Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7 12.1 MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3.0-Inch LCD - Black
by Panasonic
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Our Price: $229.99
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Category: Digital Camera
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Digital Photo Product Details
Manufacturer: PanasonicModel: DMC-ZS7K
Color: Black
Product features:
- 12.1-megapixel effective recording
- 12X optical zoom (4X digital/48X total zoom)
- Built-in GPS function lets you keep track of your photos by location
- Optical image stabilization
- Recording Media - Built-in Memory, SD Memory Card, SDHC Memory Card, SDXC Memory Card
- Adobe Photoshop CS5 Upgrade [Old Version]
- Aperture 3
- Caselogic UNZT-2 Compact Camera Case (Black/Argyle)
- Manfrotto 7302YB M-Y Tripod with Ball - Replaces 725B
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7 12.1 MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3.0-Inch LCD - Black
Customer Review: Excellent GPS and iA (intelligent Automatic) modes
Summary: 5 Stars
I happily received the camera today from Amazon along with two batteries purchased from eForceCity Panasonic DMW-BCG10 Decoded Replacement Battery for Panasonic LUMIX DMC-ZR1 / DMC-ZS1 / DMC-ZS3 / TZ6 / TZ7 Digital Camera and a mini HDMI to HDMI cable from Monoprice.
First
- Reviews claiming that the Panasonic DMW-BCG10PP battery is the only type that will work are inaccurate. PN-DMW-BCG10E 'DECODED' battery 3.7V 1000mAh works great. With firmware version 1.1 . The battery will set you back 7 skins if you shop around.
Second
- The build of this camera is SUPER excellent and buttons are well placed. The first thing I did was to power up, set the camera to iA (intelligent Automatic mode) and shoot a picture of my coffee cup at 10 megapixel 16x9 format. Depressing the shutter halfway performed a stable autofocus and the flash went off giving a great detailed picture. The camera only has 15MB of built-in memory and this is only enough to hold 3 pictures at this resolution. (you need an SDHD card for this camera, suggest SanDisk Class 6 8GB Sandisk 8GB EXTREME SDHC HD Video Card Class 6 - 20MB/s (SDSDRX3-8192) [Hassle-Free Packaging], 16GB or Patriot Class 10 16 GB Patriot LX Series 16 GB Class 10 SDHC Flash Memory Card PSF16GSDHC10 (Black)
Third
- Install the software (see below for possible bugs in the installation)
- Add directories for scanning to PhotoFun Studio application (this application searches subfolders and identifies many picture files that you might not be aware of that are on your computer!!!)
Pros:
- Durable build, large 240,000 pixel screen, 12x zoom, leica lens, 720p HD video (purchase a high quality SDHD card - at least Class 6), AVC HD video using x264 video codec, easy navigation, quick menu access to delete photo, 12MP resolution (14MP CCD chip), 4:3 or 16:9 formats, image stabilization (good for telephoto shots and set as default for video recording), GPS, detailed manual with tips for shooting best pictures.
Neutral:
- Quicktime motion JPEG video format for lower quality vids
- 720p HD video (Nikon or Canon might provide higher res for video)
Cons:
- Limited availability of "freeware" AVC HD conversion software (not fault of product) (more later...)
- Sleep mode disables camera output and requires power off and then power on to restore camera output
(pushing the menu button does not activate the camera... no big deal)
Software:
- Software installation was easy enough, but for the Photo Application the setup required that I identify the location of the 'Microsoft 2008 Redistributable C++ library' installer which was transiently copied to the root of my C: drive by the launcher.exe application under some cryptic directory (7CafHJ35teYuGEHH00FFa just as an example...).
Solution: 1) Just search for the necessary .msi file using Windows Search
2) navigate to the directory containing the asked for .msi file
hint: right mouse click ('open file location'),
3) select the file with the mouse and hit 'OK'.
4) Reboot your computer after installation is finished and update the software via the PhotoFun Studio application under the 'Help' menu.
- Quicktime is also installed as an option for viewing motion JPEG files.
AVC HD videos can also be viewed in the included PhotoFun Studio application. (the extension of the HD AVC videos is either mt2s or mts (will specify when I have shot some videos). Installation of Quicktime is better done by acquiring the latest version and installing manually. Quicktime Pro (not free) allows editing and creation of videos. I had to navigate to the installer on the Panasonic software disk because the launcher did not enable the installation of the Quicktime software for me. In addition, the Quicktime software may be installed on top of a previous version of Quicktime that you have on your computer. This may be an issue for you.
Provided Cables:
- The camera comes with a proprietary USB cable for connecting the camera to your computer. After plugging in the camera via this cable the device driver is immediately installed by Windows 7x64 bit OS.
The camera also comes with a Component A/V cable for connection to devices supporting component type connections such as HDTV and flat screen monitors although connection via a mini HDMI to HDMI cable is preferred (see below).
Optional Cable:
- I also purchased a mini HDMI to HDMI cable for connection to my 1080p monitor/HDTV for about 6 clams - or mini HDMI to HDMI adaptor sold thru Amazon RiteAV - HDMI to Mini HDMI Type C Adapter - 8 inch (this is really not optional - increases quality of viewing on 1080p monitors for minimal cost)
Connectivity and resulting image rendering:
- Viewing images on my LG1080p HDTV/monitor (see 'Equipment List' below) was a total pleasure...
Best: Image rendering was best by connecting to my HDTV with the optional mini HDMI to HDMI cable via a direct connection to my HDTV/monitor configured for 1080p 16:9 format.
Excellent: Detail was rendered at HD 1080p resolution (upscaled by my Seagate Theatre+ media player to 1080p) 16:9 format and gave greater resolution than my laptop monitor [I could easily read the calories on a can or 'Bumble Bee Tuna' from a picture taken in iA (intelligent Automatic mode) from 6ft @ 200iso 1/15th of a second exposure with flash]
Very Good: Detail was very good when viewed on my laptop 1366x768 screen resolution (Intel Graphics, onboard vanilla flavor) using IrfanView graphics application. (you can probably expect similiar results or better using other software and good video graphics hardware.
Very Good: Detail was very good when connecting via VGA from laptop to VGA port on LG 1080p monitor configured for 1920x1080 resolution (Intel Graphics, onboard vanilla flavor)
???: Could not test. HDMI connection to HDTV/Monitor via HDMI [ my laptop does not have HDMI output :( ]
I suspect that the rendering of these images could be awesome.
Good: Detail was good using my Seagate Theatre + Media Player set for 720p resolution (no upscaling...) Seagate FreeAgent Theater+1080P HD Media Player STCEA201-RK
Acceptable: Detail was rendered good, but noticeably degraded by direct connection to my 1080p HDTV/monitor using the included HDMI to Component cable provided with the camera. (Not recommended for HD)
Equipment list: Lumix SZ7 camera, Seagate Theatre+ Media Player (upscaling to 1080p), LG 22" HDTV/1080p LCD Monitor or 32" equivalent thru Amazon: LG 32LD450 32-Inch 1080p 60Hz LCD HDTV, Lenovo laptop 1366x768 resolution 15.6" monitor w/Intel onboard graphics, mini HDMI to HDMI cable (see above under optional cable) or RiteAV - HDMI to Mini HDMI Type C Adapter - 8 inch, Component A/V cable (provided w/ camera), USB/PC cable (provided w/camera), Image Viewer Software (optional) I recommend IrfanView package [freeware, many good plugins, highly configureable, Exif aware, IPTC aware, GPS mapping via GoogleEarth, GeoHack-Wiki (access to many GPS mapping tools)]
GPS:
- GPS connectivity is set as off by default (saves on battery). GPS of sample image pegged my address when viewed on Google Maps, Bing Maps, or GeoHack-Wiki. The IrfanView software (freeware) is great for viewing EXIF data attached to JPEG images by the camera and can map the coordinates of the GPS information in GoogleEarth, and GeoHack-Wiki (access to GoogleEarth, Bing Maps and other GPS aware mapping tools). The Lumix SZ7 pegged the image to my address but about 100 ft from the exact location. See my example images under 'Customer Images' user="niebling"
Notes: I will update this review next week after heavy testing of this camera.
Recommend: Gordon's video review at Cameralabs.com (excellent video review for this camera and Nikon/Canon competitor models)
More Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7 12.1 MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3.0-Inch LCD - Black reviews:
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Description of Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7 12.1 MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3.0-Inch LCD - Black
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7 delivers AVCHD Lite HD movie recording capability, 25mm ultra wide-angle and powerful 12x optical zoom lens in a compact body to cover virtually any shooting situations. This 12.1-megapixel powerhouse performer ZS7 further advanced to comprehend attractive features including the Intelligent Resolution technology as well as the built-in GPS (Global Positioning System) unit and manual exposure. An abundance of functions for both photo and movie recording are organized in the well-considered operational command including an independent movie recording button achieving smooth, easy operation in both recording modes.Digital Cameras
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