hello there.
i used to have a canon powershot s400 and loved it. unfortunately i lost it. completely my fault. but anyways - i researched far and wide before i bought a new camera. i first bought the nikon 5200 but returned it because i thought it took horrible pictures.
finally decided on this panasonic fx7 because they told me i wouldn't be disappointed. welllllllll i still like my canon better. i'm hoping i just haven't figured out the capability of this panasonic camera yet. see i have that grainy problem too - in low light places. i'd like to say i take artistic photos - but in all honesty, basically i take my camera to the bar to take pics of my friends having fun. the canon was amazing at that. all my pictures were in focus, not grainy at all.
so is there just something i'm doing wrong? with the canon i didn't have to fix the settings, i just pointed and shot and wa la it was an amazing picture.
do you think it has something to do with being 5 megapixel vs 4 in the canon? i'm reading over the manual again too to see if i've missed something.
i don't mind the battery life so much, i just don't like how when you review a picture and try to zoom in it zooms in WAY too much. also there is a bit of shutter lag - also both problems with the canon too.
i guess i'm happy with it. but it was really expensive, and i'm not sure it was worth it.
please write another review if you can help me. i will take all the help i can get.
thanks!

I bought this camera because of all the great features. It does good in most fronts. I figured that the optical stabilization would be a nice feature.

I'll get the bad out of the way first. The camera seems to have more noise than the Cannon sd300, and the camera I replaced it with the Cannon sd500. The optical stabilization does not come in as useful as you may think, only in low light, non flash situations, or when you are jittery. I compared pictures from the same lighting conditions between the sd300 and the fx7 and the sd300 just did better with noise. Even with th sd300's tendency to have more purple fringing, it was not an issue in my try out.

Over the 4 months, I exercised the fx7 a lot, and it did good, but I believe that the sd300 is just a better camera $ for $ and is better executed, and the sd500 is WAY better and has much less noise.

The good: it takes good pictures in normal light. Size is incredible, nice features, generally a nice camera with a feature you won't find in any other cameras in its class, OIS.

I have owned 3 digital cameras now and this is by far the best one that I have seen. I read a couple reviews on here complaining about grainy pictures but I could not disagree more...I have developed about 50 pictures using this camera and they are all fantastic and very clear. I would highly recommend this camera...It is so easy to carry around. I put it in my pocket almost anytime I go out because its so small its like carrying your cell phone in your pocket. The number of pictures I take has risen dramatically since I bought this tiny camera because it is so easy to carry around and no hassle at all. Buy it...You'll be pleased.

This is a very nice little camera, but I can't help feeling disapointed by what matters the most to me : image quality. Maybe I was expecting too much of an ultra compact camera, but that's how I feel. I immediatly noticed that the pics were grainy, especially in the dark, something I didn't remember happening with my old 2 Megapixel Canon S10. And yes, I read the whole manual. It says that noise increases with ISO sensitivity (and typically you'd use a higher ISO sensitivity for darker pics). So I forced the ISO sensitivity to its lowest level (80) instead of the AUTO setting. Still, pictures look grainy to me. Did more research and found a review on dpreview.com where it addresses this issue. I highly suggest you read the review, here's the page on photographic tests : http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/panasonicfx7/page5.asp

Finally I decided to dig up my Canon S10 (few years old) and compare images. All pics were taken in the dark, with and without flash. There's no question my new Panasonic renders much better, more accurate colors. I also noticed for the first time how much the Canon suffers from distortion. BUT, pictures made with my old camera are not grainy. Maybe blury, but not grainy. I'm surprised so few people commented on this, is this just expected from such as small camera, or am I missing something ?

Again, I didn't compare images in daylight, but in the dark the noise was pretty obvious to me, especially in the side by side comparisons with a cheaper and older camera.

It took me a while to finally purchase a digital camera - I didn't want to hurt my SLR's feelings. I researched the market extensively before taking the plunge. I was about ready to go for a Casio Exilim until taking a look at this little baby. Its tiny size means that it goes everywhere I go - it's about the size of my cell phone. I have the black model, and it sure has sex appeal. The display is huge and pretty clear. The Leica lens does what it should - crisp, beautiful photos that capture color so nicely. Five megapixels does seem like overkill, but when I looked for a Panasonic Lumix DMC-series with 4 MP, they seemed pretty scarce and the price was nearly as high as for this model. The image stabilization is a handy feature - drives up the price considerably, too, but I really like that my camera has it, since I prefer not to use flash whenever possible, so camera shake is always an issue. It compensates somewhat for camera shake, but for shutter speeds longer than maybe a half second, you'll probably notice some blurriness, regardless of this function. I like the various shooting modes that it offers - I've gotten a lot of use out of the Snow function in particular. I wish it had a function for use in flourescent lighting, but it does have whiteness adjustment feature so that you can cancel out the greenish tint manually. My hands are pretty tiny, so the size of the buttons doesn't bother me, but I could see that being frustrating for someone with larger hands. Battery life is pretty lousy. This is the biggest complaint I have. I can drain the thing in a day or two if I take a lot of pictures. I'm looking into buying a back-up, but they're expensive - I just wish this one lasted longer. I'm also still trying to figure out how to take pictures of people with flash without their faces turning out white as flour. There's a negligible lag time between pressing the shutter release and the photo being taken, and it can be close to eliminated by pre-focusing (press the shutter release halfway down as you frame the shot). Still, it can't capture images instantaneously - for that, I keep my SLR around.

I've had this camera for over a month now and I absolutely love it. When I was shopping for a camera, the main things that I was looking for were compact size and good picture quality. What drew me to this camera was the image stabilization. I have very shaky hands, and this, along with good reviews, sold me on this camera. The big screen is a plus and so far haven't seen a negative impact on battery power. The camera was fairly easy to use and I think the menu operation is very intuitive. It's definitely an eye catcher as well; everyone who sees it asks me about it (I opted for the black - very sexy). Picture quality has been really good. Red eye can sometimes be an issue, but editing red eye out of photos is so easy that I'm not concerned.
My only gripes so far are that sometimes in dark settings, the pictures can come out very grainy. Also, every now and then, pictures will come out with a random white spot. I'm not sure why this happenes, but if anyone has any insight, please share!
Overall, I highly recommend.

I'm still amazed at how small this camera is, and yet it still has room to have a HUGE 2.5LCD. Took it to a BallGame the Other Day and almost forgot it was in my pocket. Just as light as the Motorola Razr (my phone). As Leo Laporte says It's the "Ultimate party Camera". and boy was he right. I use to have a Kodak, It took Great Pics, but was just to big carry around everywhere, I'm so glad I chose to purchase the Panasonic FX7, It definetely has the looks of an awesome camera, and it's performance is the same as well.
** Would Recommend a Second Battery if going on Vacation, eBay got em for $7

This is a fantastic camera. I've owned several film and digital cameras and this is by far the best of them all.

The size is very small -- very pocket friendly. It is also light. After it's been in my pocket a couple minutes, I forget it is there as I do with my little cell phone. I've been carrying this thing everywhere with me; this is the first camera I've ever done that with. That said, it is also very sturdy. I usually keep it in my back pocket, and it's been sat on many times with no ill effect. It feels solid in the hand. It feels like a relatively expensive camera should feel.

It has a ton of features, most of which I've only ever seen on my film SLR. You can adjust the shutter speed, aperture size, etc. I'm definetely nothing more than an amature photographer, but this little thing could allow me to do a lot more. It does have a simple mode that is very easy to use and conveniently hides all the extra stuff.

The picture quality is very good. It's a 5-megapixel camera, so you should be able to blow up pictures to something like 8x10 and it won't look grainy. This also means you can crop your pictures to your heart's content and the resulting pics won't look grainy either.

The LCD on the back is HUGE! It also has a great quality and is very viewable in direct sunlight. The brightness is adjustable, and their is a "superbright" button you can push to quickly increase the brightness for use outdoors. Very convenient. I don't miss not have a viewfinder to look through. Who wants to look through a tiny little window at a scene that doesn't match up with what the picture actually looks like? The LCD is great and the viewfinder is not missed.

The only little problem I have with the camera is battery life. After using it on a trip over the course of 5 days the battery signal was flashing red. In my opinion, 14 days of "vacation" style usage should be the minimum. In reality, I'm a typical guy and don't take too many pictures away from an outlet where I can charge the batter. The short battery life issue is lessened by the fact that the camera comes with a separate battery charger. Hooray! You can charge a battery, but still use the camera if you have a second battery. I hate having my devices chained to a wall because a battery is charging.

This is a fantastic camera, well worth its price. You will not be dissapointed.

I too did a lot of research before buying a pocket digital camera, and I'm so happy with my decision. First off, this is a beautiful camera! It it much cooler than any of the other ones I have seen out there, Sony included, and it's not nearly as common. Second great big plus is this camera is so easy to use. I had a Nikon CoolPix 4500, and in addition to hating its bulkiness, I hated trying to set anything on the camera and having to navigate a million sub-menus. Yes, I'm lazy -- I don't want to read thick manual just to figure out how to take video or change the shutter speed. I picked this up and immediately was changing settings, taking videos, resizing pics. Super Easy!! The last lovely detail to mention -- almost zero lag time on the shutter!

The LCD is giant!. Yes, it's a battery hog, but I'm pretty good about turning the camera off when not in use and it's not been a big deal. I may buy a second battery in the future. I also think 5 pixels is overkill -- would have been happy with 4 -- but it's an easy enough setting to change.

Overall, this is money well spent! I would buy another in a heartbeat!

I've had this camera for about three weeks, and am enjoying it very much. I wasn't really looking for something so small, but the Leica optics and sleek metal body (in black) sealed the deal. Image quality is better than my Kyocera body/Zeiss lens film point-and-shoot, which is saying something. And the small size means I always have it in my briefcase or in the armrest compartment in my car.

The macro setting and anti-shake feature work particularly well together, enabling beautiful closeup shots of flowers -- with incredible detail and color accuracy. Portraits also come out very well, but you'll need a larger camera with much more powerful optical zoom to take meaningful distance shots.

Tips:
- You can learn a lot by reading the reviews of this camera on dpreview.com and other sites linked to from the Panasonic site; I also got lots of great free information from the Leica web site and product brochures (since this camera uses Leica optics); This information is better than reading the manual, and helped me take much better pictures than I had taken before...almost immediately;
- I use a high-speed 1GB storage card; no worries about capacity;
- You need at least one extra battery (I'm getting about 90 shots per battery charge);
- I conserve battery life by using the "normal" setting with auto-off after 1 minute; lowest possible screen brightness; anti-shake setting on "2" (only engages when the shutter release is pressed); and auto-focus LED turned "off" (except when shooting indoors in low light);
- The FX7 and one extra battery fit nicely into the $20 iPod/Accessory case made by Timbuk2; this is a very nice ballistic nylon case with an aesthetic that goes well with the camera;
- A remote shutter release would be sweet, but you can approximate that feature by using an inexpensive mini-tripod and the "2 second" setting on the shutter timer...this gives you rock-solid stability without engaging the anti-shake feature.

I am becoming more and more impressed with Panasonic's Lumix line of digital cameras of which this may be among the best yet. It has a superb Leica-designed lens, fantastic image stabilization feature, and fits comfortably within the palm of my hand. I have seen superlative image quality obtained from this compact camera, that's as good as any I've seen from comparable 5 MP digital cameras, including one of my favorites, the recently discontinued Contax TVS Digital camera. It's really a hard choice between this camera and its 4 MP sibling that I reviewed recently elsewhere here at Amazon.com. Those thinking of acquiring a Leica digital camera should look at the Lumix line first and compare both its prices and features with more expensive, bulkier Leica brand versions.

The battery life is poor. Don't let this be too distracting, however. A second battery is about the same size as the plastic cases that come with SD cards. It's too bad Panasonic couldn't design a battery that could better handle the large LCD and OIS but I still feel that the extra features are worth it.

Images taken without flash in low light conditions are GRAINY. If you mainly want a fun pocket camera for taking non-invasive shots of people in dimly lit locations without a flash, DON'T buy this camera.

Given decent lighting, the image qualty is really great. The images have a nice, filmic level of contrast right out of the barrel that I usually have to perform minor Photoshopping to achieve with other cameras. Leica optics!

The OIS is amazing. I used an FX7 (as a passenger) in a moving car on a semi-bright day driving over hills and shooting through a dirty windshield (without flash, obviously) and came up with a few traffic shots that really presented well. There was no blur whatsoever even considering the motion of other vehicles captured in the frame.

If you're interested in this camera it should be because you specifically want a super compact and feel that the unique Leica lens and available OIS outweigh the battery and grain problems. Don't compare this to a mid-size camera and don't expect it to produce mid-size results in a cellphone-sized package. It will produce reliable image quality. It will not serve as an all-purpose camera for people seeking semi-pro results.

Artistic photographers looking for a good pocket black-and-white solution for shooting 8x10s (or smaller) should pay particular attention to the FX7. Casual snapshot takers may just as well be better off with one of the Canons.

I just got this camera, I've had several dig cameras before, and I want to name the following pros and cons (please note I will be quick!)

Pros
really small
great big lcd screen
easy to use and set up
great image stabilization
takes good pictures
extremely fast
good flash recovery, about 2 seconds
battery charges in less than two hours

con
battery life is low, much lower than I expected, it can take about 30 or 40 pictures with flash and then it's gone

so, overall that is the only major flaw I find.

I bought this camera months ago when it first came out. I am about to purchase another camera to replace it. I checked back here to see if any reviews validated my experience with this supposedly top knotch camera.

It's well designed, durable, and easy to use. The large display is great. Generally, photos taken outside come out great! Flash and battery are weak.

However, photos taken inside almost always come out grainy. I was sorely disappointed by this. It's so bad that I find myself now looking to replace the camera.

I owned several Canon cameras prior to this and they produced much better images in the -exact same- indoor shooting conditions. No grains.

One of the primary reasons I bought this camera was for its anti-shake technology. It was one of the first consumer point and shoot cameras to have it. It does work but it only takes the edge off. It also seems to increase the grainy factor.

This is a cool camera but I have to recommend that you look elsewhere. It's very disappointing.

I am becoming more and more impressed with Panasonic's Lumix line of digital cameras of which this may be among the best yet. It has a superb Leica-designed lens, fantastic image stabilization feature, and fits comfortably within the palm of my hand. I have seen superlative image quality obtained from this compact camera, that's as good as any I've seen from comparable 5 MP digital cameras, including one of my favorites, the recently discontinued Contax TVS Digital camera. It's really a hard choice between this camera and its 4 MP sibling that I reviewed recently elsewhere here at Amazon.com. Those thinking of acquiring a Leica digital camera should look at the Lumix line first and compare both its prices and features with more expensive, bulkier Leica brand versions.

this camera is wonderful! i took back several digital point and shoots, simply because they were too slow. but this camera is very quick--you get the pic you planned on taking! the images are very crisp, thanks to this nice leica lens. the battery life is lower than i expected, but i have never been stuck without a camera because of it. the style and feel of this camera is awesome, and the viewscreen is excellent--i highly rec. this camera for a reliable point and shoot!

I've used several (4 to be exact) Digital Cameras and This is the one that I actually like. I like it so much that I actually bought another one for my wife. The picture is good and screen is big and the battery is not bad. I'd recommend this product to anyone that's looking for a good DC!

I agree with a lot of the things already said in the reviews, but just wanted to add that this is a great compact one to have as back-up to your more heavy duty digital or 35mm camera. I have always been a huge fan of Leica and the lens on the panasonic lumix models just can't be beat. Other manufacturers like Canon or Nikon may make smaller, cooler looking digital cameras, but the picture quality cannot be matched. I had a Panasonic Lumix DC40 (discontinued now) for a couple of years before buying this one, and knew the lens contributed a lot to the quality of my photos. When I began shopping for a more compact model, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to get one with Leica lens. Plus the image stablization system is unique to this line. For most people, 3 to 4 MB is plenty for picture quality but having 5 MB didn't hurt, of course. I compared this to Casio Exilim Z-50, which is also a good compact camera for average shoppers - took pictures of the same object and compared color, texture, depth, etc. - and you can tell clearly that Panasonic takes a more true-to-life, three dimensional colors. People often describe this as a negative factor, saying that Panasonic's color is less than vivid, but I would say this is because we are too familiar with electronically adjusted color schemes. In other words, Panasonic colors are what they are in nature. You can see more texture and depth to them because they are not overly saturated.

This little camera is excellant for a teenager. Simple, easy to use. The only problem was the tiny memory cartridge it came with. No problems with it.