Panasonic has announced the Lumix DMC-TZ60, an advanced superzoom compact camera that replaces the popular TZ40.
Panasonic Lumix TZ60 Design and Features
The Panasonic Lumia TZ60 has the same 18.1-megapixel sensor as the Panasonic TZ40, but makes significant improvement across the board. Most obvious is the optical zoom length.
Where the TZ40 uses a 20x zoom, the Lumia TZ60 has a 30x optical zoom, which can be extended up to 60x using digital processing. The look of the camera has been changed fairly substantially too.
The Panasonic Lumia TZ60 of standard large compact size, but its style is closer to that of the Lumix LF1 than the TZ40. It has sharp lines and a hint of retro style, particularly in the silver/black two-tone version of the camera. There’s also a plain black version.
Panasonic Lumix TZ60 Lens and Screen
The camera’s 30x zoom lens equates to 24-720mm in 35mm format, and the TZ60 uses a Leica-branded lens with an aperture range of 3.3-8.0. It has a 3cm macro focusing mode and its standard ISO range is 100-3200, with an extended 6400 mode on offer for emergencies.
On the Panasonic Lumix TZ60’s rear is a 3-inch 920k dot display, but is does not articulate and is a non-touch panel. The TZ40 did have a touch display, and Panasonic explained that its removal was in part a cost-cutting decision.
Other features that have seemingly been prioritised over this include stereo microphones and NFC. The camera also has Wi-Fi, making wireless transfer of images to an Android phone or iPhone possible.
With the same sensor as the TZ40, the Lumiz TZ60’s image quality is likely to be comparable to that of its predecessor. However, Panasonic says image engine improvements should result in improved noise reduction. It also provides 10fps burst shooting and cuts down focusing speed to 0.12 seconds, down from 0.16 seconds in the TZ40 (dependent on lighting).
Another significant hardware improvement is the electronic viewfinder, not seen in the last model. It’s a 0.2-inch 200k dot viewfinder that uses a 2-lens system to provide better image sharpness than the otherwise-comparable Lumia LF1 EVF. However, it is still limited compared to that of a high-end camera.
The EVF twinned with a manual control ring on the lens make the TZ60 a compact for the enthusiast. The ring can be used to control aperture, shutter speed, focusing, zoom or even the creative filter used – of which there are 15.
At £399 the Panasonic Lumix TZ60 is firmly in advanced compact territory, and it will go on sale later this year. We’ll be back with the full review soon.
Next, read our best cameras round-up
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
