Panasonic Lumix
DMC-G2
 vs
Panasonic Lumix
DMC-GF1

Updated (November, 2011): Compare the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3 vs Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX1

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1

45

Reasons to buy the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1

Badge
 Autofocuses shooting video
Contrast detection
Battery life
 Great battery life
400 shots
Size
 Really small
Mid size 119x71x36 mm
Interchangeable lenses
 Interchangeable lenses
Many lenses to choose from
Sensor type
 CMOS Sensor
Better in low light
Thickness
 Thin
1.4"
Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2

42

Reasons to buy the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2

Viewfinder
 Great viewfinder
Digital
Touch screen
 Touch screen
Less buttons
Screen flips out
 Flip-out screen
Great for movies
3D
 Takes 3D photos
View photos in 3D on 3D televisions
External mic jack
 External mic jack
Record higher quality audio with a microphone
Battery life
 Great battery life
390 shots

differences

Advantages of the Panasonic DMC-G2
Viewfinder Has a viewfinder Digital vs None
Help
 A viewfinder can help save battery life by keeping the screen turned off
Touch screen Has a touch screen Yes vs No
Help
 Fewer buttons to worry about and direct interaction with camera menus
External mic jack Has an external mic jack Yes vs No
Help
 Record high quality audio with an external microphone
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
3D Takes 3D photos Yes vs No
Help
 Combines multiple photos into a 3D image
Startup delay Less startup delay 1000 ms vs 1400 ms
Help
 Around 30% less delay when turning on
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity 6,400 ISO vs 3,200 ISO
Help
 The DMC-G2's maximum light sensitivity is 1 f-stop better
Lowest price Significantly cheaper $641.99 vs $999.99
Help
 The best price we've seen is $358 cheaper (around 40% less)
Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 Learn more about
the Panasonic DMC-G2

Advantages of the Panasonic DMC-GF1
Size Much smaller 119x71x36 mm vs 124x90x74 mm
Help
 2.7x smaller
Thickness Much thinner 1.4" vs 2.9"
Help
 2x thinner
Overall image quality Slightly better image quality 54.0 vs 53.0
Help
 Almost the same
Weight Lighter 330 g vs 416 g
Help
 More than 20% lighter
Battery life Slightly longer battery life 400 shots vs 390 shots
Help
 Almost the same
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 Learn more about
the Panasonic DMC-GF1
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent mirrorless cameras, and ignoring price

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2
42 vs 45
Explain scores
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1.

performance Which camera has better performance? Cast your vote!

PanasonicLumix DMC-G2
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 vs Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1
PanasonicLumix DMC-GF1
Uses Travel score Travel
On holiday or vacation
0
4
Vote Vote
Sports score Sports
Fast action, sometimes indoors
0
3
Vote Vote
Features Color accuracy Color accuracy
White balance in varied lighting
1
1
Vote Vote
Autofocus peformance Still image focusing
Speed and accuracy
1
1
Vote Vote
Autofocus performance Video focusing
Speed and accuracy
1
1
Vote Vote
Manual controls Manual settings
How quickly and easily you can change settings
2
1
Vote Vote
Build quality Build quality
Is it sturdy, well made, plastic or metal
2
2
Vote Vote
Green arrow Join in the discussion below!

similarities

Compared to recent mirrorless cameras

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Lens availability Many lenses available Help
26 lenses
Battery life Great battery life Help
DMC-G2:390 shots
DMC-GF1:400 shots
Longest exposure Long exposures Help
60 seconds
Built-in flash Each has a built-in flash Help
External flash not needed
Light sensitivity (boost) No boost ISO Help
Lacks boost light sensitivity
Panorama Neither camera stitches together panoramas Help
You could stitch photos in post
HDR Neither has in-camera HDR Help
You could do HDR manually
True resolution Capture low resolution images Help
12 MP
Movie format Both shoot high resolution HD movies Help
720p @ 30fps
Shutter lag Significant shutter lag Help
DMC-G2:423 ms
DMC-GF1:409 ms
Dynamic range Poor dynamic range Help
10.3 EV
Image stabilization No image stabilization Help
Risk of blur
Screen resolution Low resolution screens Help
460k dots
Overall image quality Low image quality Help
DMC-G2:53.0
DMC-GF1:54.0

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF2

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF2

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$329 - $379 with 14-42mm lens
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Lowest price Is slightly less expensive
Battery life Has a significantly shorter battery life
Compare the Lumix DMC-GF2 vs the Lumix DMC-G2
Compare the Lumix DMC-GF2 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1
Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$549 body only
Low light performance Is slightly less noisy at high ISO
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Thickness Is thicker
Size Is slightly larger
Compare the Lumix DMC-G3 vs the Lumix DMC-G2
Compare the Lumix DMC-G3 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$550 body only

$439 with 14-42mm lens
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Lowest price Is slightly less expensive
External flash Doesn't support an external flash
Battery life Has a slightly shorter battery life
Compare the Lumix DMC-GF3 vs the Lumix DMC-G2
Compare the Lumix DMC-GF3 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1
Sony Alpha NEX-5

Sony Alpha NEX-5

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$569 with 18-55mm lens
Low light performance Is slightly less noisy at high ISO
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Longest exposure Significantly shorter exposures
Built-in flash Doesn't have a built-in flash
Compare the Alpha NEX-5 vs the Lumix DMC-G2
Compare the Alpha NEX-5 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$1,199 - $1,499 with 14-140mm lens
Low light performance Is slightly less noisy at high ISO
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the Lumix DMC-GH2 vs the Lumix DMC-G2
Compare the Lumix DMC-GH2 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1
Olympus PEN E-PL1

Olympus PEN E-PL1

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$280 - $299 with 14-42mm lens
Image stabilization Has image stabilization
Lowest price Is significantly less expensive
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Shutter lag Has much more shutter lag
Compare the PEN E-PL1 vs the Lumix DMC-G2
Compare the PEN E-PL1 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1
Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$500 with 14-45mm lens
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the Lumix DMC-G1 vs the Lumix DMC-G2
Compare the Lumix DMC-G1 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Panasonic Lumix DMC-G10

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G10

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$550 with 14-42mm lens
Weight Lighter
Lowest price Cheaper
Touch screen No touch screen
External mic jack Lacks an external mic jack
Compare the Lumix DMC-G10 vs the Lumix DMC-G2

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX1

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX1

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$754 body only

$922 - $964 with 14-42mm lens
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Low light performance Lower noise at high ISO
Battery life Significantly shorter battery life
Color depth Worse color depth
Compare the Lumix DMC-GX1 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Pro digicam

$320 - $468
Image stabilization Image stabilization
Light sensitivity (boost) Has boost ISO
Low light performance Significantly more noise at high ISO
Overall image quality Significantly worse image quality
Compare the Lumix DMC-LX5 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1
Fujifilm FinePix X100

Fujifilm FinePix X100

Boutique

$1,189 - $1,419
Low light performance Much lower noise at high ISO
Overall image quality Much better image quality
Screen size Much smaller screen
Startup delay Much more startup delay
Compare the FinePix X100 vs the Lumix DMC-GF1

appearance

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1
Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1
Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1

Find similar cameras

Here are some links to help you find other cameras with similar features to both of these:

discussion Which do you think is better?

Speech is free, but discussion at Snapsort is moderated! Please discuss your opinion of these cameras here, and discuss feedback for Snapsort at our support community.

Showing 4 comments

Patrick Dowell (4:44 PM, March 13, 2011)
Compared to the GF1, the G2 will also autofocus a lot of the Olympus Four Thirds lens, which is great if you happen to have a few of those lying around.
 
Avatar for stevelink stevelink (2:04 AM, April 01, 2010)
Excellent, Christopher! I love your site, and the way you can quickly compare cameras! An awesome service for us photographers! If I do happen to get the Panasonic Lumix G2, I'd be happy to provide more insights.
Thanks again,
Steve
 
Avatar for christopherreid christopherreid (0:55 AM, April 01, 2010)
Thanks Steve,

Glad you like the site and thanks for adding that feedback on the G2, that's very helpful for users. We're trying to incorporate more and more info about every camera including processor info, special shooting modes (like panoramas), etc. We're always working on making the site better and we hope to add this info soon!
 
Avatar for stevelink stevelink (0:45 PM, March 30, 2010)
Greetings! I love your camera comparisons, however, at least in this case, you should have mentioned the difference in Processing Engine between the two. The GF1 has te older Venus Engine HD, while the G2 has a new Venus Engine HD II, which adds a few features that supposedly improve the image quality.
Thank you!
Steve