Summary
You’ve read our squawks about the endless search for the perfect two-in-one imaging device (good pictures and videos in a single package). For the most part we’ve concentrated on camcorders since they start out with fine video. Unfortunately other than a few Canons we’ve been generally disappointed with these supposed hybrids since they really can’t grab quality still images. Panasonic is flipping this formula on its head, starting off with a solid camera and adding high-quality movies to the mix. In this instance, the Lumix DMC-ZS3 is the first digicam with AVCHD Lite, a lesser quality codec compared to the AVCHD used in most high-def camcorders. Rather than 1080I, Lite records 720P at 60 frames per second, which in theory should be far better than 1280 x 720 30 fps clips taken by many 2009 cameras. In fact we just reviewed the Canon PowerShot SD970 IS with this feature and weren’t too thrilled with the video results. Now will AVCHD Lite be a heavyweight or a bust? Time to check it out…
Features and Design
The Panasonic ZS3 is the successor to the very popular TZ5, a camera that’s part of the Travel Zoom series because of its compact size and potent 10x optical zoom. With the ZS3, the company bumped the resolution to 10-megapixels from nine and increased the zoom to 12x. Better yet, the already wide-angle Lumix was made wider with an opening focal length of 25mm instead of the TZ5’s 28mm. This lets you take even larger group photos, far more interesting landscapes, portraits and loads more. We’re big fans of wide-angle lenses and this is a real plus. However, we’re not big fans of Wi-Fi enabled digicams such as the reviewed TZ50 which was basically the TZ5 with wireless capability. We thought that camera was O.K. so we were intrigued to learn if the newer version would be an improvement. And, of course, there’s AVCHD Lite video.
The Lumix DMC-ZS3 is a compact (available in silver-, black-, blue or red) digicam measuring 4.1 inches wide, 2.35 high and 1.3 deep; it weighs 7.6 ounces fully loaded. Travelers—and everyone else—will have no issues carrying this one around all day and night. The front is dominated by the 12x Leica DC Vario-Elmar lens which extends when you power up and folds neatly with a built-in lens cover when shut down. Focal length is 25-300mm, an excellent range. Also on the front is a flash, AF Assist lamp, a nice metal accent on the grip and several low-key logos touting various features including Mega OIS (optical image stabilization).
On the top you’ll find a four pinhole speaker, a stereo mic, on/off switch, a shutter button surrounded by the zoom toggle as well as a mode dial. The dial is very basic, offering options for iA (intelligent Auto), Auto which is more like Program AE on other digicams, two options for favorite scene modes (My Scene Mode 1-2), access to all 27 scene modes with SCN and Clipboard which saves images such as maps or train schedules to internal memory for future reference. This is clearly a point-and-shoot with zero options for individual shutter speeds or f/stops. If these tweaks are crucial, look elsewhere. Consider the sophisticated Lumix LX3 we liked so much or the more affordable Canon SX200 IS.
