The attractions of the 9-megapixel Panasonic Lumix
DMC-TZ5 are almost irresistible: it's compact,
yet packs a 10x zoom lens and boasts some very interesting
shooting features. It's available for around £190.
Design
Extremely similar to its less-expensive sibling, the DMC-TZ4,
the TZ5 offers higher 9-megapixel resolution -- compared with 8
megapixels for the TZ4 -- plus a 1,270x720-pixel resolution movie-capture mode
and a larger, 76mm (3-inch) LCD. It's only slightly wider and heavier.
A dial lets you switch among camera and movie modes, as well as two slots for scene modes -- these have the same choices, but allow the camera to remember two of your last selections -- and Intelligent Auto and an odd Clipboard mode which captures low-resolution photos to internal memory for fast display.
One of our few complaints about the design of the TZ5 is the placement of the microphone on the top left of the camera. Given that Panasonic states "do not block the microphone with fingers" a whopping five times in the manual, the company must be aware that there's a problem with its location. Despite the many warnings, our fingers still tend to wander over there while recording movies.
Features
The Q(uick) menu button brings up a subset of options, which are
also available in the full menus. The full menu
adds more shooting settings, including colour effects and AF assist as well as setup screens.
Several of the TZ5's options are quite useful. We especially like the minimum shutter speed setting; you can set it as slow as 1 second or as fast as 1/200, and though it doesn't prevent the camera from shooting when exposure drops below the threshold, it does blink a warning message. Intelligent ISO lets you set a maximum for the auto of ISO 400, ISO 800 or ISO 1,600.
The various AF area-mode selections are pretty practical as well, though more for limiting the range of subjects the AF system chooses to focus on than for speed. For instance, the 9-area AF will frequently choose incorrect subjects, where the 3-area AF, which limits the focus areas to the middle row of the frame, will probably choose correctly more often -- most people simply point at their subject, which puts it in the middle of the frame.
On one hand, the TZ5's face detection seems more robust and faster than other implementations we've seen. On the other, it still doesn't seem to be more efficient or easier than using centre-spot focusing and recomposing.
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User reviews4
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ignota 31 July 2009
Good: great travel camera
Bad: n/a
Comment: Great piece of travel kit. My TZ5 has been everywhere with me, thousands of miles giving great pictures in demanding conditions. I don't see this wonderful camera just through the anorakist prism. Yes it has a great zoom facility; and a superb HD video capability; a Leica wide angle lens etc. Importantly, the TZ5
has proved itself a rugged travel companion for me and given great service in awful weather and good , and come back with wonderful pictures!
cajon 10 October 2008
Good: Solid, good handling camera with a bright big screen and 28mm Leica lens. Control layout.
Bad: Nothing really. Slight barrel distortion at 28mm if I'm picky.
Comment: I bought a TZ5 after spending hours on this site reading endless reviews of various manufacturers digital compacts. I wanted a 'snapshot camera' to compliment my Nikon D80s and whittled it down to a shortlist of four or five.
The Panasonic won on handling, (others like the Ixus 860IS I tried were more like trying to take pictures with a wet bar of soap), picture quality, which is excellent from the Leica optic and its 28mm widest angle lens, (which is still too rarely found in compacts), and solid build quality. The camera feels good in the hand and doesn't take an age to set up or alter.
The two mode settings on the control dial are a godsend, I had mine on 'sport' and 'soft skin' as well as 'normal' for my grandson and was delighted with the crisp, well saturated results.
The retailer in London had discounted the camera and threw in a Sandisk 4GB SDHC card on top for a third of the usual price so I got myself what I considered to be a considerable bargain for a shade over two hundred quid.
In your review you criticise the startup time but I was honestly surprised how quickly my camera came to life, focused, and grabbed the first shot. I was expecting the Panasonic to be slow and fussy, but it isn't. I easily captured several photos of my three year old grandson in succession at play and believe me he doesn't stay in one place for very long!
I'm delighted with my TZ5, it's ideal for me anyway. I'd recommenend one of these little machines to anybody considering a compact, it's a good performer, well built, well designed, and great value for money.
dave56 10 October 2008
Good: Compact considering the size of the zoom, Picture quality
Bad: auto focus in low light
Comment: Great camera the Zoom is excellent , picture quality is very good .The problem with the auto focus in low light has been improved greatly by the firmware update which I recently downloaded.
The camera has plenty of features which are useful.
I was nearly put of this camera by some reviews on the internet, but decided to go into a local retailer and check it out after spending 45 mins checking it out I decide it was for me after all.
I can only say that I am delighted with this camera and the zoom is excellent, I have always wanted a decent zoom camera but was not prepared to carry around an SLR heavy weight . This camera is light in weight compact and easy to use.
See all 4 user reviews