Panasonic refreshes its Lumix range

Baffling array of new cameras

1 February 2007 12:48 GMT / By Amber Maitland

Panasonic has completely updated and refreshed its Lumix range, from the simplest and cheapest to the top-of-the-range model.

First up is the DMC-FZ8, which is a 7.2MP camera with a 12x optical zoom, Leica DC Vario-Elmarit lens and Optical Image Stabliser.

The company has added an ISO-boosting mode to go along with the OIS. The Intelligent ISO Control detects whether your subject is moving and then boosts the ISO.

Panasonic has also added a new image-processor, the Venus Engine III, which achieves ISO 1250 and implement improved noise reduction.

The FZ8 won't be available until March, when further pricing information will be announced.

Next up are the DMC-TZ2 and DMC-TZ3, part of the TZ series that all pack a 10x zoom into a compact body.

Both feature a 28mm wide-angle lens and reach 280mm on a 35mm equivalent scale. The difference between the two seems to rest solely on the fact that the TZ3 has 7.2MP, while the TZ2 only has 6MP.

Then there's the DMC-FX30, which has a “world's” title – slimmest digital camera with a 28mm wide-angle lens.

The tiny camera zooms 3x optically, also has the Intelligent ISO Control, which most of the new range seems to have, a 1.8sec start up time and fractional shutter lag, and a 2.5-inch LCD that can easily be viewed from low angles.

There were another four compact cameras announced, just to baffle the consumer. The DMC-FX10 and FX12 both have a 3x zoom, a very bright lens that opens to f2.8, both image stabilisation methods, and 7.2MP and 6.0MP respectively.

And finally there's the cheaper DMC-LS75 and LS60. The 7.2MP and 6.0MP cameras feature a 3x zoom, the Venus Engine III, and a 2.5-inch screen at the back.