Home > Consumer Reviews > Panasonic Lumix FX100K 12.2MP Digital Camera with 3.6x Wide Angle MEGA Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Black)

This is a terrific little point and shoot (and I do mean little) for those who want big bright photos and a camera that produces good shots out of the box.

Note that this is NOT a camera for people who want some control over their photos - there is no shutter, aperture, or manual settings modes available on this camera. The scene modes create barely recognizable differences in shots.

What the camera does is produce great shots when things are well lit, or using the flash. What the camera doesn't do is take good shots in higher ISO ranges -- The scene modes work well, but you see noticable noise even at 400 ISO in darker shots. This is not unique to this camera, but all Panasonic lumix cameras in general.

The lens is supurb - the shots clear, sharp, and color saturated. Leica rules.

I have found myself liking this camera more and more each day - but it is not a camera for someone who wants a dSLR substitute nor a bridge type camera. While I wouldn't hesitate to carry a point and shoot like the Canon G7 or the Nikon P5000 on a vacation, for example, I would be weary of carrying only this camera -- it is designed more for day to day shots than for things like travel photography.

On the other hand, if you are someone like myself who likes to take a great quality camera along to places like amusement parks, picnics, parties, out with family or the kids or friends, and want something small to throw into your pocket or purse, this camera creates wonderful photos with one simple snap of the shutter.

I recommend the camera - but only for those who want an easy point-and-shoot in the complete definition of that category -- turn it on, point it at your target, and snap away.

Get a big memory card!! A 2 GB card will net you 380 photos. Also, get an extra battery, because you won't get to that 380 before the battery dies (about 300).

Like other lumix cameras, you have the choice of different movie size settings depending on your needs.

I like. But I use either my G7 for travel, or my dSLR for serious photography. Still, in the past week, this camera has gone with me everywhere and I ma happy with the snapshots I am getting!

Finally -- this camera just looks and feels great! It is more "masculine" looking than the last few lumix cameras, with squared-off features. The Black looks great (I prefer black bodies) but it also comes in silver.
I have actually had people stop me and ask me what kind of camera I am using.

There are compromises to be made when choosing an ultra compact camera. Based on the reviews I read here and on dpreview.com it was clear no camera was perfect. Some had too much noise, some had washed out highlights, all had some problems.

So after a lot of reading, I went with this camera because it seemed to be the best compromise. Is it? That's for you to decide and depends on your needs.

The good: the camera is very light weight and is very easy to use. I bought this to replace a dying CanonS40 - my other camera being a Canon Digital Rebel. I wanted a camera that was smaller and lighter that I could take places where I wouldn't want to have to drag around the DSLR = or the S40.

It wasn't necessary to read the manual before being able to take pictures, and I find the controls easier to figure out/use than on the Canons. You won't be able to get everything you can from the camera without reading the manual, but it's amazing how intuitive it was. Can't wait to try out the fireworks setting.

Some people complain about the lack of manual controls, but since I never bother with them on the S40, it wasn't an issue for me me.

Some of the shots I took were dead-on in terms of color and exposure and sharpness. The ones that weren't, I blame on myself for not learning to use the camera correctly yet since it's capable of being very very good. The macro mode is easy to switch to and may be the one I use the most.

As a light weight point and shoot - with a wide angle lens - the camera satisfies, but is a bit on the expensive side. I am seeing some problems, that if I thought about/and or knew about would have stopped me from buying this camera.

The bad: a minor complaint, but it is very annoying that you have to manually latch the battery/sd card cover. This was actually harder for me to figure out than getting photos. Also, it's easy to put the battery in wrong. It's not justme - it happens enough that they had to write about it in the manual (which I needed for the battery - not for taking pictures)

The ugly: it is very slow. The LCD blacks out when the picture is being taken and it seems to take a long time for the shutter to actually click after you press the button. What this means is that if there is any movement, what you were aiming at is not necessarily in the same position as it was when you *thought* you were taking the picture or even in the shot.

The other problem was mine for reading these reviews and believing them. I was also interested in the Panasonic that has 12x opitcal zoom, but I read here that with 12 megapixels, it's as good as having a bigger zoom. Since this camera weighs a lot less than the other one, I went with it.

Not true! Yes, you can crop the image down, and get incredibly close to parts of your image, but those parts are not as sharp as they would be with a more powerful optical zoom. Using unsharp mask in Photoshop helps, but because of the initial quality, artifacts appear too quickly.

Part of this may be due to the fact that there is no uncompressed format for the images. I don't think the jpeg algorithm they use is sharp enough for me. I won't buy another camera that doesn't have an uncompressed format - tiff, raw, whatever. What good are 12 megapixels, when the camera has already tossed out information? Now you may never need to get that level of detail for a shot, and you may not spend half your life in Photosop - if you don't, you'll be a lot happier with this camera than I am.

I've got to say, very nice! I was a little worried, switching from Canon (sd900) a very great camera with a few ommisions like image stabalizer. The venus III engine is great on this Panasonic. I didn't think it would live up to the Digic III and isaps in Canons, but it does or at least very close. The real great thing about this camera is the lens, it's amazing and the wide angle is fantastic. I can't think of any real criticisms right now, I've only got a few hundred photos so far though. I also love the 12 megapixels and the extra optical zoom on this camera. When you get such a small camera with limited zoom it's really fantastic to have the really high megapixels, either for cropping later or actually being able to use the digital zoom without just ending up with a jumbled mess. It doesn't quit have the fantastic feel like the canon but it seems really high end none the less, also the black matt finish is really nice and the camera feels really good in your hand. Actually one minor complaint is that I wish the lcd display was a little higher res. Over all I'm very, very happy with this camera and am glad to have given Panasonic a shot after using Canon almost exclusively for the past 10 years. I look forward to getting more time on this little guy and if anything changes I'll be sure to update this review.

Just shot over 100 photos with my new Panasonic Lumix FX-100. I might be described as an advanced amateur or a semi-pro. My full-page photostories have appeared in the Detroit Free-Press and Oakland Press. I have owned several Nikons and Canons over the years. For a test, I went to the top of the Westin Hotel in downtown Atlanta to see just how sharp the lens is. This is the tallest hotel in the Western Hemisphere. I had two pictures enlarged to 16 by 20 poster size. I had made the same photographs 11 years ago with my Minolta Max 8000 35mm camera and my small FX-100 was even sharper! I used my self-timer and an ISO of 80. Since the Westing disallows tripods in their obervation floor, the FX-100 ability to automatically set the high IPO was a great feature when I later returned in the night. This effectively prevented camera blur.

I compared it to my other pocket camera, the Nikon Coolpix 7900 which is also a great camera. Unlike the Nikon, the FX-100 doesn't have a viewfinder but does have a bigger viewing screen (monitor). This camera is hard to use when shooting into the sun due to the glare. In this case, the Nikon with its viewfinder is much easier to use. Otherwise, I would give it a five star rating. If you purchase this camera, be sure to secure a plastic protector to keep the screen from being scratched. This is especially important since it may often be in your pocket where keys can scratch it.

I find this type of camera especially handy when also using a camcorder around ones neck at the same time since it can be carried in a shirt pocket. Hope these remarks are helpful.

Follow-up to Review: After almost a year using this camera, the collapsible lens stopped working properly. It would not go into the off position and then would not go into the on position. This happened twice. Each time I laid the camera aside meaning to send it into Panasonic for repairs. In the meantime, I got the Nikon Coolpix S600 which also has the 28mm lens on the low end of the zoom. But after about a month of letting my FX-100 rest, I tried it again and it worked. The same thing happened twice. Evidently this is an intermittent problem. I need to send it quick the next time it stops to get it repaired. I'm not sure if this is a hardware or a software problem and something that Panasonic needs to correct. Panasonic said they would repair it without charging me.

I preordered from Amazon and when the camera arrived even before it was due, I immediately test it in a number of ways. Compared to my current favorite D200 Nikon it has advantages. If not in picture quality I never seem to have the large pro camera with me. This camera is the only thing I have elected to carry in my right pants pocket and it is no more cumbersome than the cell phone in my my left pocket. In fact, that is the number one reason that I purchased the camera - to make sure I had one with me. A second compelling reason is the ability to take over 20 minutes of video with decent audio on the 4GB stick I purchased at the same time.

The camera is sexy and sleek and well made and of course small enough to make dropping it a concern. That sadly is what prompted this review as I did indeed drop the camera from waist high onto an asphalt parking lot. It hit the rim of the lens and would not close the lens shutter after that and was very noticeably bunged up. I sent it back to Panasonic and they repaired in within 10 days and returned it and did not charge a penny even though I admitted it was all my fault.

The con is the speed. There is a noticeable delay in the taking of a picture. I can reel off a dozen shots with the Nikon D200 before I can get one taken with the Panasonic. You just have to learn a little patience - I don't mind - what I do mind is not getting a shot at all. If not for this I would rate it a 5 star product. The controls are easy to learn and I appreciate the way they have laid them out on the camera. The pictures are good if not great. What is not to like. This is a sweet little camera that I expect to carry with me 90% of the time.