Size and weight is a big decision factor when you are trying to find the ideal camera for your needs.
In this section, We are going to illustrate Canon G12 and Panasonic S1 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Canon G12 has external dimensions of 112 x 76 x 48 mm (4.41 x 2.99 x 1.89″) and weighs 401 g (0.88 lb / 14.14 oz) (including batteries). Panasonic S1 has external dimensions of 99 x 59 x 21 mm (3.9 x 2.32 x 0.83″) and weighs 117 g (0.26 lb / 4.13 oz) (including batteries).
Below you can see the front view size comparison of Canon G12 and Panasonic S1. Panasonic S1 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 13mm narrower, 17mm shorter and 27mm thinner than Canon G12.
![Canon G12 vs Panasonic S1 Camera Size Comparison - Front View]()
Comparison image of Canon G12 and Panasonic S1 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View
Here is the back view size comparison of Canon G12 and Panasonic S1.
![Canon G12 vs Panasonic S1 Camera Size Comparison - Back View]()
Comparison image of Canon G12 and Panasonic S1 Size and Weight - Back View
Now lets look at the top view comparison of Canon G12 and Panasonic S1.
![Canon G12 vs Panasonic S1 Camera Size Comparison - Top View]()
Top View Comparison image of Canon G12 and Panasonic S1 Size
Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day.
Panasonic S1 is significantly lighter (284g ) than the Canon G12 which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.
Weight Comparison
Compact Cameras
Thickness Comparison
Compact Cameras
Weather Sealing
Unfortunately neither Canon PowerShot G12 nor Panasonic Lumix DMC-S1 provides any type of weather sealing in their body, so you have to give extra care especially when you are shooting outdoors. If weather sealing is a must-have feature for you, check these sections: Top Compact Cameras with Weather Sealing
LCD Screen Size and Features
Canon G12's 2.8" LCD screen is slightly larger than Panasonic S1's 2.7" screen.
Moreover, Canon G12 sports a
Fully Articulated screen which you can change the angle and position of the screen almost freely, making it possible to shoot from waist or over the head levels, and especially very useful for shooting selfies and video. On the other hand, Panasonic S1 has a fixed type screen which provides almost no flexibility in shooting positions compared to G12.
Canon G12 has a 10.0MP 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm ) sized CCD sensor and features Digic 4 processor. On the other hand, Panasonic S1 has a 12.0MP 1/2.3" (6.08 x 4.56 mm ) sized CCD sensor and features Venus Engine IV processor.
Below you can see the G12 and S1 sensor size comparison.
![Canon G12 vs Panasonic S1 Sensor Size Comparison]()
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Canon G12 and Panasonic S1 Cameras
As seen above, Canon G12 has a 1.5x Larger sensor area than Panasonic S1. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.
Canon G12 features a 28-140 mm F2.8-4.5 5× zoom lens whereas Panasonic S1 features a 28-112 mm F3.1-5.6 4× zoom lens.
Both cameras have a wide angle coverage of 28mm. On the other hand, with a max aperture of f2.80, Canon G12 is faster than Panasonic S1 at this focal length.
On the tele end, Canon G12 has 28mm longer reach than the Panasonic S1. At f4.50, it is also faster at tele end.
Wide Coverage
Compact Cameras
Max Aperture at Tele
Compact Cameras
Fastest - Ricoh GR Digital IV
Max Aperture at Wide
Compact Cameras
In this section, we rank and compare Canon G12 and Panasonic S1 for five different photography types in order to make your decision process easier in case you are specifically interested in one or more of these areas.
Canon G12 for Portrait Photography
Panasonic S1 for Portrait Photography
Image Stabilization
RAW shooting capability
External Flash Shoe
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
Small 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) sensor
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 10.0MP
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/2.33" (6.08 x 4.56 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details
Canon G12 for Street Photography
Panasonic S1 for Street Photography
Image Stabilization
RAW shooting capability
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Manual Focus Mode
Small Body
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Fully Articulated LCD Screen
Fast Lens at Wide: f2.80
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) sensor
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Small Body
Live-view
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.33" (6.08 x 4.56 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
Read the details
Canon G12 for Sports Photography
Panasonic S1 for Sports Photography
Image Stabilization
RAW shooting capability
External Flash Shoe
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
140 mm Tele Lens
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Slow Continuous Shooting: 1.0fps
Environmental Sealings
9 Focus Points
Read the details
Image Stabilization
11 Focus Points
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Environmental Sealings
Slow Max shutter speed: 1/1600s
Poor Battery Life: 240 shots
112 mm Tele Lens
Read the details
Canon G12 for Daily Photography
Panasonic S1 for Daily Photography
RAW shooting capability
Compact Body
5.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) sensor
401g
Body Thickness 48mm
Read the details
Compact Body
117g
Body Thickness 21mm
4.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.33" (6.08 x 4.56 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
Read the details
Canon G12 for Landscape Photography
Panasonic S1 for Landscape Photography
RAW shooting capability
Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) sensor
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 10.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/2.33" (6.08 x 4.56 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details
You may have already made your decision about which camera suits better for your needs and your budget so far but in case you wonder how we rated Canon G12 and Panasonic S1, below you can find their scores in five different aspects.
Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 63 different specs, current price and DxO Mark scores (where possible) in order to make a more objective and consistent comparison.
Here is a summary of how Canon G12 and Panasonic S1 scores compare:
Canon G12
Ranked
#29 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked
#396 out of 1220 in all Cameras
Panasonic S1
Ranked
#417 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked
#1107 out of 1220 in all Cameras
Canon G12 is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Panasonic S1 in all criteria except one: Portability. But the size difference between these cameras are negligible in real world so it is not a big disadvantage for Canon G12.
| General |
Canon PowerShot G12 |
Panasonic Lumix DMC-S1 |
| Brand |
Canon |
Panasonic |
| Announced |
2011-01-19 |
2011-01-05 |
| Body Type |
Compact |
Compact |
Sensor |
|
|
| Type |
CCD |
CCD |
| Size |
1/1.7" |
1/2.3" |
| Dimensions |
7.44 x 5.58 mm |
6.08 x 4.56 mm |
| Area |
41.52mm2 |
27.72mm2 |
| Megapixels |
10 megapixels |
12 megapixels |
| Max Resolution |
3648 x 2736 |
4000 x 3000 |
| Max Native Light sensitivity |
3,200 ISO |
6,400 ISO |
| Min Native Light sensitivity |
80 ISO |
100 ISO |
| RAW Support |
|
|
Autofocus |
|
|
| AF Touch |
|
|
| AF Continuous |
|
|
| AF Single |
|
|
| AF Tracking |
|
|
| AF Selective |
|
|
| AF Center |
|
|
| AF Multi Area |
|
|
| AF Live View |
|
|
| AF Face Detection |
|
|
| AF Contrast Detection |
|
|
| AF Phase Detection |
|
|
| Number of Focus Points |
9 |
11 |
Lens |
|
|
| Manual Focus |
|
|
| Lens Mount |
fixed lens |
fixed lens |
| Lens Focal Range |
28-140 mm (5×) |
28-112 mm (4×) |
| Max Aperture |
F2.8-4.5 |
F3.1-5.6 |
| Macro Focus Range |
1cm |
5cm |
Screen |
|
|
| Type |
Fully Articulated |
Fixed type |
| Size |
2.8" |
2.7" |
| Resolution |
461k dots |
230k dots |
| Touch Screen |
|
|
Viewfinder |
|
|
| Viewfinder |
Optical (tunnel) |
None |
Photography Features |
|
|
| Max Mechanical Shutter |
1/4000s |
1/1600s |
| Shutter Priority |
|
|
| Aperture Priority |
|
|
| Manual Exposure Mode |
|
|
| Custom White Balance |
|
|
| Image Stabilization |
Optical |
Optical |
| Built-in Flash |
|
|
| Flash Range |
7.00 m |
3.30 m |
| Max Flash Sync |
1/2000s |
n/a |
| External Flash |
|
|
| Continuous Shooting |
1.0 fps |
n/a |
| Multi-Segment |
|
|
| Average |
|
|
| Spot |
|
|
| Partial |
|
|
| AF-Area |
|
|
| Center Weighted |
|
|
| AE Bracketing |
|
|
| WB Bracketing |
|
|
Video Features |
|
|
| Max Video Resolution |
1280 x 720 |
1280 x 720 |
| Video Formats |
H.264 |
Motion JPEG |
| Microphone Port |
|
|
| Headphone Port |
|
|
Connectivity |
|
|
| Wireless Connectivity |
Eye-Fi Connected |
None |
| HDMI |
|
|
Physical |
|
|
| Environmental Sealing |
|
|
| Weight |
401g |
117g |
| Dimensions |
112 x 76 x 48mm |
99 x 59 x 21mm |
| Battery Life |
370 shots |
240 shots |
Other Features |
|
|
| Timelapse Recording |
|
|
| GPS |
None |
None |
DxO Sensor Scores |
|
|
| DxO Overall Score |
47 |
not tested |
| DxO Color Depth |
20.4 |
not tested |
| DxO Dynamic Range |
11.2 |
not tested |
| DxO Low Light ISO |
161 |
not tested |
|
Report a correction |
Report a correction |