A strong contender in the superzoom/prosumer/bridge class. Main advantages:
* Lighter weight than most if not all rivals
* Good "Intelligent Auto" mode which gives you a great "point and shoot"
* Plenty of manual / semi-manual modes and scene options for those who like to fiddle
* Fast autofocus
* ... Read review
The Panasonic FZ38 can record HD movie of 720P in AVCHD Lite. And a stereo microphone, ... more
featuring Dolby Digital Stereo Creator, records high quality audio. Just press the Motion Picture Button, and shooting begins. In the Creative Movie Mode, the shutte...
Postage & Packaging: Check Site. Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
The Panasonic FZ38 can record HD movie of 720P in AVCHD Lite. And a stereo microphone, ... more
featuring Dolby Digital Stereo Creator, records high quality audio. Just press the Motion Picture Button, and shooting begins. In the Creative Movie Mode, the shutte...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Advantages: Light. good automode or manual if you want, good lens, autofocus & anti-jitter, videoing Disadvantages: No hotshoe, fixed LCD screen, full user guide on CD only.
A strong contender in the superzoom/prosumer/bridge class. Main advantages: * Lighter weight than most if not all rivals * Good "Intelligent Auto" mode which gives you a great "point and shoot" * Plenty of manual / semi-manual modes and scene options for those who like to fiddle * Fast autofocus * Good image stabilisation * Good Lens - 18x not 24x or 26x like some rivals, but 600mm instead of ... ...
Weaknesses * No flash hotshoe * Fixed LCD rather than moveable one which is common on this type * Intense light sources can spoil movies with lines - but apparently not unique for this type of filming, and if movies are important you should probably be getting a proper video camera anyway * No printed full user guide - supplied on CD instead, and written in the usual garbled English. * User Interface not ... more
A strong contender in the superzoom/prosumer/bridge class. Main advantages:
Lighter weight than most if not all rivals
Good "Intelligent Auto" mode which gives you a great "point and shoot"
Plenty of manual / semi-manual modes and scene options for those who like to fiddle
Fast autofocus
Good image stabilisation
Good Lens - 18x not 24x or 26x like some rivals, but 600mm instead of 480 isn't that important to me
Easy filming
Weaknesses
No flash hotshoe
Fixed LCD rather than moveable one which is common on this type
Intense light sources can spoil movies with lines - but apparently not unique for this type of filming, and if movies are important you should probably be getting a proper video camera anyway
No printed full user guide - supplied on CD instead, and written in the usual garbled English.
User Interface not quite good enough to make previous point irrelevant.
10 frames per second, 6 frames per second, 2.3 frames per second
Remote Control
Optional
Video Capture
MPEG - 640 x 480 - 30 fps
MPEG - 320 x 240 - 30 fps
MPEG - 848 x 480 - 30 fps
AVCHD Lite - 1280 x 720 - 50 fps
MPEG - 1280 x 720 - 30 fps
Memory / storage
Supported Flash Memory
SD Memory Card, SDHC Memory Card
Integrated Memory
40 MB
Image Storage
JPEG 4000 x 3000
JPEG 4000 x 2672
JPEG 4000 x 2248
JPEG 3264 x 2448
JPEG 3264 x 2176
JPEG 3264 x 1840
JPEG 2560 x 1920
JPEG 2560 x 1712
JPEG 2560 x 1440
JPEG 2048 x 1536
JPEG 2048 x 1360
JPEG 1920 x 1080
JPEG 1600 x 1200
JPEG 640 x 480
Camera flash
Camera Flash
Pop-up flash
Flash Modes
Fill-in mode, rear curtain sync, slow synchro, auto mode, flash OFF mode, red-eye reduction
Red Eye Reduction
Built-in
Effective Flash Range
0.3 m - 8.5 m
Features
AF illuminator, flash +/- compensation
Lens system
Type
Zoom lens - 4.8 mm - 86.4 mm - f/2.8-4.4
Focal Length
4.8 mm - 86.4 mm
Focal Length Equivalent to 35mm Camera
27 - 486mm
Focus Adjustment
Automatic, manual
Auto Focus
TTL contrast detection
Auto Focus Points (Zones)
11
Min Focus Range
30 cm
Macro Focus Range
1cm
Lens Aperture
F/2.8-4.4
Optical Zoom
18 x
Zoom Adjustment
Motorised drive
Lens Construction
8 group(s) / 11 element(s)
Lens Manufacturer
Leica
Features
ED glass, aspherical lens
Additional features
Self Timer
Built-in
Self Timer Delay
10 sec, 2sec
Additional Features
Audio recording, direct print, USB 2.0 compatibility, built-in speaker, RGB primary colour filter, auto power save, digital noise reduction, date/time stamp, DPOF support, sharpness control, digital image rotation, camera orientation detection, PictBridge support, histogram display, in-camera red-eye removal, cropping an image, resizing an image, saturation control, Scene Detection Technology, Face Detection AF/AE, highlight point display, contrast control, automatic face tracking technology, built-in help guide, Motion Detection Technology
1 x Li-ion rechargeable battery - 710 mAh ( included )
Environmental parameters
Min Operating Temperature
0 °C
Max Operating Temperature
40 °C
Manufacturer's product description
The demand for digital cameras that can record higher-quality movie has grown in step with the trend toward larger HDTV screens and new technologies of movie recording. Now, in addition to Motion JPEG images, the DMC-FZ38 can record high-definition motion picture of 720P in AVCHD Lite. As a result, stunningly beautiful movie even in High Definition can be recorded with almost double length, compared with the conventional Motion JPEG format. A stereo microphone, featuring Dolby Digital Stereo Creator, on the upper body records dynamic, true-to-life stereo audio that brings out the power of your HD movies. In addition, thanks to a silence design that helps suppress lens drive noise, the DMC-FZ38 records sounds in greater clarity. There is also a Wind Cut function that reduces noise on breezy days. The addition of AVCHD Lite HD movie recording doubles the appeal of the DMC-FZ38. This single camera lets you capture virtually all images in their natural beauty. It gives you both motion and still pictures, and ranges from 27mm wide-angle shots of sweeping landscapes to powerful 18x optical zoom shots (35mm film camera equivalent: 486mm) that pull distant subjects right up close. The DMC-FZ38 features a Creative Movie mode, which lets you set the shutter speed and aperture manually to make even more impressive movies. Changing the shutter speed brings special effects to movies, which is especially suitable for shooting fast-moving subject. The ability to control the aperture is convenient when there are several subjects at different distances and it is desired to have each of them stand out. Creative Movie mode gives the user a wider range of expressive possibilities to explore. Just connect the DMC-FZ38 to an HDTV and you're ready to view your movies and photos in beautiful high-definition. Motion pictures recorded in AVCHD Lite on SDHC/SD Memory Cards are easy to view on a Panasonic VIERA. Simply insert the card into the VIERA Image Viewer (SDHC/SD card slot) on VIERA TV or DIGA Blu-ray Disc Player to playback your content. You can take maximum advantage of Lumix's playback functions including the slideshow in which both motion and still pictures integrated in the timeline, Face Recognition playback or calendar display and so on. All control is possible using only the TV's remote control.
state-of-the-art optics, big tilting screen, optical stabilizer, face&smile detection 
