Panasonic Lumix TZ1 First Impressions Review

Model Design / Appearance
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ1 is thin compared to other ultra zoom cameras, but thick compared to other compact models. The TZ1 is a little more than an inch and a half thick, and it’s even thicker where the right hand grips the camera. The stepped grip has a bumpy highlight in the middle with the TZ1 logo. The camera’s design is very rectangular, perhaps to allude to its widescreen capabilities? The TZ1’s metal body has a plain look with a very simple design. Its relatively traditional aesthetics are made a little more interesting with the silver and black color offerings.

Size / Portability
The TZ1 measures 2.29 x 4.41 x 1.58 inches and weighs just over a half pound without the battery. When fully loaded with the lithium-ion battery and the memory card, the camera weighs 0.58 lbs. The camera looks quite portable at this size, although it isn’t ultra slim or super light-weight. A wrist strap attaches to the right side for easier portability.

Handling Ability
The pre-production TZ1 models at PMA did not lend themselves to an accurate assessment of the camera’s handling or feel, so we will have to take a hard look at this when we conduct our full review of the TZ1 in the coming months.

Still, handling on the PMA models was comfortable considering the circumstances. There are bumps on the back of the camera that act as a thumb grip. The front has a hand and finger grip contoured and etched from the body.

Control Button / Dial Positioning / Size
There aren’t many buttons on the camera body, which is a nice feature for consumers who are intimidated by their presence. Oftentimes when a camera doesn’t have many buttons, it compensates with ridiculously long menus but that isn’t the case with the TZ1. It is just a simple camera in terms of available options. The buttons that are on the body are crammed toward the bottom and are a bit small. The most important button, the shutter release, is big and comfortable though.

White Balance	Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Custom, Custom Set
Sensitivity	Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800
Aspect Ratio	4:3, 3:2, 16:9
Picture Size	5 M, 3 M, 2 M, 1 M, 0.3 M
Quality	Fine, Standard
Audio Recording	On, Off
Metering Mode	Spot, Center-weighted Average, Multi
AF Mode	1-point, 1-point high speed, 3-point high speed, 9-point, spot
Continuous AF	On, Off
AF Assist Lamp	On, Off
Slow Shutter	1/8, 1/4, 1/2, 1
Digital Zoom	On, Off
Color Effect	Off, Cool, Warm, Black & White, Sepia
Picture Adjustment	Standard, Natural, Vivid
Flip Animation	Picture Capture (up to 100 photos), Create Motion Picture (Frame Rate 5-10 fps, Create), Delete Still Picture

Clock Set	Time, Date, M/D/Y
World Time	Destination, Home (select from world map)
Monitor	+/- 3 brightness
Travel Date	Off, Set
Auto Review	Off, 1, 3 sec
Power Save	Off, 1-10 min
Economy	Off, Level 1, Level 2
Beep	Off, Level 1, Level 2
Shutter	Off, Level 1, Level 2
Volume	5 levels
No. Reset	Yes, No
Reset	Yes, No
USB Mode	PC, PictBridge
Highlight	On, Off
Video Out	NTSC, PAL
Scene Menu	Off, Auto
Language	English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Chinese Traditional, Chinese Simplified

Slide Show	Start, Duration 1-5 sec and manual, Audio on and off
Favorite	On, Off, Cancel
Rotate Display	On, Off
Rotate	Set, Cancel
DPOF Print	Single, Multi, Cancel
Protect	Single, Multi, Cancel
Audio Dubbing	Up to 10 sec
Resize	Set, Cancel
Trimming	Set, Cancel
Aspect Conversion	3:2, 4:3
Copy	Internal Memory to Card, Card to Internal Memory
Format	Yes, No

Ease of Use
The automatically oriented TZ1 is quite easy to use. It has a look that is inviting to beginners because of its plain face and lack of buttons and clutter. This Panasonic Lumix’s only drawback is its use of icons. Consumers who are not familiar with the Panasonic setup may not know that the heart icon on the mode dial represents the Simple mode – and they may not know that the Simple mode is Panasonic’s most automatic mode. It’d probably be more helpful if the heart was replaced by the actual text: “AUTO”.