Olympus
XZ-1
 vs
Panasonic Lumix
ZS20

Updated (January, 2013): Compare the Olympus XZ-1 vs Panasonic Lumix ZS30

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20

50

  
Olympus XZ-1

46

  

Reasons to buy the Panasonic Lumix ZS20

High-speed framerate
 High speed movies
220 fps
Touch screen
 Touch screen
Less buttons
3D
 Takes 3D photos
View photos in 3D on 3D televisions
GPS
 Built-in GPS
Great for travel
 
Runner-up

Olympus XZ-1

Reasons to buy the Olympus XZ-1

Aperture
 Wide aperture
f/1.8
Sensor size
 Large sensor
1/1.6" 8.3x6.2mm
Screen type
 OLED Screen
Bright and vivid
Supports RAW
 Shoots RAW
Better editing
External flash
 External flash
Better lighting
Longest exposure
 Long exposures
60 seconds
 

differences

Advantages of the Olympus XZ-1
Aperture Much wider aperture f/1.8 vs f/3.3
Help
 At its widest zoom, the XZ-1's lens captures much more light (1.7 f-stops)
Screen type Has an OLED screen OLED vs LCD
Help
 OLED screens are often brighter and more vibrant than typical LCD screens
Sensor size Much larger sensor 1/1.6" 8.3x6.2mm vs 1/2.5" 6.1x4.6mm
Help
 Around 90% larger sensor
Supports RAW Shoots RAW Yes vs No
Help
 Digitally develop your own photos with precise image control
Screen resolution Higher resolution screen 614k dots vs 460k dots
Help
 More than 30% higher resolution screen
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity 6,400 ISO vs 3,200 ISO
Help
 The XZ-1's maximum light sensitivity is 1 f-stop better
External flash Supports an external flash Yes vs No
Help
 An external flash often produces better looking flash images
Macro focus Better macro capability 1 cm vs 3 cm
Help
 Focus on subjects 3x closer to the lens
Battery life Longer battery life 320 shots vs 260 shots
Help
 More than 20% more shots per battery charge
True resolution Higher true resolution 10 MP vs 9.6 MP
Help
 Almost the same
Longest exposure Much longer exposures 60s vs 15s
Help
 4x longer exposures
Olympus XZ-1 Learn more about
the Olympus XZ-1

Advantages of the Panasonic ZS20
Touch screen Has a touch screen Yes vs No
Help
 Fewer buttons to worry about and direct interaction with camera menus
Wide angle Better wide angle 24 mm vs 28 mm
Help
 More than 10% better wide angle
Zoom More zoom 20x vs 4x
Help
 25x more zoom
Movie format Higher resolution movies 1080p @ 60fps vs 720p @ 30fps
Help
 Shoots higher resolution Full HD (1080p) video at a higher frame rate
3D Takes 3D photos Yes vs No
Help
 Combines multiple photos into a 3D image
High-speed framerate Records high-speed movies 220 fps vs None
Help
 Capture events too fast for the naked eye and play them back in super-slow motion
Sensor type Has a CMOS-family sensor CMOS vs CCD
Help
 CMOS-family sensors often produce better quality images
GPS Has a GPS Yes vs No
Help
 Automatically geotags your photos when traveling
Image stabilization Better image stabilization Lens vs Sensor shift
Help
 Less risk of blur
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
Size Smaller 105x59x28 mm vs 110x64x42 mm
Help
 More than 40% smaller
Continuous shooting Shoots faster 10 fps vs 7 fps
Help
 More than 40% faster continuous shooting
Thickness Thinner 1.1" vs 1.7"
Help
 More than 30% thinner
Weight Lighter 206 g vs 275 g
Help
 Around 30% lighter
Lowest price Slightly cheaper $299.00 vs $322.95
Help
 The best price we've seen is $24 cheaper (around 10% less)
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20 Learn more about
the Panasonic ZS20
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent digicams, and ignoring price

Olympus XZ-1 Olympus XZ-1
46 vs 50
Explain scores
Panasonic Lumix ZS20 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20. This recommendation, however, should be taken with a grain of salt since it doesn't always make sense to compare a pro digicam with a travel zoom.

similarities

Compared to recent digicams

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
HDR In-camera HDR Help
Combines multiple exposures
Panorama In-camera panoramas Help
Stitches together multiple photos into a panorama

Snapsort is not aware of any interesting weaknesses shared by these two products.

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon PowerShot SX260 HS

Canon PowerShot SX260 HS

Travel zoom

$245 - $269
Supports 24p Records movies in 24p
Fastest shutter speed Has a faster max shutter speed
HDR Lacks a built in HDR feature
Focus points Has slightly fewer focus points
Compare the PowerShot SX260 HS vs the XZ-1
Compare the PowerShot SX260 HS vs the Lumix ZS20
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V

Travel zoom

$300
Screen resolution Has a slightly higher resolution screen
Light sensitivity Significantly higher maximum light sensitivity
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Focus points Has slightly fewer focus points
Compare the Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V vs the XZ-1
Compare the Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V vs the Lumix ZS20
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7

Pro digicam

$348
Aperture Has a slightly wider aperture
Overall image quality Has much better image quality
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the Lumix DMC-LX7 vs the XZ-1
Compare the Lumix DMC-LX7 vs the Lumix ZS20
Canon Powershot S100

Canon Powershot S100

Pro digicam

$325 - $349
Overall image quality Has much better image quality
True resolution Takes significantly higher resolution photos
Panorama Lacks a built in panoramas
Battery life Has a slightly shorter battery life
Compare the Powershot S100 vs the XZ-1
Compare the Powershot S100 vs the Lumix ZS20
Canon Powershot S110

Canon PowerShot S110

Pro digicam

$399
Overall image quality Has much better image quality
True resolution Takes significantly higher resolution photos
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
HDR Lacks a built in HDR feature
Compare the PowerShot S110 vs the XZ-1
Compare the PowerShot S110 vs the Lumix ZS20
Sony Cybershot DSC-RX100

Sony Cybershot DSC-RX100

Pro digicam

$648 - $760
Overall image quality Has much better image quality
Screen resolution Has a much higher resolution screen
Lowest price Is much more expensive
Macro focus Significantly worse macro focusing
Compare the Cybershot DSC-RX100 vs the XZ-1
Compare the Cybershot DSC-RX100 vs the Lumix ZS20
Olympus SZ-31MR iHS

Olympus SZ-31MR

Travel zoom

$254 - $280
Screen resolution Has a slightly higher resolution screen
Longest exposure Slightly shorter exposures
Battery life Has a slightly shorter battery life
Compare the SZ-31MR vs the XZ-1
Compare the SZ-31MR vs the Lumix ZS20

Olympus XZ-1 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Olympus XZ-2 iHS

Olympus XZ-2 iHS

Pro digicam

$549
Overall image quality Much better image quality
Screen flips out Has a flip-out screen
Screen type Doesn't have an OLED screen
Sensor size Significantly smaller sensor
Compare the XZ-2 iHS vs the XZ-1
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Pro digicam

$455 - $514
Overall image quality Better image quality
Wide angle Better wide angle
Screen type Doesn't have an OLED screen
Panorama Lacks in-camera panoramic stitching
Compare the Lumix DMC-LX5 vs the XZ-1
Olympus Stylus XZ-10

Olympus Stylus XZ-10

Pro digicam

$399
Touch screen Has a touch screen
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Screen type Doesn't have an OLED screen
Sensor size Much smaller sensor
Compare the Stylus XZ-10 vs the XZ-1
Fujifilm Finepix X10

Fujifilm Finepix X10

Pro digicam

$549
Overall image quality Much better image quality
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Screen type Doesn't have an OLED screen
Screen size Smaller screen
Compare the Finepix X10 vs the XZ-1
Nikon Coolpix P310

Nikon Coolpix P310

Pro digicam

$169 - $179
Wide angle Better wide angle
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Screen type Doesn't have an OLED screen
Sensor size Much smaller sensor
Compare the Coolpix P310 vs the XZ-1

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Panasonic Lumix ZS30

Panasonic Lumix ZS30

Travel zoom

$349
Screen resolution Significantly higher resolution screen
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity
Lowest price More expensive
Compare the Lumix ZS30 vs the Lumix ZS20
Nikon Coolpix S9500

Nikon Coolpix S9500

Travel zoom

$327
Screen resolution Higher resolution screen
Macro focus Better macro capability
Aperture Slightly narrower aperture
Wide angle Slightly worse wide angle
Compare the Coolpix S9500 vs the Lumix ZS20
Panasonic Lumix ZS25

Panasonic Lumix ZS25

Travel zoom

$248 - $300
Screen resolution Significantly higher resolution screen
True resolution Slightly higher true resolution
Touch screen No touch screen
Wide angle Worse wide angle
Compare the Lumix ZS25 vs the Lumix ZS20
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15

Panasonic Lumix ZS15

Travel zoom
Longest exposure Much longer exposures
True resolution Slightly higher true resolution
Touch screen No touch screen
High-speed framerate Doesn't record high-speed movies
Compare the Lumix ZS15 vs the Lumix ZS20
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX30V

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX30V

Travel zoom

$366
Screen resolution Significantly higher resolution screen
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity
Touch screen No touch screen
High-speed framerate Doesn't record high-speed movies
Compare the Cyber-shot DSC-HX30V vs the Lumix ZS20

appearance

Olympus XZ-1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20
Olympus XZ-1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20
Olympus XZ-1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20

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