Last year I needed a good quality camera which takes good day and night pictures whilst having a nice big zoom! The choice boiled down to just 2 - the Canon A710 and the Panasonic TZ3. Basically I went all out and read tens of reviews of both and I can say I could tell anyone all the features of both by heart.
Well here are a few differences and why I chose the Panasonic over the Canon. The first and most obvious difference is the zoom. The Panasonic boasts a nice 10x optical zoom whilst the Canon only has a 6x. Now this may not be a deterrant for some people, but I wanted a superzoom and that's what you get with the TZ3. Next is the lens. Now I known that Canon makes very good lenses but when I realized that the Panasonic had a Leica lens...well I have to say I almost drooled!!! Next comes the body. I have to black version of the TZ3 and boy it looks and fells good! The Canon looks more professional maybe but not half as good. The build quality of the Panasonic is also impressive. It is mostly made out of stainless steel which makes it feel very sturdy albeit a bit on the heavy side. The big screen at the back looks great (and has a really cool function where you can change the optimal angle at which you can see it, which is great for concerts and stuff).
Now I leave the best for last! The Leica lens is a wide angle lens (28mm-280mm) which makes a huge difference. The Canon makes do with a 35mm-210mm which is standard for compacts. The extra 7mm allow you to take pictures of a table with people for example without actually needed to get off the table yourself! This is probably the best feature of this camera.
Of course like everything else, it is not all good. Most reviews claim that the Canon manages to take crisper pictures during the day. Although I cannot confirm this, what I can say is that the TZ3 satisfied my daytime needs very well. Another thing which makes a difference for others is that the Canon allows for much more tuning of functions. For example whilst the TZ3 is a pure point and shoot, the Canon allows for manual changing of shutter speeds and other things which are usually found on higher end cameras. Another thing which is lacking on the TZ3 is a view finder (something which can be found on the Canon). One thing which some people may like but I don't is the fact that the Panasonic uses a proprietry battery pack. I'd rather it used normal rechargable AA batteries, as they are much easier to find.
All in all it all boils down to personal preference. What bought me off were the Leica wide angle lens, the 10x zoom and the looks of the camera. they are both good cameras and one should choose according to his needs. As for me I chose the TZ3!
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
I understand you were comparing 2 different cameras here but I wanted to read more about the Panasonic - I've never hear of the A710 so it meant nothing to me to read about it...
exceptional by (11%):
very helpful by (78%):
somewhat helpful by (11%):
