I set out to purchase FX07, but ended up w FX30, which was offered at the same price and I think is the same camera w FX07 feature-wise, except that it is slimmer and newer.

I set out to purchase an ultra compact, because I was reluctant to bring my DSLR in my first trip to China. Used to DSLR, I have high expectation of a camera.

My ground criteria: must have 28mm wide angle and optical stabliser. This significantly narrowed my selection to only 3: Lumix FX07, Lumix LX2 and Canon SD800/850IS.

Since I usually shoots w DSLR, I need 3:2 aspect and Canon does not support it, so it's out of the game.

Reading the reviews, I was initially deterred with the complaints of noise and water colour effects in Lumix. However, after seeing some samples, I decided that those noise and water colour are probably a nuisance only to those pixel peepers, not me.

It was a tough choice betw FX07 and LX2. Finally, I decided in favour of FX07's compactness and full 28mm lens, and foregoing LX2's supposedly better images, RAW support, and A/S/P exposure modes.

In a span of 1 week, I shot >600 pics. These included difficult photos: night scenery, low-light night & indoor photos, sunset, panning photos of people in the street. And wow...., this little gem camera exceeds my expectation. Extremely easy to use and very intuitive (at least for me - I hardly need to read the manual to master this camera). The quick access function menu (which provides quick access for most-frequently-changed settings such as changing ISO, white balance or single/multiple shots) is very handy. Accessing some photographic functions such as exposure compensation, flash setting and bracketing are also quick by pressing buttons instead of diving into the menu structures.

Noise turns out to be more tolerable than what I had anticipated (having read the reviews). I used ISO800 often for night photos with no flash; just do not use High Sensitivity (ISO3200) mode - this produced photos worse than mobile-phone camera. Of course, I try to use as lowest ISO as possible to minimise noise. I can handhold the camera at 1/4s with no apparent blur in the photos, thanks to the optical stabiliser, i suppose.

Being much more compact than DSLR, I think this camera is also not intimidating. I have taken many more candid photos of people in the street than I could have using DSLR.

I have not printed any of the photos, but I do not think that should be a problem.

I bought a black one, but the surface is not metal unlike the silver one. It's like a black suede material, which I just hope will not get thinned or peel off over time.

The best things about this camera are:
- 28mm is awesome. It is possible to take an arms-length self portrait and get ample scenery in the background. And it is not obvious I photographed myself. Invaluable when you can't find someone to take your picture.
- Image stabilization works well
- Fast performance. I can power on and snap off a well focused shot in a little over a second. Using a 66x 1GB SD card, I can take several shots per second in burst mode indefinitely (I've never tried more than 30 shots in burst mode but I'm sure it could do more)
- Hi-res widescreen videos look good on HDTV.
- Some manual controls such as AWB, ISO, and AF mode. Other point-and-shoot cameras had almost no manual adjustments.
- extra batteries (non-panasonic brand) can be found for cheap on well-known auction site. Look for model # BCE10E.

What I don't like:
- Low light shots are average. Most come out well-focused (due to IS), but they have more noise reduction artifacts than my Canon A510. However, the A510 tends to be blurrier. I prefer the FX30 shots due to less blur.
- No manual control over exposure time. There are a few modes for night shots with long exposres (15-60 sec) but I like to adjust shots in the 1/4-1/30 sec range and I cannot seem to do this with the FX30
- Flash is sometimes too bright in AUTO mode.
- Videos in QuickTime format. Windows users would be better served by AVI or MPEG format, as XP comes bundled with decent video editing and playback software for these formats.
- No optical viewfinder. I rarely use it but it is nice to have.

The reason I bought this camera was the wide-angle and the Image Stabilizer. Both features should be standard on any camera. The wide-angle allows you to take more of a scene and often those pictures just look nicer.

The IS works great. Does not do miracles and I wouldn't expect sharp pictures taken during an earthquake but sure helps take picture inside without using the flash. I was really impressed.

The camera is very small and be aware there's no grip and view finder. Can't have everything. Choose your poison.

Buttons are well positioned and very easy to use. Difficult to change setting by accident. That is the reason I did not buy the newest small canon.

There's enough options to please most of us. Quality of the pictures is good enough for me. Yah there's noise at high ISO and if you blow the picture 16X and look at them with a microscope but if you buy a small digital camera for [...]$ to produce movie posters, well the problem might not be the camera but the person holding it.

Overall it is a great point-and-shoot digital camera. If you want better quality picture, buy a DSLR.

The Lumix is the best camera I have ever used. It is very easy to use, has a large screen and is excellent in low light conditions. The optical imaging stablization feature is very good. For the price this is an outstanding camera.

I was thinking about buying leica instead of lumix. This camera does the same job for half the money.I am sure there are differences but, after all it is a point and shoot camera.and Wide angle makes a big difference.I don't know why people still using 35mm's.

My wife and I wanted to replace a well used Konica Minolta X50 we've had for some time and had seen some pretty heavy use over the years. We really wanted a camera that had a 28 mm wide angle because sometimes it was hard to get everything in pictures with the X50 (which has 36mm wide angle). The FX30 is a very nice small package and takes some nice clear pictures when there is good light and it can use a low ISO like 100, or 200 at the most. The optics of the FX30 seemed quite good and it did not have some of the fisheye issues at wider angles I had with a Canon SD800IS I tried at the same time. The flash on the FX30 is pretty limited and to compensate it has to raise the sensitivity. Then the pictures end up being grainy and noisy, even if you only print a 4X6 inch print. If you try and force it to a lower ISO, the pictures end up pretty dark, even with the flash on. We've also tried getting closer to subjects, but the flash tends to wash the subjects out. In the end I ended up returning the FX30 because I didn't feel it was any better than our Konica Minolta.

I ended up trying a Panasonic TZ3, which is unfortunately a little bigger than the FX30, but will still fit in most pockets and has a much bigger zoom lens while still having a 28mm wide angle. So far it seems to have some of the same limitations of the FX30, but if you force it to lower ISOs the pictures don't seem quite as dark as the FX30 in lower light. I'm probably going to keep the TZ3 in spite of it having some limitations because it is a really versatile camera with both the wide angle lens and the great zoom and would be an upgrade to our Konica Minolta.

I have had many expensive digital cameras....but when I return from my many trips, I was always disappointed by not being able to capture everyone in a large group or the grandeur of the panorama views or the buildings, when I didn't have the luxury of being able to step back....and when I did, what I wanted to photograph only got too small and insignificant....that is until I found Lumix FX30K !

Yeah, it's a big big, but this model is smaller than the older models and takes the best photos....with all the flexibility for adjusting to various light levels. With this camera, I never have to think how to crop or what to chop-off of the photo. Every one who needs an all encompassing/one-camera-for-all-uses should try this. Once you've had a 28mm wide-angle lens camera, you'll never be satisfied w/ any other. AND to top it off, the camera is quite compact and has an incredible quality lens.

It's almost impossible to take a bad photo, inside or out. This is the only camera that I feel like I got my money's worth and that I want to take w/ me for business or for pleasure.

I have owned sony, kodak, canon and panasonic digital cameras...but this is one of a kind and the best so far...very portable, crystal clear pictures and amazingingly easy to use...it is worth every penny and Amazon beat the prices of Ebay!!

I think this camera is great! I have had it for almost a month, and it is performing beautifully. I love the size, I think it is easy to use, and I have taken some fantastic shots with it and I don't even know what I am doing! The battery lasts a long time, and I got the 2G card for it and I have close to 450 pictures so far with no sign of it being full. I find it very user friendly, and I would definitely recommend it.

I've bought this digital camera a month ago, just before going on holidays. I must say this is a great product: easy to use, beautiful photos, small... An only one concern: some options are not easy to find.

Canon sd1000 takes a much better picture. Canon has better sound with video recording, less noise, better detail in shadows. I wanted to like the fx30, I really did. The wide angle was promising, but I held both cameras with the same settings side by side and took a lot of pictures to compare and the Canon wins every shot. Even with the anti-shake on the FX30, the shots came out blurry. The Canon Sd1000 has no anti-shake but the pictures are much better. The final straw was when taking a video the sound on the fx30 just couldn't be heard when played back on the computer. Sd1000 sound was crisp, loud and clear. Seriously, read the reviews... if you have not used the Canon sd series you may think the fx series is great, but once you use a Canon you will notice the difference right away. If you really want the wide angle and anti-shake go with a Canon sd850is. I would have but my sd1000 return would require a restocking fee from the box store I purchased it from, and besides I like it even without wide angle and Image-stabalization... It's that good.

I've had this camera a while, got it for high school graduation. Normally, cameras get dated within a year, but this camera is so much nicer that a lot of other similarly priced newer cameras. It's AWESOME. The screen is big and crystal clear, the picture quality is amazing, the blur/motion settings are really good and it's tiny, so it fits in my purse and goes with me everywhere. I didn't think it was durable but friend dropped mine pretty hard once and nothing happened (not that I'm saying I would recommend dropping it...)

Product was exactly what I wanted, works great. Company shipped it very quickly. Thank you

The camera is excellent, the quality of the photos and video is very good but the only bad thing is that you can not use the zoom with video.

I am so glad I purchased this camera. The pictures are beautiful and the video is crystal clear. Though this camera like most came with a manual with lots of information on what you could do..Im happy that it does a great job just using its automatic features.

Amazon shipped promptly as promised.

The carrying case is nice and it came on time but the digital camera didn't so I had to return both.

We paid for express shipment and they shipped it ground. The camera came when we were gone. My husband had to buy a new camera. Please credit our Credit card.

This camera is awesome! Who could have imagined that something so small could do so much?

Indeed, the FX30 is an impressive compact camera. 7Mpex @ 4:3 image size + 3.6x optical zoom OR 5,5Mpex @ 16:9 image size + 3,6 optical zoom. 7Mpex 4:3 images are 3072*2304 px²!!! So big!

This camera can also take videos... And what videos! 640*480 px² @ 30fps. So fluid and clear. oh my god. But I prefer 16:9 videos :)

Others things like stabilizer, auto focus are very useful, powerful and fast. You will notice that. The ISO Intelligent mode is very effectiveness when you are taking a moving target. It also creates an interessant effect when you are taking cars moving... Just discover it!

Very good thing: the battery. It lasts one day (from the morning to the evening): good point, near 400 pictures @ 7mpex. To reload the battery, you only need 2 hours.

I am using a Transcend SDHC 4Gb Class6. Nothing to say: fast and powerful. But to transfer your datas on your computer, use a card reader because like all cameras, the transfer rate through a USB cable is too long (~500ko/s).

Near 0.4sec to power on => something to catch? Ok, just turn on the camera and take it easy ;)

Is there something bad? Unfortunately yes: the flash. In my opinion, it is too much aggressive, making subjects too white.

But in any situation, the Pana FX30 can take everything you can, in the perfect condition (the setup is very complete and easily to configure). But I think Blue is not so sexy like the picture...

Black is the sexiest one I guess.

In a nutshell, FX30 is a great deal in front of the Canon Ixus 850IS (not the Powershot 850IS !!). FX33 is better yes, but not so much. If the price is playing in the balance, get the FX30. You'll not regret!

I have been using this camera for over a month now. I give it 5 stars for: picture quality, build quality, and price. This is a state of the art point and shoot camera. 7.2 MP, Leica Lens for under $200? Bang for the buck is very impressive.

I purchased the Panasonic Lumix after several malfunctions with my other digital camera.
As soon as the Lumix arrived I charged it up and put it to use.
I couldn't be happier with the quality of the pictures, the ease of using it and the size of the camera itself.
There are numerouse options I've yet to explore but I'm truely satisfied with this camera.
I would recommend it to anyone who wants quality with simplicity.

Arthur Schopenhauer once wrote: "Truth goes through 3 stages: First it is ridiculed, second it is violently opposed, and third it is accepted as self-evident truth."

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."
- Francois Voltaire

UNLIKE YOUR AA BATTERIES, THE PROPRIETARY BATTERY MUST BE RECHARGED EVERY NIGHT OR YOU WILL END UP WITH .....A DEAD CAMERA!


What you'll read below is more than merely my opinion. What you'll read are factual statements about this camera.

This camera has no optical viewfinder and it uses a proprietary expensive and hard to find battery. A better choice is The Nikon Coolpix P50 which costs about $30 LESS!

So, why give it one star, you ask? I give it one star because, for me, I would NOT buy this camera in preference to the Nikon P50. Because I would not buy this camera, for me it only rates one star. That does not say that it is a "bad" camera regarding its picture taking capabilities. You may love the camera and if it was the only camera on the market I might also. But, for me and possibly for you, The Nikon P50 is a better choice, in my opinion. If you wanna see some photos I took with the Nikon P50 email: boland7214@aol

Regarding the proprietary battery as compared with AA batteries, when you are out on safari in Africa living in a thatched hut or tent and your proprietary battery runs out of power, do you want to be running all over the jungle at night in a fruitless attempt to find a battery at a local "sari-sari" store while you hear lions and hei-enas roaring and sounding off all around you? With the Nikon P50, you can easily carry enough AA batteries with you on your trip so you won't have to risk your life searching for the proprietary battery all over the jungle on those cold nights with wild animals searching for YOU! Got it? :o)

So, you ask, "who needs a 28mm or 23mm lens?" You do! Most people concern themselves with how LONG is their telephoto lens. But, most people who "know" know that it is the WIDE ANGLE lens that is most important---most of the "best shots" are made with a WIDE ANGLE lens. For example, you're in Europe and you are trying to "get a shot" of that Cathedral of Notre Dame over there. You NEED a WIDE ANGLE lens. You are in the California Poppy Fields and you want to get the expanse of the golden-yellow poppy flowers with the huge blue sky filled with white clouds above---you need a WIDE ANGLE lens. You are sitting at thanksgiving dinner and you want to take a photo from the foot of the table with everyone sitting on the left and right---you NEED a WIDE ANGLE lens. You are in the garden of the California Mission and you want to take a photo of the ENTIRE garden surrounded by the mission walls---you NEED a WIDE ANGLE lens. It's Christmas day and you want a photo of the ENTIRE GROUP of visitors in front of the Christmas Tree---you NEED a WIDE ANGLE lens. This is where the 28mm lens comes in! So, you NEED a camera with a 28mm wide angle lens. Otherwise you'll be cutting off heads and leaving Aunt Sylvia out of the "Christmas Group Photo" this year---and she'll disinherit you and you'll live a life of poverty and misery everafter! :o) If you agree or disagree or know of ANY other digital point and shoot camera that has a WIDE ANGLE lens please write, Email:boland7214@aol.

PS: There is also a Canon SD800 which has a wide angle lens and an optical viewfinder. I like that one also. But the "killer" for me on that one is the proprietary battery necessary to operate the Canon SD800 over the use of AA batteries used in The Nikon P50 that are very cheap and you can find in almost any store in the world.

PPS: Why do you need an optical viewfinder when you have an LCD screen? The simple reason is that the LCD's SOMETIMES get "washed out" in bright sunlight. And, another reason, I think, is that the optical viewfinder is "faster to use" under "pressure circumstances" like when you want to "grab" that smile on your kids face. Why not have both is my opinion. If you disagree fine, but two ways to view and take photos seems better than one. It's just common sense. (Plus, some people are "far sighted" and have difficulty clearly viewing a small LCD screen a few inches from their eyes.)

One more reason having an optical viewfinder is a good feature is that: If you don't have an optical viewfinder you'll have to use the LCD Screen ALL the time....thus using up more precious battery power--but with an optical viewfinder you can turn the LCD off and conserve battery power so you won't run out of electricity to power the camera.

I bought a black one. It looks cool, and feels well-built and sturdy. ( Maybe other colors are nicer than black? Anyway, black looks good, so you don't have to worry about its cheapness ) The stabilizer seemed to work fine. Pictures look fine overall.

But there was one annoyance I couldn't get over with, even as a layman ( or rather, because I'm a layman):

The preview screen doesn't properly show the actual brightness of the taken image. Often the final image comes out darker than the preview.

I'm talking about the difference between
1) the preview image after the shutter half-press, and
2) the finally taken image,
both seen on the camera's LCD.

It usually happens in in-door lighting. Quite often the taken photo is noticeably darker than the preview.

I considered the possibility of a bad unit, but unlike some reviewers who experienced severe image quality problems, the photos come out basically okay, just darker than the preview. My older Canon SD110 is noisier and more blurry than FX30K, but at least it took pictures at the same brightness as the preview. I was also able to find two expert reviews complaining about this same preview problem, so I think I'm not alone. ( at digitalcamerareview.com and neocamera.com. Try Googling "DMC-FX30K WYSIWYG". )

Maybe it's okay for many people (yes, it's still much better than no-preview optical view-finders), but I found it too annoying, so returned the camera.

This little guy is about the size of a cell phone, but it's able to perform as well as the larger point and shoots. After a few test shots, I "tweaked" the factory settings a bit, and my "tweaking" seems to be remembered when the camera is turned off. A morning of shooting at a "robot wars" competition in a local high school gym included some film clips with sound. I would have gotten better quality with a dedicated film camera and external mike, but these are usable for electronic scrapbooking, and great for a camera of this size. (Warning: movies are in Apple Quick Time format, which does not seem to be compatible with Windows Vista.)

I have the black non-metallic version of this camera, and the softer plastic coating is helpful in keeping a grip on this little guy. The build quality seems to be very good. It's not the equivalent of a DSLR, but this is more apt to be carried on casual Saturday morning adventures.

I'm really writing this review as a counter point to another review I saw here. Someone made a comment that the battery was hard to find unlike AA or AAA batteries. I have to say the battery is one of my favorite features for this camera. If you've owned a digital camera that uses AA batteries you've probably had the same experience I've had...they go dead fast... very short life. With the battery in this camera it is not only rechargeable, but lasts a really long time before you have to charge it. True you can't walk into any store and get a battery.. but I didn't think it was hard to find as the other reviewer suggested. I purchased an additional battery which came with a car charger for $6.00 + shipping on e-bay new.

The camera stabilization is great as I'm taking pictures and running after the kids. The picture quality is well beyond my older digital camera and my husbands digital camera. The size makes it easy to stick in your pocket and go. I pretty much have this camera with me at all times and I love it.

I LOVE THIS CAMERA!!! I bought it, and took it to Ireland and took the most amazing pictures. Several months later it was stolen from me...I bought it again because I missed it so much. You really have to try hard to take a bad picture with it, and it has lots of great features, is fast and has an awesome macro mode. Don't think about it anymore - buy it already!!!

I've had disappointments in the past buying cameras mail order so I was concerned with this as well but it turned out great. We have a couple of the big zoom Panasonics (that have also been great) and wanted something that was both small and had a wider angle lens than the big zooms. The 28mm equivalent makes for nice pictures and everything has worked exactly as advertised, so I am very pleased. The interface is the same as the others so the learning time is low and the pictures have been sharp.

well, great photos, i found it to be incredibly user friendly & intuitive... but the thing died in 3 weeks. took some gorgeous shots on the california coast, not in the rain, not in the snow, simply a few days during weather in the low 60's with some breeze... not even any sand whizzing around. and now the mechanism that extends and retracts the lens has locked up. nuts. sent an inquiry for replacement and all i got was a "we received your inquiry and are currently in processing. we will contact you shortly"... that was 10 days ago. i never imagined a digital camera would be quite THIS fragile... maybe i just got a bum one... ??... hoping i get a replacement before (a potentially last) christmas dinner with my sick grandfather...

Very good pictures without the need for firing up your favorite photo editor. It even allows to take the pictures in various size formats/ratios e.g. 4X6 photo eliminates the need for cropping before printing assuming you framed the shot properly. In my opinion, wide angle lens is more important than any other feature.

I can't say enough good things about this camera. It even takes first rate videos. I don't even use my regular video camera any more!

I bought the Lumix FX30S for my wife to replace her dead 3mp point and shoot. I like the straight forward intuitive menus and functions and it took an 8gb SD card with no problem. The 28mm lens is a great and overall the lens does focus well and quickly. The IS feature works well and allows an extra stop or so of no flash low light shooting. The output is excellent and considering it's Leica counterpart is several hundred dollars more this little Pany is a ridiculous bargain. One caveat, this is a point and shoot and like all it's brethren is meant to be a fun and easy option for casual photos. If that is what you are after you will have a hard time doing better and could easily spend more and do worse.

I needed a small easy to use camera that was not a technical compromise in terms of optics and features and this is it. Basically a leica for 1/3 of the price , easy to operate in social situations, and as good as any digital slr on the market under a thousand dollars in most other circumstances.
Personally I prefer the black version which has a textured surface which is important in an object this small and which doesn't bounce.

I foolishly bought this camera after having an HP R707 and an Olympus SP350 thinking that the Leica lens and "Venus 3" engine made the camera perfect for me. Might I also ad that I was deceived by all the great reviews. I began taking pictures right out of the box. The first thing that I noticed was how small the camera is, which is good considering travel frequently. It's a very beautiful camera, I must say.

Pros:

1. Beautiful, slim and small.
2. Easy menus - very user friendly.
3. Lightweight.
4. Quick startup, fast shutter speed.


Cons: (I am not a professional photographer nor am I a "Pixel counter")

1. Venus engine? Noise reduction? what!? these take the grainiest pictures I have ever seen in low light without the flash - I felt like crying.
2. Poor image quality. The camera sometimes does not focus on the subjects therefore resulting in unfocused photographs. To top that off, the flash washes out the subjects. Reds look too pink and flesh tones come washed out, pale and pink (Almost like the persons skin is irritated). As for the rest of the pictures, even outdoors, colors are washed out.
3. Image stabilization works, but the only time you need it would be in low light with no flash. Your grainy pictures will not be ruined by blur.
4. Lag. Yes, the camera takes pictures quickly but wait until you want to review them! click the review button and watch an hourglass twirl for about 5 seconds. Each time you decide to review a different picture, you'll have to wait about 2-3 seconds for the camera to load.

This product is extremely disappointing in terms of image quality. I strongly advise you to look at Canon, Olympus or Nikon. Gee Panasonic, you fooled me and now you've trapped me for the next three to four years.

I really like this camera. I finally had to replace my Kodak which I loved & was skeptical about finding a camera that I liked as much. It's very easy to use, the picture quality is very good. It took great pics outside in the dark with a fire going and I didn't even have to change it to the "night" mode. I figured out how to use just about all the features w/o even reading the manual! I haven't printed photos yet but they look fantastic on my computer screen. I like the black covering, it's a bit soft to the touch. The optical zoom isn't great, but that's my own fault for chosing what I did. And I love the lithium battery that recharges. I would never buy a camera with regular AA rechargable batteries again - even with the new chargable ones, they don't last nearly as long as the lithium in this Panasonic. I would recommend this camera.

Bought this for my daughter to replace the fx 07 which was stolen. She really liked the 07 and this one seems smaller and just as good. The wide angle makes it really nice for group pictures and, as a college student, that is the most common shot she takes. Good crisp pictures, good battery life and a nice small size so it is always with her.

I started out as a professional news photographer in 1970 and while I got into digital video several years ago I still wasn't into digital still cameras. I have a great 35mm Ricoh p&s that takes great pics and features a panorama view at 24mm, all in a camera that fits in my pocket. I was looking for a wide angle lens as most digital p&s are not really very wide, widest is 35mm lens and most are 38mm.

Panasonic was the only one that had a reasonably wide 28mm equivilent lens and good enough to get up close to subjects and have no real distortion. I also liked the look of the camera and the easy controls and of course,the fact that it was pretty much identical to the Leica C-Lux was also a factor, it's pretty much the same camera for $200 as opposed to the Leica at $400, both made by Panasonic.

Using the camera was easy, just set it to Normal mode, or even easier, Simple mode, and you're ready to shoot. Manual is pretty big but as with all electronics, you really use maybe 10% of the features. I like the ability to do manual white balance which it has, and also choose resolution. A word of advice though, you can shoot in 3 formats, 4:3 which is normal TV screen size, 3:2 which duplicates the 35mm frame (and 4x6 prints) and 16:9 which is HD format, so you can show your pics in wide screen on your HD TV.

But when you choose either 3:2 or 16:9, your choice of resolution is limited to two choices; 6mp or 2.5mp. But that's really all you need anyways, I have shot solely on 2.5 and get fantastic pics. I usually set my ASA at 400, same as my 35mm camera and have done great 8x10's as well as using the camera for Powerpoint presentations where the pics are blown up on a screen 10ft by 8 ft. No noticeable grain at all.

Hookups were easy, cables are provided for attaching to your TV and also to connect to your computer. I have a Dell computer with 8-1 reader so I just take my 2GB card out and insert into the Dell and the pictures appear, I select and they go to the folder I direct them to.

It's a fantastic little camera, I'm extremely happy with it and can't find any real drawbacks. Having used many cameras over the years I think this goes down as one of my favorites. And I got the black body, aluminum, not cheap plastic, it feels good when you hold it and it stands out a little from all the rest.

Wish it had a viewfinder but I guess you can't have everything.

Excellent camera ! The best feature is the wide angle lens. Only few cameras have this feature.

Excellent product overall. Very slim, easily fits in a shirt pocket. When I first received it, I never thought that it would be so slim! The image quality is excellent and the anti shake enables you to take some really good pictures. There are a lot of scene settings and the menu system is very accessible. For the price range, it has some pretty good advanced features. Overall, very satisfied with this product.

I initially went to the store to purchase a Canon 870 is but I fell in love with Lumix as soon as a saw it.
It had a wide Leica lens, large LCD, slim body and attractive colors.
I purchased it right away and left for my vacation on the next day.
After a great day of sightseeing in the foreign land I found an Internet café. Great place to send e-mails and pictures to the family and let them know that we made it and that we are having fun....
We paid for 5Minutes of internet and a nice man gave us the USB connector to upload photos.
RATS......this camera DOES NOT USE USB CONNECTOR. It uses something (whatever that is) ELSE.....

My first instinct was to take the card out and smash the camera but I decided to give it to one of my less liked relatives. Have him carry a (whatever that is) cable around the world..I am going back to get myself a Canon....

Well after a bunch of research I was able to pickup this camera. Found that Panasonic cameras have the lowest repair rates of all by a larger margin. Also for the money has best features. Great pics, and stabilizer seems to work quite well. The video is very good considering it is a camera and not a camcorder. It is better than the sanyo hd700 that I bought from here and sent back due to very poor pics and video quality. The Panasonic is also very good in low lighting for video which suprised me. The only thing that I would mention that I may not like is it is somewhat hard for me to hold without feeling like I may drop it but that is what the strap is for. I do love the small size of it. All in all a great camera for the money!!!

My DSLR was out of order during the last India trip, I realized that I should travel with a secondary tiny camera.
I bought Panasonic FX-30 due to its wide angle from 28mm, compact size(compare with TZ3 which has 28-280mm zoom), and cheaper price(it's being substituted by FX33, FX55).
After using it for 2 months, I must say it is a very practical camera for general purpose. The wide zoom from 28mm is a excellent feature for landscape, group picture & tight indoor. Its small size & light weight enable to slip in my shirt or jeans pocket. The 4 x 6 photos print out is sharp(I have not try to print larger size yet) comparing with my wife's Canon SD700IS, but not as good as my old Olympus C740(I enjoyed the C740 so much till its battery compartment door broke). I consider its capablity for 3:2 photo is very important as I do print out at stores. Noisy beyond ISO 100 and color accuracy of flash shots are the weakness of this camera. Be reasonable, One cannot ask for 100% perfection in consideration of its price and size.
I am happy with the FX30 as a walk-around or secondary camera.

I liked the easy way to handle the camera, and the beautiful pics that takes

I have purchased this camera due to its optical stabilization and high iso capabilities since most of the pictures I take are indoor and I rather not use the flash.

The optical stabilization works fine, but the pictures I've taken in low light conditions were too dark. If you have some experience you have the freedom to adjust and improve the pictures quality but, when in automatic, I was a bit disappointed with the performance.

For general use, it is a very nice camera, very small, fast with good color balance.

This camera is small, lightweight and takes great photos. It's definitely NOT for people new to using a digital camera, however. The instruction booklet is almost impossible to figure out. Steps are missing and the icons too small. It would be helpful if Panasonic included a simple step-by-step "just the basics" instruction card to go with this camera.

This is the prefect camera for anyone looking for high-quality everyday pictures. This is my third digital camera, and it is by far the best.
The design is excellent, very stylish, and it is so slim and small that you can carry it in your pocket as if it were a cell phone.
I've had other cameras by Nikon, and a Sony Cybershot, and this Lumix easily exceeds them in performance and style. The image stabilization system is the best of all, since it is very hard to get a blurry picture. I've tried hard to get blurry pictures, but the camera keeps correcting the images, even if you move your hand in a crazy manner, or if the object pictured is moving. I used the camera to take hundreds of pictures at parties and the pictures look great. That's important, if you consider that light condition was horrible, and everyone was dancing.
The battery is rechargable and lasts for a very long time. Anyway, I recommend buying an extra battery so as to have a charged one at any moment.

You won't regret buying this Panasonic!

This is a great camera. The wide angle lens is great for group pictures and panoramic pictures. The image stabilizer works great. And it copes very well in situations where there is not much light and you do not or cannot use a flash. The perfect little digital camera for my uses.
(I'd say it may not be the best camera for folks who want a very powerful zoom)

I bought this camera on the strength of it winning the "Best Consumer Compact 2007" in What Digital Camera magazine here in the UK. I wanted a very compact camera which was well made and which also produced good quality pictures via a high quality wide angle lens.

And that is what I got - good quality pictures - and the camera itself is beautifully made, incl a Leica 28-100mm lens (perfect for landscapes and short tele work). Beautifully made? How many cameras can you say that about these days? It's a joy to use too. The menu system is dead easy - I only read the manual out of academic interest in the end (but of course that's the way to get the best out of it). Picture quality is very good indeed for a compact digital, especially so given the tiny size of the sensor in these types of cameras (compared to DSLRs). No complaints from me - I was very pleasantly surprised.

I've taken a string of indoor and outdoor shots on this camera and find viewing them on my laptop very satisfying indeed. What I mean is that I'm enjoying the picture rather than being distracted by any apparent lack of picture quality (which there isn't). And I say this as someone who also regularly shoots using a Canon 400D DSLR attached to the new Canon 70-200 F4L IS, a combination which delivers amazing image quality. However, if you want really bitingly sharp image quality then buy a DSLR and be sure to buy the best (sharpest) lens you can afford so as to do the sensor justice.

I just checked outdoor low light performance of the FX30 by taking 3 shots, ISO 100, 400 and 800 (steadied against a door frame). So that's at 5pm just now and completely overcast. Looking at the shots, I guess things are OK-ish around the ISO 100 and 200 mark. Much noisier at these light levels using ISO 400 and 800 though. As you might expect, noise quickly becomes a problem in outdoor low light conditions, but I don't suppose that this camera is worse than any other in this respect. If you are worried about this specific area then you could visit a local dealer who has one of these cameras on display then maybe you could check with your own eyes by taking a few shots out through the dealer's doorway when daylight is fading. Then view the shots on the LCD back panel and zoom in to see what you can see in terms of noise? Or back home on your laptop or PC if you take your own memory card along.

I have also used the FX30 indoors in low-ish light (mix of natural and artificial light, and sometimes just indoor lights / plus flash) and have accordingly bumped up the ISO setting to 200 or 400 (and experimented with white balance setting to see what looks best). At ISO 400 I noticed some loss of detail as you might expect but I didn't notice noise becoming a problem as such. What I did like doing around Christmas time just gone was using the camera for cosy indoor shots with decorations up, gifts laid out, Christmas lights on around fire place etc. Selecting the slow synch flash mode and upping the ISO to around 200 or 400 usually gave a really nice balanced flash effect. I could just about get away with hand-holding, i.e. relying on the image stabilization but the images was a tad sharper using a tripod as you would expect. Very nice results.

In terms of speed of use, the camera is ready to use one second after switching on. Min to max zoom takes 2 seconds, and max to min zoom takes 2 seconds also. So it seems pretty snappy to me - I never find myself waiting for the camera to catch up.

It's a case of you pays your money and takes your choice as far as the compact vs DSLR argument goes - but this is one cracking compact camera that delivers great results which surely 99% of people would happily enjoy. I'm not surprised it picked up its UK What Digital Camera magazine award. I'm very glad I bought it.

Very highly recommended.

I bought this camera for my wife last summer when she was in China. She was looking for something with less shutter lag than our last generation of Nikon and Canon digital point-and-shoots, and something cute and portable. The Panasonic DMC-FX30 is both of these things.

Out of the box it overexposed and undercolored things, but this was easily fixable after fiddling with the settings menu. Even set up right, photos using the flash still look too shiny whit, and photos taken at high ISOs are pretty noisy. The lack of a real viewfinder also makes capturing action clunky, but this is obviously in part an artifact of my preferences. This camera takes fine outdoor pictures, and the wide angle zoom allows for some cool shots and works well in confined (well-lit) spaces.

The camera is a small, precision-made jewel of a camera, with controls and buttons designed for smaller hands than mine; they fit my wife fine. We both missed the lack of a real viewfinder; pocket cameras seem to making an unfortunate departure from this useful standard (bright sunlight washes the display out, and it's easier to take a picture from your eye, as that's what you're composing with in the first place). The camera performed fine in its role as a city camera in Beijing, and for snapping quick shots back home when lugging the SLR around was inconvenient.

Now, however, we are in rural China for a year doing field work, and I was using the Panasonic as a backup to my Nikon DSLR. It was nice having a wide-angle lens in a pouch in my pocket when I had my normal or telephoto primes on the SLR. The Panasonic worked great in this role for 3-weeks, and then the automatic lens cap froze shut and wouldn't open, despite my coaxing, cleaning, etc. I finally just pried it off so I can still use the camera (I keep a business card over the lens in the soft pocket pouch), but let's say that I am not impressed with the camera's durability, compared to any other camera I've had, film or digital. It never got wet, dusty, dropped, or sat on; it looks brand new, but the lens cap won't work, and failed in a way that renders the camera useless to someone unwilling to take pliers to a Leica lens (failing and staying open would be preferable).

Anyway, if you're looking for a field or reliable travel camera, pass this one up.

Well, this camera was such a great camera that within one month it was stolen. I loved the camera, it was easy to use, easy to interface with my computer, and unfortunately, easy to be "lifted."

I just got this and really like it.

1. The noise issue is there, but is very acceptable at low ISO. Image stabilization works well, and helps keep the ISO low. I like the motion detection related auto ISO--if you are taking a picture of a stationary object even in low light, the camera automatically chooses low ISO, since the IS function kicks in.

2. The controls are very intuitive, and very well thought out. Joy to use.

3. Something not mentioned in other reviews (even in professional reviews) is that the Auto White Balance is fantastic!! It's MUCH better than my Nikon D40 in fact, and red/blue adjustment at each manual WB setting is easy to get to and very useful. And much better than the Canon A series. Again, the controls are extremely well thought out. I was amazed at how well this camera handles tungsten light AND fluroscent light in AWB.

4. The 28mm is awesome.

5. The adjustable ratio is really a cool feature. At 5.5mp, 16:9 works very well. In fact, I find the 7mp too cumbersome in terms of how much memory it takes up. Cameras don't need all those pixels, so using the wide format is perfect.

6. One downside is that it is not USB2 so transfer to PC is SLOW--but easily got around by buying a cheap card reader (less than $10).

7. It is a beautiful camera; it's smaller than what I'd anticipated, and is simply a joy to use. Makes you want to take lots of pictures. Just that fact alone will make you a better photographer by motivating you to take more pictures.

I use DSLRs and bought this as a carry around camera. And I'm very pleased with it. If you are not driven crazy by the picky pixel peepers' reviews (because they do have a point in terms of noise), this is a great camera. I find that the noise issue is real but overblown and not a big deal for everyday use. It's a bit unrealistic to want everything in a tiny sensor camera--this has a nice balance of features, and is a beautifully thought out piece of work.

This camera is amazing! Like every Panasonic camera.


It's very simple to use, the batt lasts enought, the pictures have a wounderful color.
However, the only thing I don't like on it, is that it doesn't capture movies in mpeg format. So is a little bit boring to find a software to play and edit the videos.

good quality photos. easy to use. not that great for close up photos. overall, a good camera and value.

We've had the camera for a few weeks and absolutely love it. Not only is it slim and easy to carry in the purse, it takes awesome photos. It's easy to connect to the computer to upload pictures and the battery does actually have a pretty long life (longer than I was expecting). Not overly crazy with the audio on the camera when reviewing a video clip, but I have NOT listened it on the computer after I downloaded a video. Easy to use, menus are easy to follow.

I got this camera to take on vacation because I didn't want to carry around our larger 35mm camera. It fit right in my pocket and took great pictures. The controls and different modes such as scenery, portrait, etc. are easy to use. Great to bring to restaurants and bars (party setting). My wife now keeps it in her purse and is able to get great candid shots of the kids without having to plan ahead and carry the big camera everywhere. Very happy with this purchase.

I have had the FX-30 for about 6 weeks now. I also have a DSLR for serious photos, but sometimes that is a bit big, so the Panny lives in my back pack.

the good:
picture quality - excellent - nothing more to say
size - tiny. My girlfriend has a FX07 (also superb) which is the same height and width but a bit fatter
price - For under $200 this is a bargain (it was under $200 when I purchased)
build quality - materials are the same as the 18 mth old FX07 - still looks as good as new. One thing, the black material does scratch - if it does then you can draw it in with a black pen and you cant tell (sounds odd but if you own one you will know what i mean).

the bad:
nothing that i can see as of yet.

other points:
I bought a cheap 2gb kingston card - not recommended - VERY slow. will be upgrading to a sandisk Extreme 3 (as i have in the SLR) MUCH better cards.

I bought a semi-hard case from circuit city - highly advised - fits great with spare battery.

spare battery - from amazon (the 3rd party one) advised purchase.

amazon pricing - when i purchased all colours were about $160. now it seems to vary daily.

amazon delivery - despite allbeing stated as in stock they weren't. delivery was slow.

otherwise a recommended purchase!!

Great little camera 1st Time user. Takes Great Pictures and is easy to use
Used it To Take pictures of my New Granddaughter . Lot's of options in This compact camera.

haven't used it all that much but so far so good. I bought this camera because my old canon 2.2 took about 2-3 min to snap the picture, by then my 3 y.o. son was long gone out of the picture. This camera here, push the button, and about a second later, takes the pic. I also see it has a burst mode to take several pics in a row. Will post more if I find some cons.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX30A 7.2MP Digital Camera with 3.6x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Blue) Have just returned from a trip to England and Belgium. Used the camera for the first time and enjoyed all the features, especially the zoom and the small size and weight. Will certainly enjoy it more as I get more familiar with the features.

Bought this camera after reading reviews on consumer reports and it definitely lives up to the high ratings it receives.

I bought this camera primarily because of the wide-angle lens and the image stabilization, as well as the reputation of the Leica lens. I'm not an avid photographer, but I wanted something small and easy to use, and this camera is certainly that. The controls are very intuitive and the instruction manual explains the more advanced features very clearly. I'm very pleased with the quality of the landscape shots and portraits I've done so far. Everything about the Lumix is amazingly compact; you can pop it into a shirt pocket or into a pocket of your cargo shorts, and take it everywhere, and it's so light that it's easy to forget that it's there....I worry about accidentally putting it through the washing machine someday. There may be better cameras if you need and use a lot of advanced features, but this little gem has been perfect for my needs. Highly recommended!

This camera display excellent pictures! for non professional cameras for my its the best. Note that i have made an extensive review about cameras and I Decided for Lumix. The best technology, the best quality, its number one in the market. dont think it more, i wasted to much time tinking about it already.

I like it lots. I haven't figured it out yet, but its going to be a lot of fun using that wide angle feature of this camera.

This is a great camera, that takes great pictures. I got one for Christmas, and decided we needed 2. The pictures are great, and the videos that it can take are good quality. I would not rely on it as a video camera, but it's handy when you need one.

great deal at $166. not as intuitive to use until you get used to wheel to set modes. i cannot see small symbols on wheel without glasses. screen is nice and big, but lack of viewfinder makes it harder for outdoor shots in sunlight. excellent battery life. fabulous quality pictures with no blur. excellent auto fill in flash for backlit outdoor shots. very pleased with it.

I knew how this camera worked. My boyfriend had one just like it a few years back, so I was obsessed in getting it myself. But in the meantime, the great little camera I knew turned into an even greater camera. Now it makes movies and has a lot of little features that help you take amazing pictures. In three words: I Love It! Always keep it in my purse handy. It's just the greatest little cam I ever had, and people just love my pictures.

Super good purchase. Compact camera with tons and TONS of functions. Very intuitive operating system (had no need for user guide reference). Very good quality photos and unexpectedly for videos also. I liked the inteli-ISO function for low lighting conditions. Best of all, it felt like it had the best price in the market for what I got. I'd definitely recommend this item.

Build quality on the FX30 is exemplary. This camera is dense, feels hefty for its size when picked up, unlike many similar cameras that feel like a piece of plastic. This is a fine example of Japanese craftsmanship. It is fast and very responsive in operation. The lens is simply fantastic, 28mm (effective) wide angle is rare among such cameras. The lens is sharp edge to edge with very little, if any, in the way of distortion and chromatic aberration. Certainly, the lens is better than the sensor (and processing). The wide aperture (f/2.8) at the wide angle is great for low light [The lenses on the TZ3 and TZ4 are not as fast].
The flash is weak [all manufacturers are sadly underpowering the flash in order to gain on the "shots per battery charge" scale.]. Some hints: In low light, including indoor shots with flash, use the wide angle (zoom out) to make use of the f/2.8 aperture, and you'll get less dark underexposed pictures. Stick with ISO 100 and 200. Keep ISO 400 for emergencies, but never go beyond 400. In auto-ISO mode, you can limit the max ISO. You probably read a lot about image noise. Yes, it is there, but you will not see it in 4x6 or 8x10 prints. You won't see it on a typical 20" monitor (12"x16") unless you view 1:1 which amounts to viewing a 24"x36" print.

Optical image stabilization is very effective indeed. Video is very good.

I gave it 4/5 stars for: 1) Lack of full manual controls, 2) sensor noise and processing could be better.

Newer models like the FX33 and FX35 are essentially the same camera.

The more expensive TZ3 and TZ4 lack the f/2.8 aperture (they max at f/3.3).

If you like the size and build-quality of the FX30, but want a much better picture-taking machine look at the LX3. It has a larger sensor, manual controls, RAW, and a 24-60mm (equiv) f/2-2.8 lens. The LX3 is destined to be a big hit.