neither camera can take 3D photos Help
No 3d support
Touch screen No touchscreens Help
More buttons
Movie format Poor movies Help
S3 IS:480p @ 30fps
DMC-ZS3:720p @ 30fps

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Canon Powershot S100

Canon Powershot S100

Pro digicam

$356 - $430

Aperture Has a significantly wider aperture
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Canon Powershot SX40

Canon Powershot SX40

Super zoom

$347 - $380

Zoom Has way more more zoom
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is much heavier
Canon PowerShot G12

Canon PowerShot G12

Pro digicam

$390 - $496

Light sensitivity Slightly higher maximum light sensitivity
Supports 24p Records movies in 24p
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is significantly heavier
Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Super zoom

$742

Zoom Has significantly more zoom
Macro focus Slightly closer macro focusing
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is much heavier

Canon PowerShot S3 IS Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Nikon D5100

Nikon D5100

Entry-level DSLR

$500 - $597 body only

$600 - $697 with 18-55mm lens

Sensor size Much larger sensor
True resolution Much higher true resolution
Image stabilization No image stabilization
Size Larger
Canon Rebel T3i

Canon Rebel T3i

Entry-level DSLR

$619 - $700 body only

$745 - $1,000 with 18-55mm lens

Sensor size Much larger sensor
True resolution Much higher true resolution
Image stabilization No image stabilization
Size Significantly larger
Fujifilm FinePix S5200 Zoom

Fujifilm FinePix S5200 Zoom

Super zoom

Macro focus Much better macro capability
Supports RAW Shoots RAW
Image stabilization No image stabilization
Screen flips out Screen does not flip out
Canon PowerShot S95

Canon PowerShot S95

Pro digicam

$340 - $389

Screen size Much larger screen
Wide angle Much better wide angle
Screen flips out Screen does not flip out
Zoom Less zoom

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20

Panasonic Lumix ZS20

Travel zoom

$290 - $350

Movie format Higher resolution movies
Zoom More zoom
True resolution Lower true resolution
Longest exposure Much shorter max exposures
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS10

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS10

Travel zoom

$328

Movie format Higher resolution movies
Touch screen Has a touch screen
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5

Travel zoom

$298

Weight Slightly lighter
Screen size Significantly smaller screen
Screen resolution Lower resolution screen
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7

Travel zoom

$361

GPS Has a GPS
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS8

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS8

Travel zoom

$161 - $271

Zoom More zoom
Wide angle Better wide angle
Screen resolution Lower resolution screen

appearance

Canon PowerShot S3 IS Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3
Canon PowerShot S3 IS Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3
Canon PowerShot S3 IS Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3

discussion

Showing 0 comments