!: Panasonic Lumix Zs3 - Point-And-Shoot at Its Best | !: Panasonic Lumix Dmc-fz35 Review

!: Panasonic Lumix Zs3 - Point-And-Shoot at Its Best

I have a friend who was at his friend's house and happened to see a new camera lying on the kitchen counter. His friend let him test it out, and within an hour he was on the computer putting in his order at amazon.

Which camera? It was the Panasonic Lumix DMC ZS3, of course. I say, of course, because Panasonic a the leader in point and shoot cameras. If you do any research at all, you will see the Panasonic name coming up time and time again as the top digital point and shoot camera, no matter which category you are investigating.

In this case, the category most likely will be the vacation or travel category. However, this little camera is so versatile, it can fill the bill in almost any category. Its younger brother, the Panasonic Lumix DMC TZ5 was (and still is) a trail blazer in the vacation category.

Now, with the ZS3, you get bigger image size with 12.1 megapixels, and you get more range with 12x zoom. The wide end is quite good at 25mm. But then you can zoom up to 250mm on the long end. There is even an additional 2x optical zoom if you absolutely need it.

The ZS3 has also improved the video quality over the TZ5 so that now you can take HD video with STEREO sound. If you have the right kind of HD TV, you can just remove the camera storage disc and plug it into your TV for instant gratification.

One more thing, the LCD screen has been upgraded to 430,000 dots to make it even easier to view in tough light. All in all, the Panasonic Lumix DMC ZS3 is a camera that will bring a smile to your face and a lift in your step. Don't forget that a digital camera makes a great gift for Christmas. It is "the gift that keeps on giving".