Panasonic L10 Comparison Review

The Panasonic Lumix DMC- L10 is a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera that was revealed to the public in August 2007 and is equipped with a Four Thirds sensor. It offers a resolution of 10 megapixel.

Is the Panasonic L10 a good camera? The L10 has a Camera Elo of 1149. This rating puts the L10 below average of all digital single lens reflex cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (Four Thirds cameras), the L10 also ranks below average. – Well, the Panasonic L10 is more than 14 years old, and there have been many other good digital cameras released since 2007.

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

An illustration of the physical dimensions of the Panasonic L10 vis-à-vis a credit card is provided in the side-by-side display below. Three consecutive views from the front, the top, and the rear side are shown. All size dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Panasonic L10 alongside a set of similar cameras. If you want to review a particular camera pair side-by-side, just move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Body Specifications

		Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life	Weather Sealing	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Panasonic L10	135 mm	96 mm	78 mm	556 g	450	n	Aug 2007	599
2.		Nikon D60	126 mm	94 mm	64 mm	522 g	500	n	Jan 2008	629
3.		Nikon D40X	124 mm	94 mm	64 mm	522 g	520	n	Mar 2007	729
4.		Olympus E-420	130 mm	91 mm	53 mm	440 g	500	n	Mar 2008	599
5.		Olympus E-520	136 mm	92 mm	68 mm	535 g	750	n	May 2008	699
6.		Olympus E-410	130 mm	91 mm	53 mm	435 g	500	n	Mar 2007	699
7.		Panasonic GF5	108 mm	67 mm	37 mm	267 g	360	n	Apr 2012	499
8.		Panasonic GF3	108 mm	67 mm	32 mm	264 g	300	n	Jun 2011	549
9.		Panasonic G10	124 mm	84 mm	74 mm	388 g	380	n	Mar 2010	499
10.		Panasonic G1	124 mm	84 mm	45 mm	360 g	410	n	Sep 2008	599
11.		Panasonic L1	146 mm	87 mm	64 mm	606 g	750	n	Feb 2006	999
Notes: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as add-on or interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.
Convert to Imperial

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Panasonic L10 was launched in the US market at a price of $599. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The size of the sensor inside a digital camera is one of the key determinants of image quality. A large sensor will tend to have larger individual pixels that provide better low-light sensitivity, wider dynamic range, and richer color-depth than smaller pixel-units in a sensor of the same technological generation. Moreover, a large sensor camera will give the photographer more control over depth-of-field in the image and, thus, the ability to better isolate a subject from the background. On the downside, larger sensors tend to be more expensive and lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

The Panasonic L10 features a Four Thirds sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 2.0. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Panasonic L10 among the medium-sized sensor cameras that aim to strike a balance between image quality and portability.

Since 2007, DXO Mark has published sensor performance measurements that have been derived using a consistent methodology. This service is based on lab testing and assigns an overall score to each camera sensor, as well as ratings for dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), color depth ("DXO Portrait"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports"). The table below summarizes the physical sensor characteristics and sensor quality findings and compares them across a set of similar cameras.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Panasonic L10	Four Thirds	10.0	3648	2736	none	21.3	10.8	429	55
2.		Nikon D60	APS-C	10.0	3872	2592	none	22.5	11.4	562	65
3.		Nikon D40X	APS-C	10.0	3872	2592	none	22.4	11.4	516	63
4.		Olympus E-420	Four Thirds	10.0	3648	2736	none	21.5	10.4	527	56
5.		Olympus E-520	Four Thirds	10.0	3648	2736	none	21.4	10.4	548	55
6.		Olympus E-410	Four Thirds	10.0	3648	2736	none	21.1	10.0	494	51
7.		Panasonic GF5	Four Thirds	12.0	4000	3000	1080/60i	21.4	11.6	618	61
8.		Panasonic GF3	Four Thirds	12.0	4000	3000	1080/60i	20.6	10.0	458	49
9.		Panasonic G10	Four Thirds	12.0	4000	3000	720/30p	21.2	10.1	411	52
10.		Panasonic G1	Four Thirds	12.0	4000	3000	none	21.1	10.3	463	53
11.		Panasonic L1	Four Thirds	7.4	3136	2352	none	..	..	..	..

It should be noted that unlike many modern cameras, the L10 does not provide the possibility to capture videos.

Feature comparison

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a variety of features. For example, the L10 has an optical viewfinder that provides a field of view of 95% and a magnification of 0.46x. The adjacent tables list some of the other core features of the Panasonic L10 along with similar information for a selection of comparators.

Core Features

		Camera Model	Viewfinder (Type or 000 dots)	Control Panel (yes/no)	LCD Specifications (inch/000 dots)	LCD Attach- ment	Touch Screen (yes/no)	Mech Shutter Speed	Shutter Flaps (1/sec)	Built-in Flash (yes/no)	Built-in Image Stab
1.		Panasonic L10	optical	n	2.5 / 207	swivel	n	1/4000s	3.0	Y	n
2.		Nikon D60	optical	n	2.5 / 230	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0	Y	n
3.		Nikon D40X	optical	n	2.5 / 230	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0	Y	n
4.		Olympus E-420	optical	n	2.7 / 215	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.5	Y	n
5.		Olympus E-520	optical	n	2.7 / 215	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.5	Y	Y
6.		Olympus E-410	optical	n	2.5 / 215	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0	Y	n
7.		Panasonic GF5	none	n	3.0 / 920	fixed	Y	1/4000s	4.0	Y	n
8.		Panasonic GF3	none	n	3.0 / 460	fixed	Y	1/4000s	3.2	Y	n
9.		Panasonic G10	202	n	3.0 / 460	fixed	n	1/4000s	2.6	Y	n
10.		Panasonic G1	1440	n	3.0 / 460	swivel	n	1/4000s	3.0	Y	n
11.		Panasonic L1	optical	n	2.5 / 207	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0	Y	n

The LCD screen on the Panasonic Lumix DMC- L10 is flexibly attached to the body. In particular, the LCD is hinged on the side and can be flipped out for odd-angle shots in both portrait and landscape orientation. Also, this fully articulated, swivel type of LCD attachment is often appreciated by videographers for its flexibility. Moreover, v-loggers like the design because the screen can be turned to be front-facing.

One convenient feature of the L10 is the presence of an on-board flash. While this built-in flash is not very powerful, it can at times be useful as a fill-in light to brighten deep shadow areas.

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Panasonic Lumix DMC- L10 and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

Input-Output Connections

		Camera Model	Hotshoe Port	Internal Mic / Speaker	Microphone Port	Headphone Port	HDMI Port	USB Port	WiFi Support	NFC Support	Bluetooth Support
1.		Panasonic L10	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
2.		Nikon D60	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
3.		Nikon D40X	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
4.		Olympus E-420	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
5.		Olympus E-520	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
6.		Olympus E-410	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
7.		Panasonic GF5	-	stereo / mono	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
8.		Panasonic GF3	-	stereo / mono	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
9.		Panasonic G10	Y	mono / -	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
10.		Panasonic G1	Y	- / -	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
11.		Panasonic L1	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-

Expert reviews

While the comparison of technical specifications can provide a useful overview of the capabilities of different cameras, it remains incomplete and does no justice, for example, to the way the L10 handle or perform in practice. User reviews that are available, for instance, at amazon can sometimes shed light on these issues, but such feedback is all too often partial, inconsistent, and inaccurate. This is why hands-on reviews by experts are important. The following table reports the overall rankings of the cameras as published by some of the major camera review sites (amateurphotographer [AP], cameralabs [CL], digitalcameraworld [DCW], dpreview [DPR], ephotozine [EPZ], photographyblog [PB]).

Review Scores

		Camera   Model	AP   score	CL   score	DCW   score	DPR   score	EPZ   score	PB   score	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Panasonic L10	..	85/100	..	+	3.5/5	4/5	Aug 2007	599
2.		Nikon D60	..	80/100	..	+ +	4/5	4.5/5	Jan 2008	629
3.		Nikon D40X	..	79/100	..	+ +	4/5	4/5	Mar 2007	729
4.		Olympus E-420	..	85/100	..	+ +	4/5	4.5/5	Mar 2008	599
5.		Olympus E-520	..	87/100	..	+ +	4.5/5	4.5/5	May 2008	699
6.		Olympus E-410	..	86/100	..	+ +	4/5	4.5/5	Mar 2007	699
7.		Panasonic GF5	3/5	..	..	..	4.5/5	4.5/5	Apr 2012	499
8.		Panasonic GF3	3/5	82/100	..	71/100	4.5/5	4/5	Jun 2011	549
9.		Panasonic G10	3/5	..	..	70/100	4/5	4/5	Mar 2010	499
10.		Panasonic G1	..	+ +	..	70/100	4/5	4.5/5	Sep 2008	599
11.		Panasonic L1	..	85/100	..	+	..	3.5/5	Feb 2006	999
Notes: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

The review scores listed above should be treated with care, though. The assessments were made in relation to similar cameras of the same technological generation. Hence, a score should always be seen in the context of the camera's market launch date and its price, and comparing ratings of very distinct cameras or ones that are far apart in terms of their release date have little meaning. It should also be noted that some of the review sites have over time altered the way they render their verdicts.

Camera to camera comparisons

In case you are interested in seeing how this camera compares to another one, just make your choice using the following search menu. Alternatively, you can follow any of the listed hyperlinks for comparisons that others found interesting.

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