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| Brand: Panasonic
Category: Photography
List Price: $349.95
Buy New: $224.95
You Save: $125.00 (36%)
New (45)
Avg. Customer Rating:  290 reviews
Color: Silver
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Floppy Disk Drive: None
Includes Software: Yes
Optical Zoom: 10
Digital Zoom: 4
Connectivity: AV
Display Size: 3
Maximum Focal Length: 47
Minimum Focal Length: 4.7
Maximum Resolution: 9100000
Has Red Eye Reduction: Yes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 2.3 x 1.4 x 4.1
MPN: DMC-TZ5S
Model: DMC-TZ5S
UPC: 037988987658
EAN: 0037988987658
Release Date: March 7, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 If you know what you're getting into, you'll be thrilled April 24, 2008
116 out of 117 found this review helpful
I already wrote a review on the little sister, the TZ4, which is a phenomenal camera; I am however returning it because the price differential with the TZ5 is so low at this point it made more sense for me to spring for the few extra bucks on the TZ5 .
If you read any professional reviews, you already know that this is not the camera for poster size enlargements, even at low ISO values. While the noise reduction has been turned down, there is still some NR smudging and noise. Thankfully, the noise at least can be removed to the point where I was able to doctor a sample ISO 1600 picture to look just fine in 4 x 6 size (thanks to NeatImage). And I've had no problems with 8 x 10's at ISO 100 and 200.
And guess what? That is THE ONLY issue with this camera, and it is one that all other compact cameras also share to various extents. The difference here is that many other compacts also add lots of other "negatives" to the mix, such as severe wide angle distortion, wild and wooly purple fringing, reduced zoom range, and corner blurriness . The TZ 4 and 5 do nothing of the kind.
For what you're getting, a compact, POCKETABLE 28 - 280 Leica lens with IS, there simply is nothing like it out there. And that's before even looking at the HD movie mode, the surprisingly accurate intelligent scene selection feature, the brilliant LCD and the jewel-like workmanship.
This is the ultimate vacation camera if you plan to leave your DSLR home and travel lightly, and aren't spending all day in museums shooting w/o flash. I highly recommend this camera, especially if you lock in the highest possible ISO value at 400, turn the dial to iA, and then give the camera to a complete newbie to shoot pictures with. I think he/she AND you will be very pleasantly surprised with the excellent results.
Nice upgrade over my TZ3 March 28, 2008
102 out of 105 found this review helpful
I received my TZ5 today, and so far I'm impressed. While some of the improvements over my TZ3 are minor, some are significant. Most people will enjoy the return of zooming ability while taking video, and the introduction of HD video. The TZ5's LCD screen is the nicest I've ever seen on a camera. I've taken several dozen test pictures under different circumstances, and the results were for the most part very good. Under perfect conditions, the results weren't much different than the TZ3. Under low light conditions, the Venus IV engine seems to do a little better with noise at ISO 400 and above. I wouldn't call it a dramatic improvement though. I'm going to do a little "pixel peeping" in the near future to see how the TZ5's small sensor handles the increase in megapixels. All in all, the TZ5 is just a great camera that is loaded with features. Is it a DSLR? No, but it's not supposed to be. If you already own a TZ3, you may want to weigh whether the TZ5 has enough new features and improvements. For myself, I'm happy with the upgrade, and will give my TZ3 to my wife. The only thing I wish that I had done was get a black TZ5 instead of the silver one.
Great Small Camera! April 7, 2008
61 out of 62 found this review helpful
I have a Pansonic DMC-FZ7 that takes excellent photos, but is a bit bulky when you don't want to look like a tourist. I've grown jealous of a friend's Panasonic DMC-TZ3 which he keeps on his belt loop in a Lowepro Rezo 30 case. It also has a wide angle lens which I don't have on the FZ7. I've purchased the TZ5 as a second camera for when I want to be a more discreet tourist without a camera bag. This may become my primary camera.
I am not a fan of small cameras as a rule. Some of them (e.g., Canon Elph) have screens and icons so small, I can't see them. But this camera has a lot of features, most also available on the TZ3 & new TZ4. (The TZ3/TZ4/TZ5 fit into the Lowepro Rezo 30 case, but no room to spare.)
The choice of which model to buy depends on your need for Megapixels and what you are willing to spend. I have used my friend's TZ3 and don't really notice any significant improvements in the workings of the TZ5 that would justify the price for routine point-and-shoot photos. However, the TZ5 has a 3 inch LCD while the TZ3 & TZ4 only have 2.5 inch. That was a deciding factor for me.
If you need a camera where you look through a traditional view finder to frame your photos, this is not the right camera for you. I prefer using the LCD screen, so I don't miss this feature.
I find the Panasonic menus easy to use to access all of the varied features. If you just want to use it as a point-and-shoot, it's easy to do. If you want to experiment, the features are there for you to play with...
There is another feature on Panasonic that is an absolute MUST for me. It is possible to set the flash "off" so it doesn't go off when you don't want it to (i.e., in places that restrict flash photography). Some of my friends have cameras where they have to turn the flash off each time. And they forget...
Another reason I opted for the Pansonic FZ/TZ series is the easy to use battery charger/rechargeable battery. The batteries that hold their charge for 1-3 days, but I do carry a spare. I'm not a fan of carrying around AA or AAA batteries.
TZ5A is a qualified "10" May 11, 2008
44 out of 47 found this review helpful
Lumix is perfect for me, former pro photog in the 60s. Recently restarted with an FZ20, liked it semi-pro. Went FZ30, better. Went FZ50 and it does excellent portraits/landscapes, so replaced my Olympus point-and-shoot (P&S) (good camera, but xD) with TZ3K (black), and cut my "shaky" pix in half, improved my low light (harbors at night, etc.) pix, and got very good family pix even with the wimpy flash. So when the TZ5A (blue) came out, it was just a bit pricey. With Amazon discount, bought it early this year, and I remain very impressed with its quality despite being a P&S. The face recognition does a better job than the excellent TZ3, the 10X zoom gets shots I used to have to skip, color is very good, and it works well with CS3 and Elements 6.0 at 9 Megapixels. This camera lacks manual controls, but from what I've seen so far, I haven't needed them: the automatic/ intelligent exposure rarely misses. Battery life is very good (200 to 250 pix average before replace/recharge). I've become a Lumix fan because much as I loved 35 mm and 2-1/4 Mamiya and Nikon years ago, Lumix gives routinely nearly the same quality without the extra cost and complex menus that can buffalo us oldsters. Lightweight, commonly available battery same as the TZ3, and it ran the 8 Gb and 16 Gb flash cards with no significant problem (counter has a display-only limit with 16 Gb). With SDHC cards, the Lumix TZ5 (A, K, or S) is my choice for a non-pro but near pro-quality P&S camera. Wow! Cheyguy
Awesome Camera for anyone! April 6, 2008
41 out of 43 found this review helpful
I bought this camera after 3 years of researching digital cameras. I know its a little excessive but I wanted to make sure I was getting the best for my money. A few things really caught my eye with this camera. The 10x zoom. The 460,000 pixel screen and the Intelligent Auto mode. There are so many features on the camera its hard to explain them all. It takes amazing pictures, especially for a point and shoot. There are lots of scene specific choices. It takes great night shots with the starry night mode and fantastic video in widescreen and highdef 720p. Which is amazing. I can't believe a camera this small can take this kind of video. I'm always trying to get pictures of my 8 month old nephew but he moves so fast I needed a very fast camera and this is it. I always get the shot I want. It has a rubberized grip and a spot for the thumb which helps alot because I just had wrist surgery and it helps me alot when holding the camera. Most point and shoots don't have this. It has convenient popup menu and camera or playmode switch which is really nice. I would highly recommend this camera any day to anybody. It beats out all the other point and shoots I've ever used by a long shot.
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