Image Quality

All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 14 megapixel Fine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 5.5Mb.

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 produced images of good quality during the review period. The 1/2.33 inch, 14 megapixel MOS sensor used in the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 produces noise-free images at ISO 80-200, with limited noise and colour desaturation starting to appear at ISO 400. ISO 800 exhibits quite visible noise, smearing of fine detail and colour desaturation, and ISO 1600 is even noisier, although still usable for small prints.

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 dealt fairly well with chromatic aberrations, with some purple fringing effects appearing mostly in high contrast situations. The flash worked well indoors, with a little red-eye and adequate exposure. The night photograph was excellent, with the maximum shutter speed of 60 seconds allowing you to capture plenty of light. Anti-shake is a feature that works very well when hand-holding the camera in low-light conditions or when using the telephoto end of the zoom range.

Macro performance is very good, allowing you to focus as close as 3cms away from the subject. The images were a little soft straight out of the camera at the default sharpening setting and ideally require further sharpening in an application like Adobe Photoshop, or you can change the in-camera setting if you don't like the default results. The new Intelligent Resolution feature either makes a standard image look sharper, albeit with some unwanted artefacts appearing, or it digitally increases the 5x optical zoom to 6.5x, again with a slight loss in quality.

Noise

There are 6 ISO settings available on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting:

ISO 80 (100% Crop)	ISO 100 (100% Crop)
ISO 200 (100% Crop)	ISO 400 (100% Crop)
ISO 800 (100% Crop)	ISO 1600 (100% Crop)

Focal Range

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70's 5x zoom lens provides a focal length of 24-120mm in 35mm terms, as demonstrated below.

24mm	120mm

Sharpening

Here are two 100% crops which have been Saved as Web - Quality 50 in Photoshop. The right-hand image has had some sharpening applied in Photoshop. The out-of-the camera images are a little soft at the default sharpening setting. You can change the in-camera sharpening level if you don't like the default look.

Original (100% Crop)	Sharpened (100% Crop)

File Quality

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 has 2 different image quality settings available, with Fine being the highest quality option. Here are some 100% crops which show the quality of the various options, with the file size shown in brackets.

14M Fine (5.71Mb) (100% Crop)	14M Normal (3.36Mb) (100% Crop)

Chromatic Aberrations

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 handled chromatic aberrations fairly well during the review. There's some purple fringing between areas of high contrast, but it's only noticeable on close inspection, as shown in the examples below.

Example 1 (100% Crop)	Example 2 (100% Crop)

Macro

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 offers a Macro setting that allows you to focus on a subject that is 3cms away from the camera when the lens is set to wide-angle. The first image shows how close you can get to the subject (in this case a compact flash card). The second image is a 100% crop.

Macro Shot	100% Crop

Flash

The flash settings on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 are Auto, Auto/Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Slow Sync./Red-eye Reduction, Forced Off, and Flash Synchro. These shots of a white coloured wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.

Flash Off - Wide Angle (24mm)	Flash On - Wide Angle (24mm)
Flash Off - Telephoto (120mm)	Flash On - Telephoto (120mm)

And here are a couple of portrait shots. Both the Forced On setting or the Auto/Red-eye Reduction option caused a tiny amount of red-eye.

Forced On	Forced On (100% Crop)
Auto/Red-eye Reduction	Auto/Red-eye Reduction (100% Crop)

Night

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70's maximum shutter speed is 60 seconds in Manual shooting mode and the Starry Sky Mode scene mode, which is great news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 15 seconds at ISO 80. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like.

Night Shot	Night Shot (100% Crop)

Anti Shake

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 has an anti-shake mechanism, which allows you to take sharp photos at slower shutter speeds than other digital cameras. To test this, I took 2 handheld shots of the same subject with the same settings. The first shot was taken with anti shake turned off, the second with it turned on. Here are some 100% crops of the images to show the results. As you can see, with anti shake turned on, the images are much sharper than with anti shake turned off. This feature really does seem to make a difference and could mean capturing a successful, sharp shot or missing the opportunity altogether.

Shutter Speed / Focal Length	Anti Shake Off (100% Crop)	Anti Shake On (100% Crop)
1/10th / 24mm
1/2th / 120mm

Intelligent Resolution

The Intelligent Resolution feature either makes a standard image look like a higher resolution one by processing the contour areas, texture areas and smooth areas individually, or it digitally boosts the zoom magnification from 5x to 6.5x.

Off	On
i.Zoom
Off	i.Zoom

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 camera, which were all taken using the 14.1 megapixel Fine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample Movie & Video

Product Images

Front of the Camera

Front of the Camera / Turned On

Isometric View

Isometric View

Rear of the Camera

Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed

Rear of the Camera / Turned On

Rear of the Camera / Main Menu

Rear of the Camera / Quick Menu

Top of the Camera

Bottom of the Camera

Side of the Camera

Side of the Camera

Front of the Camera

Front of the Camera

Memory Card Slot

Battery Compartment

Conclusion

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 marries an effective touchscreen interface with a fast, wide-angle 5x zoom lens and the tried and tested FX series styling, resulting in a classy point-and-shoot that delivers satisfying picture quality. Having to operate almost everything by interacting with the LCD does inevitably slow things down though, so it's best to try before you buy if possible.

The fast F/2.2 lens is a cut above the rest of FX70's competitors, allowing the camera to collect more light and effectively allowing you to use a slower ISO speed to achieve a similar shutter speed. Having such a wide-angle setting of 24mm is also a real attraction of this model, with the telephoto reach of 120mm enough for candid head and shoulder shots. The move up to a 14.1 megapixel sensor doesn't really improve the image quality compared to the previous FX60 model, other than slightly increasing the amount of resolution, with noise readily apparent at ISO 400 and much more obvious at ISO 800 along with smearing of fine details, with the fastest speed of ISO 1600 being something of a last resort.

The touchscreen interface is well-thought out, extending the FX550's hybrid approach so that most options are set directly via the LCD. If you've used any kind of recent Apple product or Smart Phone, you'll be right at home, and the system isn't overly complex for new users to literally get to grips with. The jury's still out for us on whether a touchscreen interface makes absolute sense for a digital camera, but the ability to focus on and even capture your subject with the touch of a finger is undeniably appealing and genuinely useful.

An official asking price of £269 / $299 doesn't feel like too much for such a cutting-edge yet still very accomplished camera. If you're in the market for a compact point-and-shoot with a difference, then the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 certainly fits the bill.

Ratings (out of 5)
Design	4
Features	4.5
Ease-of-use	4
Image quality	4
Value for money	4

Review Roundup

Reviews of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 from around the web.

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