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Ricoh G900 vs Panasonic GF5 Comparison

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Ricoh G900

20 MP | 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) BSI-CMOS Sensor

Ricoh G900
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Panasonic GF5

12 MP | Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) CMOS Sensor

Panasonic GF5
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Ricoh G900 vs Panasonic GF5 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two cameras with different body types: Ricoh G900, which was introduced in February 2018 is a Waterproof camera with a 20.0MP 1/2.3-inch sensor whereas Panasonic GF5, which was introduced in April 2012 is a Entry-Level Mirrorless camera with a 12.0MP Four Thirds sensor. As you can see, GF5 is 6 years older than G900. 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 Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Ricoh G900 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2018-02-21
  • 20MP - 1/2.3-inch BSI-CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • 28-140 mm F3.5-5.5 Zoom Lens
  • Digital only Image Stabilization
  • 3" Fixed Type Screen
  • continuous shooting
  • 4K (UHD) - 3840x2160 video resolution
  • 247g. 118 x 66 x 33 mm
  • Weather Sealed Body

Panasonic GF5 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2012-04-05
  • 12MP - Four Thirds CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 160 - 12800
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 3" Fixed Type Screen
  • 4 fps continuous shooting
  • Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • 267g. 108 x 67 x 37 mm
  • Replaced Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3 Compare

Panasonic GF5 was replaced by Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF6. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF6 vs Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF6 vs Ricoh G900

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Ricoh G900 over Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5
Image Stabilization
Digital only vs None Sharper images at longer focal lengths and long exposures
Max Sensor Resolution
20 MP vs 12 MP 66% more pixels
LCD Screen Resolution
1.040k dots vs 920k dots 13% higher resolution screen
Weight
247 g vs 267 g 20 g lighter
Environmental Sealing
Yes vs No shoot at tough conditions
Timelapse Recording
Yes vs No creative shooting
Max Video Resolution
3840x2160 vs 1920 x 1080 Higher Resolution Video
Digital video stabilization
Yes vs No Stabilizes your videos in-camera


Reasons to choose Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 over Ricoh G900
Touch Screen
Yes vs No Easy control of camera functions
RAW Support
Yes vs No Better image quality
Max ISO
12.800 vs 6.400 100% higher Max ISO
Number of Focus Points
23 vs 9 14 more focus points
Battery Life
360 shots vs 340 shots 20 more frames with a single charge
Manual Exposure
Yes vs No better exposure control
Flash Coverage
6.3m vs 5.5m 0.8m longer range
Sensor Pixel Area
18.74µm2 vs 1.39µm2 1248% larger pixel area

Common Strengths of Ricoh G900 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5
Built-in Flash
Yes vs Yes Useful in low-light
Face Detection Focus
Yes vs Yes very handy for portraits
AE Bracketing
Yes vs Yes Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR
Common Weaknesses of Ricoh G900 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5
Fixed Screen
Fixed Type vs No No flexible viewing angles
External Flash Shoe
No vs No Not suitable for flash photography
Viewfinder
None vs None No eye-level shooting option
Ricoh G900 vs Panasonic GF5: 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 Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Ricoh G900 has external dimensions of 118 x 66 x 33 mm (4.65 x 2.6 x 1.3″) and weighs 247 g (0.54 lb / 8.71 oz) (including batteries). Panasonic GF5 has external dimensions of 108 x 67 x 37 mm (4.25 x 2.64 x 1.46″) and weighs 267 g (0.59 lb / 9.42 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5. Ricoh G900 is 1mm shorter and 4mm thinner than Panasonic GF5 but it is also 10mm wider. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Ricoh G900 has a built-in lens but Panasonic GF5 doesn't. Once you put a lens on GF5, its thickness will increase significantly.

Ricoh G900 vs Panasonic GF5 Camera Size Comparison - Front View
Comparison image of Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5.
Ricoh G900 vs Panasonic GF5 Camera Size Comparison - Top View
Top View Comparison image of Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5 Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Ricoh G900 is 20g lighter than the Panasonic GF5 but we don't think this will make a significant difference.

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 GF5, the total kit will weigh much higher.

Weather Sealing

LCD Screen Size and Features

Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5'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.
Ricoh G900 vs Panasonic GF5: Sensor Comparison

Ricoh G900 has a 20.0MP 1/2.3-inch (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized BSI-CMOS sensor . On the other hand, Panasonic GF5 has a 12.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Venus Engine FHD processor.

Ricoh G900's sensor provides 8MP more than Panasonic GF5's sensor, which gives a significant advantage in real life. You can print your images larger or crop more freely. On the other hand, please keep in mind that Max sensor resolution is not the only determinant of resolving power. Factors such as the optical elements, low pass filter, pixel size and sensor technology also affects the final resolution of the captured image.

Below you can see the G900 and GF5 sensor size comparison.

Ricoh G900 vs Panasonic GF5 Sensor Size Comparison
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5 Cameras


As seen above, Panasonic GF5 has a 8.0x Larger sensor area than Ricoh G900. 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 Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5 Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5 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.

Ricoh G900 for Portrait Photography

POOR

Panasonic GF5 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE
Very High Resolution Sensor: 20.0MP
Image Stabilization
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details

Ricoh G900 for Street Photography

GOOD

Panasonic GF5 for Street Photography

AVERAGE
Image Stabilization
Small Body
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details

Ricoh G900 for Sports Photography

POOR

Panasonic GF5 for Sports Photography

AVERAGE
Image Stabilization
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
140 mm Tele Lens
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
9 Focus Points
Read the details
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
23 Focus Points
Average Ergonomics&Handling
Average Continuous Shooting: 4.0fps
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Ricoh G900 for Daily Photography

GOOD

Panasonic GF5 for Daily Photography

AVERAGE
Compact Body
Environmental Sealings
247g
5.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
267g
Medium size Body
Read the details

Ricoh G900 for Landscape Photography

POOR

Panasonic GF5 for Landscape Photography

POOR
Very High Resolution Sensor: 20.0MP
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Environmental Sealings
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Exposure Mode
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Live-view
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Ricoh G900 vs Panasonic GF5: 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 Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5, 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 Ricoh G900 and Panasonic GF5 scores compare:

Ricoh G900
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #71 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked #514 out of 1226 in all Cameras
Panasonic GF5
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #99 out of 128 in Rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #425 out of 1226 in all Cameras

Panasonic GF5 has a higher Overall Score than the Ricoh G900 and would be our choice if we have to decide between these two cameras.

Ricoh G900
Ricoh G900
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Panasonic GF5
Panasonic GF5
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Panasonic GF5 vs Ricoh G900 Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Ricoh G900 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5
Brand Ricoh Panasonic
Announced 2018-02-21 2012-04-05
Body Type Compact Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor
Type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Size 1/2.3-inch Four Thirds
Dimensions 6.17 x 4.55 mm 17.3 x 13 mm
Area 28.07mm2 224.90mm2
Megapixels 20 megapixels 12 megapixels
Max Resolution 5184 x 3888 4000 x 3000
Max Native Light sensitivity 6,400 ISO 12,800 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity 125 ISO 160 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 23
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount fixed lens Micro Four Thirds
Lens Focal Range 28-140 mm (5x) no lens
Max Aperture F3.5-5.5 no lens
Macro Focus Range 1cm no lens
Screen
Type Fixed type Fixed type
Size 3" 3"
Resolution 1,040k dots 920k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder None None
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/4000s 1/4000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization Digital only Optical
Built-in Flash
Flash Range 5.50 m (with Auto ISO) 6.30 m
Max Flash Sync n/a 1/160s
External Flash
Continuous Shooting n/a 4.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution 3840x2160 1920 x 1080
Video Formats MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity Supports FlashAir SD cards None
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 247g 267g
Dimensions 118 x 66 x 33mm 108 x 67 x 37mm
Battery Life 340 shots 360 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS Built-in None
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score not tested 50
DxO Color Depth not tested 20.5
DxO Dynamic Range not tested 10.0
DxO Low Light ISO not tested 573
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