Summary: If you are going on vacation and want to travel light, this is the camera for you because it will give you quality stills and movies.
A 12X optical zoom from a 25mm wide angle to 300mm tele from such a compact body is like a dream come true, not to mention that the optics are from Leica.
It has all the useful features of the latest digital compacts like optical image stabilization and face detection. It can switch to macro mode automatically when the subject is very close. Its 3" 460K pixel LCD screen is twice as fine as the Canon SX200 or Samsung WB550/HZ15W, and is absolutely gorgeous for viewing shoots and movies.
When recording HD movie, autofocus is maintained during zooming which makes this camera stands out. Video files are in AVCHD Lite with stereo sound embedded. This format takes a lot less space than Motion JPEG.
But if you are planning to do a lot of video recording, you need several batteries and high capacity SD cards. The original battery is quite expensive. B&H sells them at a discount $40 but is out of stock most of the time. Do not upgrade the firmware to version 1.2 if you want to use 3rd party batteries. The original battery has a digital ID that the camera can read.
There is no pause function during video recording, so you will have to use the start/stop button. That button is flushed with the camera body. Pressing this button to stop the recording will easily cause the camera to move, disturbing the ending of the movie. To minimize this, press the button by squeezing with fingers on both sides of the camers.
Each Movie Stop/Stop will creates a .MTS file. The .MTS file can be view on a PC using GOM player, VLC player or other video players. The video produced is of high resolution in wide screen format. However, fast action scenes have digital artifacts. The GOM player shows less artifacts than the VLC player. If you are recording a fast action event, you might consider using a real camcorder.
The battery strength indicator has 3 bars. When recording video, it takes a long time to consumes the 1st bar, a shorter time for the 2nd bar, and a very short time to deplete the 3rd bar. So be prepared when you are on the last bar.
Although larger than the latest ultra compact DCs, it (33mm) is thinner than the Canon SX200 (37.6mm) or the Samsung WB550/HZ15W (37.2mm), so still quite easy to carry around.
I have been using it for more than two months on trips around the world, and is very satisfied with it.
Aside from this camera, I also have one ultra compact, one compact, and one ultra-zoom DCs, all Canon. I also have two HD camcorders. All except one were bought within the last 12 months.
I consider the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3 the best all-around compact camera available in the market.
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