Cons: Higher than desired noise, LCD washes out in sunlight
The Bottom Line: I really like the Panasonic FX50, especially considering its price and large LCD screen. I would definitely choose it over the comparable Canon SD800 IS...
dkozin's Full Review: Panasonic Lumix® DMC-FX50 Digital Camera
I have always liked Panasonic digital cameras. Their Panasonic FZ7 is an excellent rival to the Canon S3 IS and the FX-series gives a good run for the money to Canon SD cameras (SD700 and SD800 IS). I have used the 6-Megapixel Panasonic FX01 for a while and sampled the 7.2-Megapixel Panasonic FX07. Now is the turn of the Panasonic FX50, which is similar to the Canon SD800 IS: it has compact design, wide angle lens, large LCD and optical image stabilization. In fact, the LCS screen of the FX50 is larger than that of the SD800 (3 inches versus 2.5) and has higher resolution. The FX50 is also cheaper by about $80 less. Can Canon justify the price difference?
In the past, I have always enjoyed using Panasonic cameras, especially with their optically-stabilized mega-zooms (FZ5, Panasonic FZ7, etc.) I have also used the FX01 and FX07. The FX07 is almost the same camera as the FX50, but with larger LCD screen.
The Panasonic FX50 is a compact camera with a wide angle lens, optical image stabilization and Leica optics. Let's quickly look at how some features of this camera are useful and which situations you will benefit in:
1. The camera has optical image stabilization, which allows shooting handheld in dim conditions with no blur. I am able to get sharp pictures in dimly-lit environments and at full zoom in the evening, sometimes at the lowest ISO setting. This is impossible with a camera that has no image stabilization.
2. It also features wide angle lens zoom, which is very useful for taking pictures of building without having to move away from them, which is not even always possible. Most consumer-level digital cameras have lenses that start at 35mm (equivalent focal length), which is not enough. This camera starts at 28mm. This also helps with group photos indoors as you don't have to move far away from the group of people you are shooting to get them all in the frame.
3. Let’s not forget excellent battery life. I was able to shoot more than 220 pictures (plus some time to review them) with the FX50 and the battery still had usable charge left.
What Is Panasonic DMC-FX50?
The Panasonic DMC-FX50 is a 7.2-Megapixel compact stylish digital camera with 3.6x optical zoom (28-102 mm equivalent, f/2.8-f/5.6), large 3-inch high-resolution LCD screen (230,000 pixels), high-speed auto focus, powered by a compact rechargeable battery. The camera can also record videos at up to 640x480 resolution.
The camera stores pictures and videos on SD (Secure Digital) or MultiMedia memory cards and features fast USB 2.0 Hi-Speed connection to PC and Mac computers. The strap, cables, software and rechargeable battery with charger are included.
The FX50 directly competes with the Canon SD800 IS, which has, similar optics, resolution, optical image stabilization and features, but has a smaller 2.5-inch LCD.
Getting Started
Having charged the supplied battery pack and inserted it into the camera, I was ready to shoot. The camera has a retractable lens that extends and has a lens cover that opens when the camera is powered on. When the camera is powered off, the lens retracts and the lens cover closes.
For preserving battery life, similar to many other Panasonic cameras, the camera uses a mechanical on/off switch on the top deck. It has a zoom rocker and a large shutter release button similar to Canon on the top deck as well. There is also a mode wheel, a part of which is visible and accessible through an indentation in the top/rear of the camera.
The FX50 has a metal threaded tripod mount and a battery and SD card compartment lid at the bottom of the camera. The battery pack is held in place by another sliding lock so that it does not fall out accidentally.
The rear panel has a huge 3-inch LCD screen, control buttons and menu controls with a select button in the middle of it. The screen has 230,000-pixel resolution, which is high and higher than that of the Canon SD800 IS. Not only did Panasonic provide larger screen than Canon but the resolution is also higher. All this at the significantly lower price.
Usage
The camera is very easy to use. There is an easy usage mode (looks like a rear heart icon on the mode wheel), where you just point and shoot. I mostly used the normal shooting mode where you get more control (you can adjust ISO, disable/change mode of the flash, etc.
The menus and icons are highly descriptive and will be a no-brainer weather you used Panasonic cameras before or not. I have not read the manual (I have not even opened it), but was able to use the camera and all its features in no time. The camera can be used by any member of the family and by photographers of all levels of expertise from novices to advanced ones (albeit it will not give you much control over the shutter speed or aperture).
The camera is very fast and responsive. You press the shutter release button halfway to make camera focus and then take the picture by pressing the shutter release button all the way. In dim conditions, the camera uses its focus-assist light, which is effective in focusing at close distances.
In addition to fast ISO selection, the camera gives you instant access to the flash mode selection (flash off, red-eye reduction, night portrait, auto flash), macro mode as well as drive mode at a push of a button.
As I always do when I get a camera with optical image stabilization, the first thing I adjusted was switching from Image Stabilization Mode 1 to Mode 2. This stabilizes the image only when the picture is taken, improving the image stabilization efficiency and prolonging battery life.
With Mode 2 enabled, I took more than 210 pictures and had more than half of the battery life left, at least according to the battery life icon. Panasonic claims you can take 300 photos on one charge; it looks the number is even slightly higher.
The huge LCD screen is a pleasure to use, but more on this later.
Performance
The FX50 is fast in operation with the exception of zooming, which is precise but slow. You can fully zoom in or out in about 4-5 seconds. I find the 3.6x optical zoom the camera has sufficient for most situations and the image stabilization makes its telephoto end more usable in less than perfect light.
In single-frame mode, the camera could snap pictures as fast as I could push the shutter release button. The focusing takes less than a second, even in dim lighting, at wide angle. But at telephoto the focusing can take a little more than a second and the camera sometimes fails to focus at all. The shutter lag, when pre-focused, is almost unnoticeable.
Battery Life
I took more than 210 pictures and spent a good half hour reviewing them on top of that and the battery indicator still had two bars left out of three. All of this with LCD on (obviously) and with flash usage of about 15 percent. The battery is larger in size than that of the Canon SD line of cameras. I am very impressed with the battery life, which exceeds Panasonic’s claim of 300 photos per charge. YMMV however, based on flash use, ambient temperature and weather you keep the camera on for long periods of time without taking pictures.
LCD and Viewfinder
The camera has a very large 3-inch non-articulated (fixed) LCD screen and no viewfinder. The LCD is large, bright, gains-up in the dark (increases brightness) and is fluid in good light. It also has high resolution. But it is slow/jerky and noisy in dim light and is almost useless in bright sunlight. You can increase its brightness at a push of a button temporarily, but I found this feature too cumbersome to use to bother with it.
The icons/menus are highly legible. The LCD coverage as about 100% - you can see exactly what will be recorded. The LCD resolution is very high.
Computer Connectivity
The camera uses USB 2.0 Hi-Speed connection to transfer pictures to a computer. You can also remove the SD memory card and use a memory card reader (if you have one), or use the camera with the USB cable supplied. I did the former, which lets me conserve battery power and avoid dealing with extra cables.
Flash
The camera's flash is quite bright for its size. It has a red-eye reduction mode and is sufficient at up to 10-12 feet away. The red-eye problems in dimly-lit indoors were much less than that of the Canon SD line, but still present.
White Balance
The camera's automatic white balance is usually quite accurate with the exception of the incandescent lighting, where you are better off either selecting Incandescent white balance setting or using the available manual white balance.
Image Quality
I usually take photos that contain all primary colors at different focal lengths, apertures and compression ratios. Some photos are taken outdoors, some indoors with and without flash.
Oftentimes, I take a bunch of photos from my balcony. Those photos features all colors: blue sky, green foliage, red curbs, yellow fire hydrant and cars of different colors.
Taking photos at different focal lengths and apertures reveals the camera's optical quality: corner sharpness, chromatic aberrations, overall sharpness.
Taking photos at different ISO settings shows how well a given camera can keep noise levels low in dim light. I mostly evaluate the image quality using my computer monitor, but I also print some photos at different sizes using either my printer or online services like Shutterfly, Snapfish and Sam's Club's online photo center.
The optical image stabilization proved quite useful. I could take pictures using the FX50 at longer exposures (slower shutter speeds) than possible without image stabilization. For example, at wide angle indoors at lowest ISO, I could take pictures at 1/8s handheld and some they were usable, most even sharp at full resolution. I was able to take pictures in dimly-lit indoors with no flash use. This is useful when traveling as you can use the camera with no flash in cathedrals and castles.
The camera has very good image stabilization, which helps it take handheld photos indoors without flash or at high zoom levels in situations that would result in blurry or even unusable photos with other compact cameras.
The camera produces good photos: well-exposed, contrasty and richly-colored. I used the available 3:2 aspect ratio, which produces pictures that print without cropping at 6x4-inch format. Using of this aspect ratio also allows you avoid dealing with possible corner softness.
The pictures are very sharp. The Leica-designed lens works really well in this regard. But there is noise, even at the lowest ISO. The chromatic noise is visible at full resolution at the lowest ISO and increases with sensitivity. If you are printing 6x4 or 5x7 pictures, the noise should not be visible up to ISO 400. At ISO up to 100, you can print your photos at up to 11x14 inches with good detail and ISO 200 should be good up to 10x8. It all depends on your noise tolerance. But in any case, Canon SD cameras have slightly lower noise levels.
Overall, for its size, the camera produces good pictures, especially considering the fact that you can shoot handheld in situations where cameras without image stabilization would not let you take usable pictures.
Movie Mode
I tried the 640x480 movie mode. The video was fluid and sharp, although not a replacement for a camcorder, especially since you cannot zoom while shooting. The camera also has a 320x240 mode as well.
Panasonic FX50 versus Canon SD800 IS
The FX50 is definitely better than the SD800 in two aspects: price and LCD size. It is about $80 cheaper (current street prices) and has 3-inch screen with higher resolution than the 2.5-inch of the SD800. It is also better in some other ways: it displays shooting parameters (shutter speed and aperture), has longer battery life and has fewer shots with red-eye problems. But it has slightly higher noise and does not look as good as SD800, zooms slower. You see where I am going with all this? For my money, I choose the Panasonic FX50 over Canon SD800 IS.
Bottom Line
I really like the Panasonic FX50, especially considering its price and large LCD screen. I would definitely choose it over the comparable Canon SD800 IS based on features, performance and price. I highly recommend the FX50!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 297 This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Easy Enough for Anyone to Use
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
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