Nikon P330 vs Panasonic ZS50

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Nikon P330

12 MP | 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) BSI-CMOS Sensor

$499.99

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Panasonic ZS50

12 MP | 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) CMOS Sensor

$249.00

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Nikon P330 vs Panasonic ZS50 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two Compact cameras from Nikon and Panasonic. Nikon P330 was introduced to market in March 2013 and Panasonic ZS50 was launched in January 2015. As you can see, P330 is 2 years older than ZS50. Let's see if this age difference between two cameras makes a big difference.

Both cameras have 12.0MP sensors but Nikon P330's sensor is 1/1.7 sized whereas Panasonic ZS50 has a 1/2.3" sensor.

Let's have a brief look at the main features of Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Nikon P330 Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2013-03-04

12MP - 1/1.7 BSI-CMOS Sensor

ISO 100 - 12800

24-120 mm F1.8-5.6 Zoom Lens

Optical Image Stabilization

3 Fixed Type Screen

10 fps continuous shooting

1920 x 1080 video resolution

Built-in GPS

200g. 103 x 58 x 32 mm

Replaced Nikon Coolpix P310 Compare

Panasonic ZS50 Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2015-01-06

12MP - 1/2.3" CMOS Sensor

ISO 80 - 6400

24-720 mm F3.3-6.4 Zoom Lens

Optical Image Stabilization

3" Fixed Type Screen

1166k dot Electronic viewfinder

10.0 fps continuous shooting

1920 x 1080 video resolution

Built-in Wireless

243g. 111 x 65 x 34 mm

Also known as Lumix DMC-TZ70

Replaced Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS45 Compare

Nikon P330 was replaced by Nikon Coolpix P340. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Nikon Coolpix P340 vs Nikon Coolpix P330
Nikon Coolpix P340 vs Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50 (Lumix DMC-TZ70)

Panasonic ZS50 was replaced by Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS60. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS60 vs Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50 (Lumix DMC-TZ70)
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS60 vs Nikon Coolpix P330

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Nikon Coolpix P330 over Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50

GPS	BuiltIn vs None	track your location
Max ISO	12.800 vs 6.400	100% higher Max ISO
Max Mechanical Shutter	1/4000s vs 1/2000s	faster mechanical shutter
Weight	200 g vs 243 g	43 g lighter
Max Aperture - Wide	1.80 vs 3.30	faster lens at wide
Max Aperture - Tele	5.60 vs 6.40	faster lens at tele
Color Depth	21.0 vs 20.0	higher color depth
Dynamic Range	11.7 vs 11.2	higher dynamic range
Low Light ISO	213 vs 138	better High ISO performance
Sensor Pixel Area	3.46µm² vs 2.34µm²	47% larger pixel area

Reasons to choose Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50 over Nikon Coolpix P330

Wireless Connection	Built-In vs Optional	Better connectivity
Viewfinder	Electronic vs None	Better framing and control
LCD Screen Resolution	1.040k dots vs 921k dots	12% higher resolution screen
Battery Life	300 shots vs 200 shots	100 more frames with a single charge
Timelapse Recording	Yes vs No	creative shooting
Focal Length - Tele	720mm vs 120mm	600 mm longer tele reach
Optical Zoom	30x vs 5�	more flexible focal coverage
NFC Connection	Yes vs No	Easy wireless connectivity with compatible devices
Smartphone_remote control	Yes vs No	Remote control your camera with a smartphone

Common Strengths of Nikon Coolpix P330 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50

Image Stabilization	Optical vs Optical	All the lenses are stabilized
Built-in Flash	Yes vs Yes	Useful in low-light
RAW Support	Yes vs Yes	Better image quality
Face Detection Focus	Yes vs Yes	very handy for portraits
LCD Screen Resolution	921k dots vs 1.040k dots	Higher resolution screens
Continuous Shooting	10.0fps vs 10.0fps	Fast shooting speeds
Manual Focusing	Yes vs Yes	both have manual focusing modes
Manual Exposure	Yes vs Yes	better exposure control
Focal Length - Wide	24mm vs 24mm	Very good wide angle coverage
AE Bracketing	Yes vs Yes	Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR

Common Weaknesses of Nikon Coolpix P330 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50

Articulating Screen	No vs No	No flexible viewing angles
External Flash Shoe	No vs No	Not suitable for flash photography
Environmental Sealing	No vs No	not suitable for tough conditions

Nikon P330 vs Panasonic ZS50: Physical Specs and Body features Comparison

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 Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions.

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50. Nikon P330 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 8mm narrower, 7mm shorter and 2mm thinner than Panasonic ZS50.

Here is the back view size comparison of Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50.

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50.

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Nikon P330 is significantly lighter (43g ) than the Panasonic ZS50 which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.

Weight Comparison

Compact Cameras

P330

ZS50

Min

Average

Max

Thickness Comparison

Compact Cameras

P330

ZS50

Min

Average

Max

Weather Sealing

Unfortunately neither Nikon Coolpix P330 nor Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50 (Lumix DMC-TZ70) 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

Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50's LCD screens has the same diagonal size of 3.

Unfortunately, both cameras has fixed screens so they don\'t tilt or flip in directions.

Nikon P330 vs Panasonic ZS50: Sensor Comparison

Both Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50 have 12.0 MP resolution sensors but Nikon P330's sensor is 1/1.7 (7.44 x 5.58 mm ) and Panasonic ZS50's sensor is 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm ).

Since Nikon P330's has a larger sensor area with the same resolution, this means that it also has a larger pixel area hence better light collecting capacity for a given aperture compared to Panasonic ZS50.

Below you can see the P330 and ZS50 sensor size comparison.

As seen above, Nikon P330 has a 1.5x Larger sensor area than Panasonic ZS50. 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.

DxOMark Sensor Scores

Both Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50 sensors have been tested by DxoMark. DxoMark scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Of the two cameras that we are comparing, P330 has scored 54, 10 points higher than ZS50.

Nikon P330 vs Panasonic ZS50 Lens Specs Comparison

Nikon P330 features a 24-120 mm F1.8-5.6 5� zoom lens whereas Panasonic ZS50 features a 24-720 mm F3.3-6.4 30x zoom lens.

Both cameras have a wide angle coverage of 24mm. On the other hand, with a max aperture of f1.80, Nikon P330 is faster than Panasonic ZS50 at this focal length. On the tele end, Panasonic ZS50 has 600mm longer telezoom reach than the Nikon P330. However, with a max aperture of f5.60, Nikon P330 is faster at widest end.

Wide Coverage

Compact Cameras

P330

ZS50

Widest - Ricoh WG-M1

Average

Telezoom

Compact Cameras

P330

ZS50

Longest - Canon SX520 HS

Average

Max Aperture at Tele

Compact Cameras

P330

ZS50

Fastest - Ricoh GR Digital IV

Average

Max Aperture at Wide

Compact Cameras

P330

ZS50

Fastest - Leica D-Lux 6

Average

What types of Photography are Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50 Good for?

In this section, we rank and compare Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50 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.

Nikon P330 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE

Panasonic ZS50 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE

Image Stabilization
RAW shooting capability
Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) sensor
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Image Stabilization
RAW shooting capability
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No External Flash Shoe
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Nikon P330 for Street Photography

GOOD

Panasonic ZS50 for Street Photography

EXCELLENT

Image Stabilization
RAW shooting capability
Manual Focus Mode
Small Body
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Fast Lens at Wide: f1.80
24 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) sensor
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details

Image Stabilization
RAW shooting capability
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Manual Focus Mode
Small Body
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
24 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
Read the details

Nikon P330 for Sports Photography

POOR

Panasonic ZS50 for Sports Photography

POOR

Image Stabilization
RAW shooting capability
Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
Fast Continuous Shooting: 10.0fps
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
120 mm Tele Lens
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Environmental Sealings
Unknown Focus Points
Poor Battery Life: 200 shots
Read the details

Image Stabilization
RAW shooting capability
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
Fast Continuous Shooting: 10.0fps
23 Focus Points
Wireless Connection
720 mm Tele Lens
Average Max shutter speed: 1/2000s
No External Flash Shoe
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Environmental Sealings
Slow Lens at Tele: f6.40
Read the details

Nikon P330 for Daily Photography

GOOD

Panasonic ZS50 for Daily Photography

GOOD

RAW shooting capability
Compact Body
200g
5.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) sensor
Read the details

RAW shooting capability
Compact Body
243g
30.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
Read the details

Nikon P330 for Landscape Photography

POOR

Panasonic ZS50 for Landscape Photography

POOR

RAW shooting capability
Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
24 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Built-in GPS
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) sensor
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
24 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Nikon P330 vs Panasonic ZS50: OUR DECISION

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 Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50, 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 Nikon P330 and Panasonic ZS50 scores compare:

Nikon P330

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #44 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked #429 out of 1200 in all Cameras

Panasonic ZS50

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #17 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked #307 out of 1200 in all Cameras

Panasonic ZS50 has a higher Overall Score than the Nikon P330 and would be our choice if we have to decide between these two cameras.

Nikon P330

$499.99

Panasonic ZS50

$249.00

Panasonic ZS50 vs Nikon P330 Specs Table

Detailed comparison of specifications

General	Nikon Coolpix P330	Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50
Brand	Nikon	Panasonic
Announced	2013-03-04	2015-01-06
Body Type	Compact	Compact
Sensor
Type	BSI-CMOS	CMOS
Size	1/1.7	1/2.3"
Dimensions	7.44 x 5.58 mm	6.17 x 4.55 mm
Area	41.52mm²	28.07mm²
Megapixels	12 megapixels	12 megapixels
Max Resolution	4000 x 3000	4000 x 3000
Max Native Light sensitivity	12,800 ISO	6,400 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity	100 ISO	80 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	n/a	23
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount	fixed lens	fixed lens
Lens Focal Range	24-120 mm (5�)	24-720 mm (30x)
Max Aperture	F1.8-5.6	F3.3-6.4
Macro Focus Range	3cm	3cm
Screen
Type	Fixed type	Fixed type
Size	3	3"
Resolution	921k dots	1,040k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder	None	Electronic
Viewfinder Resolution	no electronic viewfinder	1,166k dots
Viewfinder Coverage	n/a	100%
Viewfinder Magnification	n/a	0.46
Photography Features
Max Shutter Speed	1/4000s	1/2000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization	Optical	Optical
Built-in Flash
Flash Range	6.50 m	6.40 m
External Flash
Continuous Shooting	10.0 fps	10.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution	1920 x 1080	1920 x 1080
Video Formats	MPEG-4, H.264	MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity	Optional	Built-In
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight	200g	243g
Dimensions	103 x 58 x 32mm	111 x 65 x 34mm
Battery Life	200 shots	300 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS	BuiltIn	None
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score	54	44
DxO Color Depth	21.0	20.0
DxO Dynamic Range	11.7	11.2
DxO Low Light ISO	213	138
	Report a correction	Report a correction