Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2420 in Consumer Electronics
• Brand: Panasonic
• Model: TZ7 Brown
• Released on: 2009-02-12
• Dimensions: 1.83 pounds
• Display size: 3

Manufacturer's Description
TZ7 records HD movies (1280 x 720-pixels) in AVCHD Lite, which lets you shoot beautiful HD video with almost twice the recording time compared to the conventional Motion JPEG. Optical zoom can be used when shooting motion images. TZ7 is also the world's first compact camera to feature Dolby® Digital Stereo Creator, which records dynamic, true-to-life audio that brings out the power of the HD video. The wind cut function minimises distracting sound from the background during audio recording.TZ7 is also the world's first compact camera to feature Dolby® Digital Stereo Creator, which records dynamic, true-to-life audio that brings out the power of the HD video. The wind cut function minimises distracting sound from the background during audio recording.

Intelligent Auto Mode Features
Depending on the Panasonic Lumix model, iA mode uses up to six bundled technologies working perfectly together to provide the best possible shooting results every time.

Face Recognition
Face Recognition registers your favourite friends and family members and will optimize the focus and exposure on your favourite persons. You also have the ability to playback photos by person, and add date, name, age along with adding descriptions to your photos.

AF Tracking
AF Tracking then follows the selected subject throughout the frame, keeping them in focus – an excellent way to follow children, pets and other moving objects!

Intelligent Exposure
No more under or over exposed shots! Intelligent Exposure corrects the parts of the image that are too dark or too bright, so images come out as naturally as you see them.

Mega OIS
Gyrosensors detect hand-shake and the Optical Image Stabiliser lens shifts to compensate, helping prevent hand-shake blur. This system is completely optical – it does not affect the CCD or image processing – so you get sharp, clear images without deterioration. Choose from two modes: Mode 1 remains ON at all times for continuous compensation. Mode 2 starts working as soon as the shutter is released to achieve a greater effect.

Intelligent ISO Control
With Intelligent ISO Control, your Lumix camera can adjust the ISO sensitivity if the subject moves as the shot is taken thereby preventing blurriness of the photo.

Intelligent Scene Selector
The Intelligent Scene Selector automatically selects whichever of five scene modes - Macro, Portrait, Scenery, Night Portrait, and Night Scenery – best suits your shooting situation.

Lumix Digital Still Cameras take a WIDE view
Although the difference between 35mm and 25mm equivalent lenses may not sound like a lot, the 25mm wide angle lens can capture a subject or scene with more than a two times wider frame from the same perspective as a conventional 35mm camera can achieve. This extra range is especially useful when you are indoors where you can be restricted in your movements by walls, corners, or furniture trying to take a photo of the family or friends, or when you want to capture a much wider landscape.

12x Optical Zoom
Since distant objects do not conveniently come to you, Panasonic has equipped its digital still cameras with a high Optical Zoom. For example, the modern Lumix TZ Series features a 12x Optical Zoom Leica DC lens (equivalent to 25-300mm on a conventional 35mm film camera) and enables you to zoom in or out magnifying distant subjects with ease.

Extra Optical Zoom
Many cameras complement their optical zoom ratio with digital zoom, where a portion of an image is ‘blown-up’ digitally to give the effect of a higher zoom. However, images taken with digital zoom become highly pixilated as they are merely digitally processed images rather than images delivered by a true optical zoom.

Aware of this factor, Panasonic has now introduced ‘Extra Optical Zoom’ to its Lumix camera line-up. Extra Optical Zoom cleverly enables you to extend the optical zoom ratio with less image-quality deterioration compared to digital zoom. This function provides additional magnification, extending the zoom power by using the centre part of the CCD; compared with conventional digital zoom functions that directly enlarge the image data, it provides better image quality.

Be easily connected with Lumix
Showing your photos and movies has never been as easy as with the new line of Panasonic Lumix cameras. All Lumix models record wide-screen, 16:9, Full HD images. These images are breathtaking when displayed on an HDTV, like a Panasonic Viera, which manages about four times the data of a standard definition TV. With a Lumix digital still camera, you can enjoy a whole new style of HDTV viewing with family and friends, bringing your pictures and movies to life on an impressive large Viera flat screen Full HD TV. Slideshows and home movie viewings are sure to impress everyone via HDMI and SD card technologies, which offer a quick and convenient means of connecting a Lumix camera with other compatible Panasonic devices.

Easy HDMI connection
HDMI allows you to connect a Lumix camera to a Full HD flat screen TV, like a Panasonic Viera TV, to display your photos and videos in full vibrant detail. Viera Link gives you access and control of a Lumix camera, customising the playback of your photos and movie clips, in HD stereo sound.

Connect without cables
SD Memory Cards offer the simplest way to experience HD photos and movie clips. Simply take the SD Memory Card out of the Lumix camera and slip it into the TV SD card slot of a Viera TV, and you are ready to view bright, vivid images that perfectly fit the 16:9 screen of a Panasonic flat screen HDTV, for example. SD Memory Cards provide you with an easy and flexible way to transfer your images so you can spend more time enjoying your recorded memories than dealing with cables and connection devices.

Venus Engine IV Image Processor
Venus Engine IV is the latest advanced multi-task image-processing engine processor for LUMIX cameras. They provide significantly increased performance of the camera while consuming less power than the previous Venus Engine. Venus IV suppresses noise without lowering resolution, to produce beautiful images. This engine also features low energy consumption despite its high performance.

Quick Reaction and Start Up Time - faster than the blink of an eye
Improvements to Venus Engine IV and various camera components have led to a considerable reduction in shutter release time lags down to a super-short 0.005 seconds and continuous shooting speeds up to 8 frames per second.

High Sensitivity Mode
When using the High Sensitivity mode, you can capture clear images even in dim lighting, as the built-in flash reaches as far as 24 meters. The Venus Engine IV lets you set the maximum sensitivity in seven steps from ISO 80 to ISO 3200 for 10.1 megapixels full-resolution shooting. In addition to providing active shots blur-free with indoor lighting, you get great photos in nearly total darkness.

Venus Engine IV
The Venus Engine IV gives even higher-quality images through using even more advanced signal processing. This new engine also offers a number of other improvements, including more accurate detection, better correction and Intelligent ISO Control functions. This new engine supports today's new camera and imaging technologies, and works with the large, 1/1.72-inch high-resolution CCD. It responds quickly and saves power even at full 14.7 megapixels resolution, providing an image rich in colour and depth.

Venus IV further raises image quality by refining the signal processing process through adding two more circuits. These circuits effectively reduce only the low-frequency noise which turns out to be noticeable as chromatic noise, because resolution decreases if the high-frequency noise is reduced as well.

Enhanced Subject-Motion Detection Circuitry
In Lumix models equipped with the Venus Engine IV, the motion detection in the Intelligent ISO Control function has been further enhanced to suppress motion blur even more effectively, so you still get sharp and clear photos of your family on the move, even in dim indoor light.

Box Contains

Customer Reviews

Good but with some reservations
I won't write War and Peace about this item like some contributors.

Good Points:
1. Focus in INSTANT and RELIABLE
2. Video quality is OUTSTANDING
3. Lens is great - very WIDE (with unavoidable distortion) with a huge range of focal lengths
4. Anti-shake is fantastic (though it kills the battery - see below).
5. The screen is VERY BRIGHT (but again, kills the battery)

Bad Points:
1. Battery life is APPALLING - if you are going out and taking a days photos, take a spare battery with you - I had to buy another. I can't put into words how shockingly bad it is.
2. The MODE dial at the top of the camera is constantly being knocked leaving you in the wrong preset.
3. Flash exposures are POOR and the flash mode button requires you to cycle through the flash modes and then press another button to select each one - crazy, slow and out of the ark. The fill-flash mode isn't as good as my 5 year old Canon which I had to use to get nice flash shots of my daughter's birthday party.
4. The zoom control is a bit hit and miss and coarse in operation.
5. There is a simple push control on the back of the camera to cycle between Photo and Video Mode - this also gets knocked and puts you in the wrong setting - REALLY IRRITATING. Considering how relatively rare will be your use of video, this button should be out of the way.

All in all, this is an outstanding camera, in many respects but it does have flaws.

The quality of results it can produce are excellent but I can tell you that's it's little foibles do get to you from the moment you first use it and don't become any more appealing over time.

I'm keeping mine because of the spec which is quite simply unequalled on any other camera but I can't say I love it because of the drawbacks that reduce its appeal more than you would think.

BABY-BROWNIE
When I first spotted Panasonic TZ-7 on the web,as a TZ-5 owner my curiosity got the better of me, availability of a BROWN version soon made it a 'must have item'. I convinced myself that a zoom range of 25-300mm was reason enough to own one.
Why BROWN IS BEAUTIFUL? - Those who can cast memories back to Box-Camera era, 'Baby-Brownie' by Kodak was perhaps the very first to introduce a film size smaller than 120, (I think it was called127). It was truly brown and an exquisite little head turner.
It took longish wait before Brown TZ-7 became generally available. Mine was finally supplied by U.K.Digital Cameras who were not only the first ones to have it in stock,but were very reasonably priced with a history of top quality service to me.
First impression - A beautifully crafted piece of equipment oozing quality and precision. Merely holding it generated a sense of pleasure.
Closer look - Good Lord, this is not BROWN, if this is brown, there is something wrong with my sense of colour perception! Some disappointment, but it is not a bad colour, whatever it is called!
3" LCD screen - you can hardly tell the difference from TZ-5 as the measurements are diagonal. However its clarity in bright sun is quite something and well up to Panasonic's claims and almost does away with the need for an optical viewfinder - excellent!
Battery - I had wrongly assumed that TZ-7 battery will be the same as TZ-5(for which I already own a spare).This one is a new pack to discourage non-Panasonic (compatible) battery sales. The battery also gave me some cause for concern as my fully charged battery, at the end of camera set-up and not many test shots, displayed just 50% charge.On the basis that Li-ions need to go through a few recharge/discharge cycles before attaining peak performance, I am hoping for the best.
As my sole interest lies in being able to produce good quality still images, I cannot comment on movie or computer aspect of this camera. All in all, not only am I going to enjoy using my "brownie" as much as I have my TZ-5 ,but will love owning it even though it may not be 'True Brown'.

13.05.09. - FURTHER OBSERVATIONS ON TZ-6/7 BATTERY:- There remains no doubt in my mind that these batteries have very poor capacity in comparison to other Panasonics. I understand a chip exists somewhere in the system to prevent the usage of compatible brands (similar to the anti-consumer-attitude adopted by printer-ink-tank brands!) to twist the owners' arms to pay inflated prices for the brand name. Despite all this I understand that compatible batteries of reputable brands are very much in the pipeline. One cannot rule out the possibility that the reputable compatible brands will be higher grade/higher performance.

PANASONICS, on this occasion, seem to have managed to create a huge dent in customer loyalty and confidence on account of this low grade, low performance battery as well as their attitude. GREAT SHAME.

11.10.09. - INTERESTING OBSERVATION - TZ6/7 BATTERIES:- My three compacts, TZ6, TZ7 and Canon Ixus 980 had their batteries fully charged on the same day,installed, and cameras stored away for approximately three months without being used. When inspected after this period - TZ6&7 showed as NEARLY fully discharged (without use!!) whereas Canon showed as fully charged. WHERE IS THE PROBLEM WITH THE TZs??? Could it be the camera circuitry??

21.10.09 - Since above, I have checked all of my compacts, mostly Panasonics,including TZ5,ALL except TZ6/7, showed nearly fully charged batteries despite being stored without use for upto one year. In-camera rate of discharge of battery in TZ6/7 even without use is phenomenal.

Ideal camera for the traveler
Bought a TZ7 from Amazon as was looking for a compact companion for my D-SLR, which is just too large to take with me when I've traveling with business or for casual use. I chose the TZ7 because it has a wide angle lens 25mm equivalent in 35mm terms, which is great for capturing scenes. It zooms out to 300mm equivalent too, helped by a very effectiveness anti-shake system. All in a compact package that fits easily in a jacket pocket.
Panasonic have resisted the trend to squeeze more megapixels out of a small sensor and the result images are far better than I expected. I watch a jetski race at the weekend and was amazed that this little camera could freeze the action so well, zooming in to capture the race in well-focussed, vibrant colourl. The high-definition video capability is very sharp too - good enough to leave my camcorder behind if I just want to travel light. The video capability helped me choose the TZ7 over the bulkier Canon G10, which like most of the TZ7's competitors can only shoot a max of 28mm wide angle.
This camera has no noticeable shutter lag, powers-up quickly, and has a good set of custom features.
Anything I don't like? First - it isn't weather proof, you need to take care at beaches and in the rain. There's no optical viewfinder, you must rely on the excellent LCD which in fairness is viewable even in bright sunlight. Also the battery life so far isn't brilliant - especially if you take lots of video, but I would expect that to improve after a few cycles. You have to use a Panasonic battery at the moment (it has a chip in it that talks to the camera) which might be hard to find if you need a spare.
All in all highly recommended, loses a star only because of the battery life and lack of weather/sand resistance.