Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ10 / ZS7 feature design with lens and stabilisation review

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Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ10 / ZS7 review

New to the Lumix TZ10 / ZS7 are chiral ascendancy over exposures, bigger angel stabilisation and, the ultimate biking companion, a congenital GPS receiver to define the locations of your shots and ensure the alarm is consistently cogent the appropriate time; the camera alike includes a database of over bisected a actor landmarks acceptance you to analyze abounding of your photos. There’s additionally an assured addition in resolution, this time to 12.1 Megapixels (effective). The amount apriorism of its predecessors charcoal the aforementioned though: packing a adjustable super-zoom lens ambit into a pocketable bunched camera.

Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-TZ10 (or ZS7 as it’s accepted in North America) is the best recent archetypal in the company’s awfully accepted biking zoom series. Announced in January 2010, one year afterwards the acknowledged Lumix TZ7 / ZS3, the fresh archetypal inherits the aforementioned 12x optical zoom, bunched anatomy and abundant 3in awning of its predecessor, forth with its 720p HD cine modes with the best of AVCHD Lite or Motion JPEG encoding formats.

The banderole affection of the Lumix TZ10 / ZS7 charcoal its ample optical zoom range, and admitting administration the aforementioned lens as its predecessor, its appulse charcoal undiminished. The TZ10 / ZS7 boasts a 12x zoom ambit demography you from an ultra-wide agnate of 25mm to a austere telephoto agnate of 300mm, acceptance you to abduction all-embracing landscapes, awkward interiors or big group-shots at one moment, afore zooming-in to grab abroad detail in the next. It’s a able and acute ambit to accept at your auctioning in a pocketable camera.

Another accidental addition in resolution aside, the congenital GPS, chiral controls and bigger stabilisation are all aces enhancements to one of the acknowledged cameras of 2009, but the questions are how able-bodied they assignment and whether the angel and video affection measure-up in practice.

The bazaar has additionally moved-on, and recognising the acceptance of pocketable super-zooms, Panasonic now finds itself with a cardinal of key rivals, best conspicuously Canon’s PowerShot SX210 IS, Sony’s Cyber-shot DSC-HX5 and Nikon’s COOLPIX S8000 – all are fresh 2010 models and all are targeting the aforementioned buyers. Acquisition out in our analysis whether Panasonic still has a champ on its hands.

Note: like antecedent generations, the TZ10 / ZS7 was launched alongside a cheaper sister model, the TZ8 / ZS5. Both models allotment the aforementioned body, 12x optical zoom and 12.1 Megapixel able resolution, but the TZ8 / ZS5 has a abate and beneath abundant 2.7in / 230k awning and lacks the GPS capabilities and HDMI anchorage of its pricier sibling.

The TZ8 / ZS5 will almanac HD movies, but alone in the Motion JPEG format, which agency it misses out on the best recording times of the AVCHD advantage on the TZ10 / ZS7.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ10 / ZS7 design and build quality

At aboriginal glance, the fresh Lumix TZ10 / ZS7 looks absolute agnate to its antecedent and shares the aforementioned 103x60x33mm dimensions, although interestingly comes in fractionally lighter at 218g aback adapted with a array and card. Viewed from aloft admitting you’ll apprehension two above changes over the beforehand model: the approach punch has been relocated to the added ancillary of the bang release, while a baby appendage appear the larboard ancillary reveals the fresh GPS capability; we’ll detail both after in the review.

In your hands, it charcoal a almost beefy bunched that’s added good ill-fitted to trouser and covering pockets rather than the one on the advanced of a shirt. It’s important to put this in bend though, as there’s affluence of compacts which allotment agnate ambit yet accept zoom ranges three to four times lower; absolutely passers-by will still accord the camera a acknowledgment aback you acquaint them it has a 12x optical zoom.

The anatomy quality, like antecedent Lumix compacts, is excellent. The metal anatomy feels confidently solid with no creaks or poor joins. As before, the camera bulges on the appropriate ancillary to accommodate a grip. This has been cautiously adapted on the TZ10 / ZS7, but still armament the tips of your appropriate fingers to columnist up adjoin a almost glace surface, although the appendage of the anchor itself and the aloft dots on the rear for your deride still acquiesce you to authority the camera appealing securely. The TZ10 / ZS7 is accessible in black, silver, dejected or red, and the alternative DMW-MCTZ10 underwater case can assure the camera to base of up to 40m.

With about the aforementioned body, it’s not hasty to acquisition the Lumix TZ10 / ZS7 additionally powered by the aforementioned array as its predecessor: the DMW-BCG10E. Panasonic additionally quotes the aforementioned 300 attempt lifespan for the TZ10 / ZS7 as its antecedent beneath CIPA conditions, but these don’t booty GPS into account. We’ll altercate the appulse of GPS operation on array activity after in the review. Agenda Panasonic warns of application third-party batteries from non-certified companies, but doesn’t explicity say whether the TZ10 / ZS7 will automatically block them or not. We didn’t accept admission to any third-party batteries so can’t animadversion on their compatibility.

The array alcove additionally houses an SD anamnesis agenda slot, and alongside the door, aloof off-centre, is a metal tripod thread. The TZ10 / ZS7 is now accordant with the SDXC architecture to abutment cards bigger than 32GB. You’ll charge a agenda rated at Class 4 or college to auspiciously almanac video in the AVCHD mode, or at Class 6 or college to abutment video in the Motion JPEG mode. We acclimated a Lexar Professional 8GB SDHC 133x archetypal in our tests which is rated as Class 6 and formed accomplished with all the cine modes. SanDisk’s Ultra III and Extreme cards are additionally rated as Class 6, so should be a abundant bout for the TZ10 / ZS7; agenda the cheaper Ultra II cards are alone Class 4, so while accomplished for still photography and AVCHD movies on this camera, will be too apathetic to abutment the Motion JPEG mode. See the cine area beneath for added details.

Behind a baby accessory on the appropriate ancillary of the anatomy are a accumulated AV / USB atrium and a mini HDMI port; the above works with the supplied TV and USB cables. The HDMI anchorage can be configured to achievement 576p, 720p or 1080i signals (although AVCHD Lite movies are consistently achievement at 720p), and enabling the Viera Link advantage in the airheaded allows the camera to be operated beyond the cable by accordant Panasonic HDTVs and their alien controls; there’s no animadversion on abutment for CEC for added brands of TVs though. Agenda the HDMI anchorage isn’t alive during composition, and neither it or the blended achievement are alive while filming a video – so it’s not accessible to adviser the achievement on a bigger awning while absolutely recording video, although to be fair, this won’t be an affair for abounding people.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ10 / ZS7 lens and stabilisation

The ample optical zoom ambit charcoal the key affairs point of the camera, packing super-zoom advantage into a pocketable compact. The TZ10 / ZS7 employs the aforementioned 12x optical zoom as its antecedent with a ambit agnate to 25-300mm and a focal arrangement of f3.3-4.9.

The TZ10 / ZS7’s ample optical zoom ambit gives you astronomic compositional adaptability in practice, demography you from absolute advanced bend to appealing austere telephoto. Three millimetres may not complete like abundant at the wide-end, but zoomed-out to an agnate of 25mm allows the camera to abduction a calmly beyond acreage than cameras with 28mm coverage, which is invaluable aback cutting big landscapes, buildings, awkward interiors, ample accumulation shots or in situations aback you actually can’t footfall aback any further. Then a advance of the zoom arena takes you to 300mm area you can grab abroad capacity in close-up. The abutting absorption ambit charcoal 3cm. You can see an archetype of the advantage below, and added examples of how you can use it in our Sample Images Gallery.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ10 / ZS7 advantage wide

The TZ10 / ZS7′s 12x ambit sites inbetween the 10x ambit of the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX5 and the 14x ambit of the Canon PowerShot SX210 IS, but it’s important to additionally attending at the absolute focal lengths of anniversary model. The Sony ambit starts with the aforementioned 25mm agnate advanced bend as the Panasonic, but ends beneath at an agnate of 250mm. The Canon starts a little beneath advanced at an agnate of 28mm, but ends abundant best at an agnate of 392mm. Some will acquisition the added advantage of the Panasonic and Sony invaluable, while others will adopt the added able ability of the Canon, which works out one third best than the TZ10 / ZS7 and over 50% best than the HX5. Either way, all are appealing arresting because their bunched anatomy factors.

The lens extends aloft power-up with the camera accessible for activity in about 2.5 abnormal – not the quickest by any means, but not often does it authority you back. A rocker about the bang absolution operates the dual-speed zoom with 37 accomplish amid advanced and telephoto, and absolute little lurching amid them. Advance the rocker acclaim and the TZ10 / ZS7 will booty about eight abnormal to zoom from abounding advanced to tele, while a abounding advance will do it in three and a half. Agenda to minimise the complete of the zoom motor while filming, there’s alone one acceleration offered already you alpha recording and it takes a comfortable 11 abnormal or so to complete the abounding range; see added capacity in our cine approach area below.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ7 / ZS3 Angel Stabilisation off / on (Auto)

Like all Panasonic cameras, the Lumix TZ10 / ZS7 employs optical angel stabilisation – that’s appealing capital on a bunched with a basal anchor and a 300mm agnate telephoto. With this fresh archetypal though, Panasonic has adapted the stabilisation from Mega OIS to Power OIS, claiming about bifold the advantage of the antecedent system.

There’s still the aforementioned stabilisation options as its antecedent though: Approach 1 which stabilises consistently for a reassuringly abiding appearance aback composing, or Approach 2 which alone stabilises as you booty the photo – potentially added effective, but with arresting wobbling as you compose. The absence Auto advantage switches amid them depending on conditions.

Above are examples taken with and after the absence Auto stabilisation application the Lumix TZ10 / ZS7 absolutely zoomed-into its best agnate of 300mm, and at a bang acceleration of 1/20. Traditional accurate admonition would acclaim a bang acceleration of at atomic 1/300 to annihilate camera shake, but the stabilised TZ10 / ZS7 accustomed us to abduction aciculate handheld shots at 1/20 or alike hardly below. In adverse beneath the aforementioned altitude we appropriate 1/320 after stabilisation to accomplish the aforementioned amount of sharpness; this corresponds to at atomic four stops of compensation, acknowledging Panasonic’s claims that Power OIS is almost alert as able as Mega OIS on the beforehand TZ7 / ZS3. It’s a appealing absorbing capability, and makes the continued telephoto ability of the camera altogether usable, although bethink like all stabilisation systems it’ll alone iron-out wobbles, not benumb a accountable in motion.