Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ15 Images

Successor to the DMC-TZ3, Panasonic ramps up the specifications for its new flagship model, the TZ15. The sensor resolution has been increased from 7- to 9-megapixels, but still keeps the large 3-inch LCD display. A 10x optical zoom with a 28mm wide-angle lens sets this point-and-shoot to be one of the favourites among travellers. The TZ15 is also capable of capturing 720p HD-quality video. But if you are looking for a downscaled unit, you might want to consider the TZ11 (8-megapixel with no HD video recording) which was announced alongside the TZ15 at the PMA imaging show in January.

Design
At first glance, our eyes were immediately attracted to the large lens barrel on the shooter. It's no wonder considering that it houses a 10x optical zoom. Unlike the FX36 (the current flagship model for the FX series), the lens shield for the TZ15 is made of plastic. We are not very confident of the protection it can offer, but if you are going to bring this point-and-shoot around in a hardy pouch, it should be fine.

The left side of the camera is slightly thicker due to the handgrip, whose function is further enhanced by a vertical strip of textured rubber. This is an improvement over the TZ3 (with a horizontally positioned rubber strip) because there is now more rubberised surface area for our fingers to grip.

A playback switch is located beside the thumbgrip on the rear, and this is convenient for switching between shooting and playback mode.

The top dial rotates between iA (Intelligent Auto), normal, scene, video recording and clipboard mode. However, do keep in mind that the dial rotates 360 degrees, and when it is in an inappropriate position, the shooting function won't be able to operate.

While its predecessor, the TZ3, weighs 257 grams (with battery and memory media), the TZ15 manages to shed a few grams and tips the scale at 240 grams with the battery and flash card. So ladies, you may want to take note if you don't want to weigh down your handbag.

Features
The closest point-and-shoot we think may be a competitor to the TZ15 is the Canon PowerShot SX100 IS which comes with 10x optical zoom, too. However, the 28mm wide-angle lens on the TZ15 gives it an edge over the Canon which is widest at 36mm only.

What we think may make the TZ15 a favourite among travellers is its wide-angle lens and long zoom range. Packed into a compact body, this shooter is a versatile performer on vacations, letting you capture vast expanses of landscape or closeup shots of foreign culture. You can also adjust how fast or slow you want to zoom by tweaking the amount of rotation on the zoom rocker. This is quite useful as occasionally we tend to zoom too much into our subjects.

There are three other zoom functions which we find handy. With Zoom Resume enabled, the camera will return to the last position the zoom lens was at before powering down. This is pretty handy when you are constantly shooting at a certain zoom range. A press on the E.Zoom button at the top of the camera will instantly zoom the lens to the max, while a second one will automatically downsize your image to 3-megapixels and activate Extra Optical Zoom, giving you a grand total of 16.9x optical zoom. This is achieved by concentrating only on the centre of the image. A third press on the button will return the zoom lens back to wide angle.

By choosing Multi-Aspect in Scene Mode, you can snap three pictures in different aspect ratios (3:2, 4:3 and 16:9) with a press on the shutter button. This is particularly useful when you are not sure which ratio will look best for your shot.