Panasonic Announces New FX70 Compact Camera

Panasonic Lumix FX70 MARCHANDS €     Viking  160.80  Amazon.co.uk  198.06  Compare prices

Panasonic has been hard at work thinking of ways revamp its FX series, which has been somewhat overshadowed by the brand's ZX range of compact superzooms. Panasonic is hoping the new FX70 will do the trick nicely, and its certainly the most radically different FX camera we've seen since the series was launched.

The only feature the new FX70 has in common with its predecessor, the FX66, is the 14-Megapixel sensor. Needless to say, the design and casing are brand new, with a more curvy design replacing the classic Panasonic mini-brick look that had hardly changed since summer 2007 (FX33).

Technological improvements include the Venus Engine HD II chip replacing the Venus Engine VI, which should, in theory, bring enhanced video capabilities. The FX70 still films in 720p HD resolution but now records in the AVCHD format at 50 full frames per second (which is surprising given that the sensor can only handle 25 fps).

There's an integrated video editing tool, which allows you to cut out the boring bits of your videos. The microphone is, however, still mono, which is a bit disappointing when many compacts are now switching to stereo.

The lens is completely different to those seen in previous models. It has a slightly wider angle (24-120 mm) and, more importantly, an aperture of f/2.2 at the minimum focal length. It looks like manufacturers and their engineers have finally understood why brightness is so important! Unfortunately though, it seems that they still need convincing that brightness is also important in telephoto mode, as at 120 mm, the FX70 has an aperture of just f/5.9—a whole 3 EV difference—or in other words, the sensor receives eight times less light. With a minimum aperture of f/6.3, the lens can be considered to have a fixed aperture with the maximum zoom.

Touch-screen controls

The controls and the user interface have been radically updated. First of all, the FX70 finally has a separate video record button, located on the top of the camera next to the shutter release button, which seems to be standard on Panasonic cameras these days. The other major development is that the FX70 has a 3-inch touch-sensitive screen.

Unlike Panasonic's first touch-screen cameras, the FX500 and FX550, the FX70 offers genuine touch-screen control, as the screen replaces almost all other buttons on the back of the camera. In fact, all that's left is a play/record button, a scene select button and a menu button.

Some will be disappointed to see the screen has just 230,000 pixels (and on a 3-inch screen that means the pixels are likely to be visible), but the new touch-screen is certainly a real bonus for the FX70, making it a genuine alternative to the ZX3.

The Panasonic FX70 will be released in the UK in August. Pricing is yet to be announced but it's likely to be in line with the ZX3 (£220-250).

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