Sony Alpha 3500 vs Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Sony Alpha 3500 and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Sony Alpha 3500 was introduced in March 2014 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 was introduced in July 2010. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Sony Alpha 3500 over Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 over Sony Alpha 3500.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Sony Alpha 3500 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 have 3.0" screens with 230k dot and 460k dot resolutions respectively. Sony Alpha 3500 has a Fixed screen Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 has a Fully Articulated screen which makes it selfie and vlogger friendly and generally very useful for video shooting. Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 also features touchscreen which has advantages such as easy menu navigation, intuitive controls, quick setting adjustment and most importantly a Touch-to-Focus functionality (available only on Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2) allowing users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording.

Viewfinder

Sony Alpha 3500 has a built-in Electronic viewfinderPanasonic Lumix DMC-G2 has a built-in Electronic (LVF) viewfinder with 1,440k dot resolution. They both have 100% coverage.

Sony Alpha 3500 features a 20 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor with dimensions of 23.5 x 15.6 mm and a total area of 366.6 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 16,000. Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 features a 12 megapixel Micro Four Thirds CMOS sensor with dimensions of 17.3 x 13 mm and a total area of 169 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 6,400.

Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how different sensors compare with each other:

Sensor size chart

	Sensor	Dimensions	Area	Aspect Ratio	Crop Factor
	Medium Format	44 x 33 mm	1452 mm2	4:3	0.79x
	Full Frame	36 x 24 mm	864 mm2	3:2	1x
	APS-H	27 x 18 mm	486 mm2	3:2	1.3x
	APS-C	23.6 x 15.6 mm	368.2 mm2	3:2	1.5x
	APS-C (Canon)	22.3 x 14.9 mm	332.3 mm2	3:2	1.6x
	Micro Four Thirds	17.4 x 13 mm	226.2 mm2	4:3	2x
	1-inch	13.2 x 8.8 mm	116.2 mm2	3:2	2.7x
	1/1.7-inch	7.44 x 5.58 mm	41.5 mm2	4:3	4.7x
	1/2.3-inch	6.17 x 4.55 mm	28.1 mm2	4:3	5.6x

Sony Alpha 3500 is equipped with BIONZ processor and can take pictures up to 5456 x 3632 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 3872 x 2576, 2736 x 1824 with 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios. Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 is equipped with Venus Engine HD II processor and can take pictures up to 4000 x 3000 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 4000 x 3000,4000 x 2672, 4000 x 2248, 2992 x 2992, 2816 x 2112, 2816 x 1880, 2816 x 1584, 2112 x 2112, 2048 x 1536, 2048 x 1360, 1920 x 1080, 1504 x 1504 with 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios.

Lens Mount

Sony Alpha 3500 has Sony E lens mount and Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 has Micro Four Thirds lens mount. Due to APS-C sensor in Sony Alpha 3500 its crop factor is equal to 1.5x, this means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 1.5. Due to Micro Four Thirds sensor in Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 its crop factor is equal to 2x, this means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 2.

No Image Stabilization

The cameras do not have image stabilization. On Sony Alpha 3500 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 nothing can be done. On Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Sony Alpha 3500 nothing can be done.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) inputs for data transfer. Sony Alpha 3500 has a Mini HDMI and Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 has a Mini Type C HDMI connector for video signal output.

Battery

Sony Alpha 3500 comes with NP-FW50 battery pack with battery life of 470 shots.

External Storage Slots

Sony Alpha 3500 has a single card slot. Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 has a single SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I) card slot.

Shutter

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 has Focal-plane shutter. Shutter speed can go up to 1/4000 sec on Sony Alpha 3500, and up to 1/4000 sec on Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2. Sony Alpha 3500 can shoot continuously up to 3.5 fps. Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 can shoot continuously up to 2.6 fps.

Exposure

Exposure meterings of Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 ranges from 0 to +18 EV and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±3 EV range. You can also do exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Sony Alpha 3500 and exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2.

Flash

Cameras have built-in flash with maximum range of 4m at ISO100 on Sony Alpha 3500 and 11.00 m on Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2. They also accept external flash. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/160 sec on both cameras.

Sony Alpha 3500 body has dimensions of 128 x 91 x 85 mm (5.04 x 3.58 x 3.35") and Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 body has dimensions of 124 x 84 x 74 mm (4.88 x 3.31 x 2.91"). Sony Alpha 3500 weighs 411 g (0.91 lb / 14.50 oz) and Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 weighs 428 g (0.94 lb / 15.10 oz).

Sony Alpha 3500

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2

128 mm

91 mm

124 mm

84 mm

91 mm

84 mm

85 mm

74 mm