Panasonic TS2 vs Canon M Comparison

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Panasonic TS2

14 MP | 1/2.33" (6.08 x 4.56 mm) CCD Sensor

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Canon M

18 MP | APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) CMOS Sensor

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Panasonic TS2 vs Canon M Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two cameras with different body types: Panasonic TS2, which was introduced in January 2010 is a Waterproof camera with a 14.0MP 1/2.3-inch sensor whereas Canon M, which was introduced in July 2012 is a Entry-Level Mirrorless camera with a 18.0MP APS-C sensor. As you can see, TS2 is 2 years older than M. Let's see if this age difference between two cameras makes a big difference.

Comparing an interchangeble lens camera to a fixed lens camera is a bit tricky but we will do our best to make this a fair comparison.

Here is a brief look at the main features of Panasonic TS2 and Canon M before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Panasonic TS2 Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2010-01-26

14MP - 1/2.3-inch CCD Sensor

ISO 80 - 6400

28-128 mm F3.3-5.9 Zoom Lens

Optical Image Stabilization

2.7" Fixed Type Screen

2 fps continuous shooting

HD - 1280 x 720 video resolution

188g. 99 x 63 x 24 mm

Weather Sealed Body

Also known as Lumix DMC-FT2

Replaced Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS1 Compare

Canon M Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2012-07-23

18MP - APS-C CMOS Sensor

ISO 100 - 12800 ( expands to 25600)

Canon EF-M Mount

3" Fixed Type Screen

4 fps continuous shooting

Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution

298g. 109 x 66 x 32 mm

Panasonic TS2 was replaced by Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3 vs Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS2 (Lumix DMC-FT2)
Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3 vs Canon EOS M

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Panasonic TS2 and Canon M compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS2 over Canon EOS M

Image Stabilization	Optical vs None	Sharper images at longer focal lengths and long exposures
Built-in Flash	Yes vs No	Useful in low-light
Weight	188 g vs 298 g	110 g lighter
Environmental Sealing	Yes vs No	shoot at tough conditions

Reasons to choose Canon EOS M over Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS2

External Flash Shoe	Yes vs No	Better for flash photography
Touch Screen	Yes vs No	Easy control of camera functions
RAW Support	Yes vs No	Better image quality
Face Detection Focus	Yes vs No	very handy for portraits
Max Sensor Resolution	18 MP vs 14 MP	28% more pixels
Max ISO	12.800 vs 6.400	100% higher Max ISO
Number of Focus Points	31 vs 11	20 more focus points
LCD Screen Size	3" vs 2.7"	0.3 inches larger display
LCD Screen Resolution	1.040k dots vs 230k dots	352% higher resolution screen
Max Mech. Shutter	1/4000s vs 1/1300s	faster mechanical shutter
Continuous Shooting	4.0fps vs 2.0fps	2 fps faster
Manual Exposure	Yes vs No	better exposure control
Microphone Port	Yes vs No	High quality audio recording option
Sensor Pixel Area	18.54µm² vs 1.98µm²	836% larger pixel area
Max Video Resolution	1920 x 1080 vs 1280 x 720	Higher Resolution Video
AE Bracketing	Yes vs No	Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR

Common Strengths of Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS2 and Canon EOS M

Common Weaknesses of Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS2 and Canon EOS M

Fixed Screen	Fixed Type vs No	No flexible viewing angles
Viewfinder	None vs None	No eye-level shooting option

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Panasonic TS2 vs Canon M: 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 Panasonic TS2 and Canon M side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Panasonic TS2 has external dimensions of 99 x 63 x 24 mm (3.9 x 2.48 x 0.94″) and weighs 188 g (0.41 lb / 6.63 oz) (including batteries). Canon M has external dimensions of 109 x 66 x 32 mm (4.29 x 2.6 x 1.26″) and weighs 298 g (0.66 lb / 10.51 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Panasonic TS2 and Canon M. Panasonic TS2 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 10mm narrower, 3mm shorter and 8mm thinner than Canon M. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Panasonic TS2 has a built-in lens but Canon M doesn't. Once you put a lens on M, its thickness will increase significantly.

Comparison image of Panasonic TS2 and Canon M Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Here is the back view size comparison of Panasonic TS2 and Canon M.

Comparison image of Panasonic TS2 and Canon M Size and Weight - Back View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Panasonic TS2 and Canon M.

Top View Comparison image of Panasonic TS2 and Canon M Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Panasonic TS2 is significantly lighter (110g ) than the Canon M which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.

Again, this comparison may not be very useful in real life as we are comparing the weight of a camera with a built-in lens to the body-only weight of an interchangeable lens camera. Once you put a lens on M, the total kit will weigh much higher.

Weather Sealing

LCD Screen Size and Features

Canon M's 3" LCD screen is slightly larger than Panasonic TS2's 2.7" screen.

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

Panasonic TS2 vs Canon M: Sensor Comparison

Panasonic TS2 has a 14.0MP 1/2.3-inch (6.08 x 4.56 mm ) sized CCD sensor and features Venus Engine HD II processor. On the other hand, Canon M has a 18.0MP APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Digic 5 processor.

Below you can see the TS2 and M sensor size comparison.

Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Panasonic TS2 and Canon M Cameras

As seen above, Canon M has a 12.0x Larger sensor area than Panasonic TS2. 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.

What types of Photography are Panasonic TS2 and Canon M Good for?

In this section, we rank and compare Panasonic TS2 and Canon M 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.

Panasonic TS2 for Portrait Photography

POOR

Canon M for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE

Image Stabilization
Average Resolution Sensor: 14.0MP
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

Large APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details

Panasonic TS2 for Street Photography

AVERAGE

Canon M for Street Photography

AVERAGE

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

Large APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) sensor
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details

Panasonic TS2 for Sports Photography

POOR

Canon M for Sports Photography

AVERAGE

Image Stabilization
Environmental Sealings
11 Focus Points
128 mm Tele Lens
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
Slow Continuous Shooting: 2.0fps
Slow Max shutter speed: 1/1300s
Slow Lens at Tele: f5.90
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Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
31 Focus Points
Average Ergonomics&Handling
Average Continuous Shooting: 4.0fps
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Environmental Sealings
Poor Battery Life: 230 shots
Read the details

Panasonic TS2 for Daily Photography

GOOD

Canon M for Daily Photography

GOOD

Compact Body
Environmental Sealings
188g
4.6X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.33" (6.08 x 4.56 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
Read the details

Large APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) sensor
298g
Medium size Body
Read the details

Panasonic TS2 for Landscape Photography

POOR

Canon M for Landscape Photography

POOR

28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Environmental Sealings
Average Resolution Sensor: 14.0MP
Small 1/2.33" (6.08 x 4.56 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
Read the details

Large APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Live-view
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Panasonic TS2 vs Canon M: 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 Panasonic TS2 and Canon M, 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 Panasonic TS2 and Canon M scores compare:

Panasonic TS2

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #196 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked #765 out of 1226 in all Cameras

Canon M

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #73 out of 128 in Rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #334 out of 1226 in all Cameras

Canon M is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Panasonic TS2 in all criteria except one: Portability.
If small size and light body is a big priority for you, choose Panasonic TS2. Otherwise, Canon M is the better camera overall.

Panasonic TS2

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Canon M

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Canon M vs Panasonic TS2 Specs Table

Detailed comparison of specifications

General	Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS2	Canon EOS M
Brand	Panasonic	Canon
Announced	2010-01-26	2012-07-23
Body Type	Compact	Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor
Type	CCD	CMOS
Size	1/2.3-inch	APS-C
Dimensions	6.08 x 4.56 mm	22.3 x 14.9 mm
Area	27.72mm²	332.27mm²
Megapixels	14 megapixels	18 megapixels
Max Resolution	4320 x 3240	5184 x 3456
Max Native Light sensitivity	6,400 ISO	12,800 ISO
Max Boosted Light Sensitivity	-	25600 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	11	31
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount	fixed lens	Canon EF-M
Lens Focal Range	28-128 mm (4.6×)	no lens
Max Aperture	F3.3-5.9	no lens
Macro Focus Range	5cm	no lens
Screen
Type	Fixed type	Fixed type
Size	2.7"	3"
Resolution	230k dots	1,040k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder	None	None
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter	1/1300s	1/4000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization	Optical	No
Built-in Flash
Flash Range	5.10 m	no built-in flash
Max Flash Sync	n/a	1/200s
External Flash
Continuous Shooting	2.0 fps	4.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution	1280 x 720	1920 x 1080
Video Formats	AVCHD Lite	MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity	None	Eye-Fi Connected
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight	188g	298g
Dimensions	99 x 63 x 24mm	109 x 66 x 32mm
Battery Life	n/a	230 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS	None	Optional
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score	not tested	65
DxO Color Depth	not tested	22.1
DxO Dynamic Range	not tested	11.2
DxO Low Light ISO	not tested	827
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