Panasonic DMC FS15 Ratings and Reviews
October 22nd, 2009 • Filed Under•28 views
The Panasonic Lumix DSC FS15 does most things well. If you are looking at mid priced, pocket digital cameras then this is certainly one for your shortlist.
Index of Panasonic DMC FS15 Expert Reviews
- Digital Trends— “It’s extremely easy to use, even when you step off the full-auto path to gain a little more control. Photographs we took of people, animals, and scenery all exhibited excellent color fidelity. This camera proved particularly good at taking close-ups—even without activating the macro mode and in situations that required the flash. The 5X zoom won’t meet everyone’s needs, and more experienced photographers will want a unit that offers greater manual control, but in fairness, this is an excellent digital camera for the money.”
- GoodGearGuide— “The Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FS15 is slightly cheaper than the Canon IXUS 100 IS, despite having a similar feature set and performing slightly better.”
- CNET— “The good: Very good design, features for its price; dedicated Intelligent Auto button; wide-angle 5x zoom lens.
The bad: Mixed photo quality, performance.
The bottom line: The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS15 is a well-appointed snapshot camera for the money with the mixed performance and photo quality typical of its class.”
- Imaging Resource— “Trim and compact, the Panasonic FS15 offers intelligent automatic shooting and a good-quality, 5x Leica lens to balance its 12-megapixel sensor. Overall image quality is good, with low distortion from the lens at wide angle, and only moderate chromatic aberration at both zoom settings. The Panasonic FS15’s color is less saturated than what many consumers may prefer, but color performance is actually a little more true to life. Exposure is also good overall, and the Intelligent Auto mode is a definite benefit for novices who don’t want to fiddle with scene modes or really any exposure variables. The main area where the Panasonic FS15 seems to falter is in its timing, as the camera is markedly slow in its shot-to-shot cycle times, though it does offer a reasonably fast Hi-Speed Burst mode.”
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(4.50 out of 5)
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Fantastic and superbly versatile compact digital camera. The lens is really great (although it has easily noticeable barrel distortion at ...
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If you think 4x is weak, why not just go back to the SX-20? See, there are no good 20x ...
Comment by
Living in Budapest "livinginhungary" on 22 October 2009:
Over the past seven years I’ve owned three different Canons, upgrading as each camera reached its limit in terms of current features. Actually I probably would’ve held off for another year if my trusty SD800 hadn’t broken.
In the past I’ve considered Panasonic but with my last two purchases my familiarity with the Canon functions/operations stopped me from trying a Panasonic. Another factor that has attracted me to Panasonic has been the Leica lens. When making this most recent purchase decision I compared the DMC-FS15 to comparable Canons. The main difference was the price with the Panasonic Lumix’s being significantly less expensive.
I decided to finally give Panasonic a chance. The Lumix has not disappointed. I’ve taken two weeks worth of photos while on my family vacation. I took a variety of photos during the day and night and with a lot of movement (i.e. my family at Disney World). I really like how well the FS15 takes pictures without my needing to adjust settings. At the same time it still has a multitude of manual and other automatic settings that come in handy. For me the 5x Optical Zoom and the wide angle lens were the main selling points. I considered the Lumix ZS3 for its 12x wide angle zoom but decided that for my purposes the 5x would suffice.
There are only three things that I do not like about the FS15. First it does not use a standard USB cable, so I might be in trouble if I ever forget to pack the cable or lose it. Also the extra batteries are on the pricey side and it seems (based on internet reviews) that there are issues with 3rd party batteries. The other annoyance is the manner in which one switches the camera to movie mode. With the Canon it was turn a flick of the dial. With the Lumix, you’ve got to press the mode button, scroll down to movie, and select. This can be problematic if you want to capture a video right away. However despite these minor issues I still really like the FS15. Based on my picture current experience with the FS15 I can highly recommend it. Plus the price on Amazon is great!
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Comment by
Jairo Barahona Garita on 22 October 2009:
I bought a Lumix to my mother 2 years ago and it has been a very good camera since then. Now I wanted a camera for my own, and I bought this one after some market research. It does what I need; my only regret is that it takes its time to take the picture. I think Sony has faster shooting comparing with a friend camera last weekend trip.
In spite of it, battery lifetime and performance is very good. The new night scenery takes a lot less time (1s shoot). It has more resolution/size options than before. A new power saving mode. Cool enough for a non-professional use.
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Comment by
PM "pam999" (Van Nuys, CA United States) on 22 October 2009:
I read reviews and did some research and bought this camera because I felt it had the best, high quality, wide lens for a subcompact but after a month of taking pictures like mad I returned it while still during the 30 days! This Panasonic has such a long first-shot delay it’s unacceptable to me. This camera is rated as the worst in this category (”first-shot delay”) by Consumer Report (the article came out AFTER I had bought mine.)
On another note: I was astonished that a dozen pictures snapped at the beach were blurry, while another dozen were clear – no rhyme or reason. At a wedding the first-shot delay was painfully obvious since shutter-lag is accentuated with the flash on. Often this Panasonic doesn’t like the lighting and you have to keep clicking the shutter button until finally it snaps a picture! I even tried different settings – “party” “night portrait” “auto” – some pictures came out fine, but others were blurry or took so late that the moment was missed.
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