The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Samsung 30mm F2 Pancake and the Samsung 16-50mm F2.0-2.8 S ED OIS for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
The size of a lens is a crucial factor to consider when comparing two lenses. Samsung 16-50mm F2.0-2.8 S ED OIS is the longer of the two lenses at 97mm. The Samsung 30mm F2 Pancake with a length of 22mm, is 75mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Samsung 16-50mm F2.0-2.8 S ED OIS also has a larger diameter of 81mm compared to the Samsung 30mm F2 Pancake's 62mm diameter.
The weight of a lens is equally significant as its external dimensions, particularly if you intend to handhold your camera and lens combination for extended periods. Samsung 30mm F2 Pancake weighs 85g, which means it is 537g (86%) lighter than the Samsung 16-50mm F2.0-2.8 S ED OIS which has a weight of 622g.
Filter Threads
The Samsung 30mm F2 Pancake has a filter size of 43mm whereas the Samsung 16-50mm F2.0-2.8 S ED OIS has a 72mm diameter. Larger filters are generally more expensive than the smaller ones given all the other features are equal.
Below are links to the 43mm filters that we recommend you to consider for the Samsung 30mm F2 Pancake:
And these are the 72mm filters that we recommend for the Samsung 16-50mm F2.0-2.8 S ED OIS:
Lens Mounts
Both the Samsung 30mm F2 Pancake and the Samsung 16-50mm F2.0-2.8 S ED OIS has the same Samsung NX lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Samsung NX lenses are Samsung NX1, Samsung NX3000 and Samsung NX30.
Focal Range
Samsung 30mm F2 Pancake is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 30mm which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of
45mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.
On the other hand, the Samsung 16-50mm F2.0-2.8 S ED OIS has a focal range of 16-50mm and 3.1X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 24-75mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.
