# Panasonic Lumix LX7 high end compact announced



## editor (Jul 18, 2012)

Bit of a mixed bag this. The super fast f1.4 lens is a real achievement, and I LOVE the aperture ring around the lens, but the smaller sensor is a bit of a disappointment.  

I guess the pricing us going to be critical here. 







More info here: http://www.wirefresh.com/panasonic-...-compact-camera-with-new-lens-smaller-sensor/


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## fen_boy (Jul 18, 2012)

Is smaller sensor always bad nowadays or have things moved on at all?


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## fen_boy (Jul 18, 2012)

Confused now, http://www.imaging-resource.com/new...the-king-panasonic-lx7-previewed-with-samples says the sensor is the same size.


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## fen_boy (Jul 18, 2012)

Better info here http://www.dpreview.com/previews/panasonic-lumix-dmc-lx7


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## Crispy (Jul 18, 2012)

fen_boy said:


> Is smaller sensor always bad nowadays or have things moved on at all?


I believe they've improved on the % of the sensor area that's actually light sensitive, as opposed to supports and interconnect (thus improving the sensitivity of all sensors), but larger is still better.


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## editor (Jul 18, 2012)

DPReview says: "The LX7 features a slightly smaller sensor than the LX5"
http://www.dpreview.com/news/2012/07/18/Panasonic-announces-Lumix-DMC-LX7-with-F1-4-2-3-24-90mm-lens


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## fen_boy (Jul 18, 2012)

I own the LX3, skipped the LX5, but am interested in this. 1.4f is amazing in a compact. Any idea how much?


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## Kanda (Jul 18, 2012)

fen_boy said:


> I own the LX3, skipped the LX5, but am interested in this. 1.4f is amazing in a compact.


 
Likewise.


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## fen_boy (Jul 18, 2012)

Crispy said:


> I believe they've improved on the % of the sensor area that's actually light sensitive, as opposed to supports and interconnect (thus improving the sensitivity of all sensors), but larger is still better.


 
OK, so the next question is is the actually light sensitive area on the LX7 smaller than the LX5 (as opposed to the size of the sensor component itself)?


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## editor (Jul 18, 2012)

I'm not sure if I can justify upgrading from the LX5, but this does have some nice new features like the aperture dial and ND filter.


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## editor (Jul 18, 2012)

It's a bit chunkier than the LX5 too.


​http://www.dpreview.com/previews/panasonic-lumix-dmc-lx7/3​


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## maldwyn (Jul 18, 2012)

I'm still very happy with my LX3


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## leftistangel (Jul 22, 2012)

Yes I am happy with my LX3, or at least I was.

Four years on and its still the king in terms of image quality for the Lumix line. Its jpeg processing is behind the best pocket cameras. But the results you can get using Adobe Camera Raw match or at least surpass pretty much anything at its sensor size and more importantly both of its successors (I had an LX5). My now four year old LX3 has developed a fault on its LCD after being exposed to heavy rain in a storm but there STILL isn't anything that can replace it, at least anything with 24mm at the wide. 

I think Panasonic created a rod for its own back with the LX5. By compromising the optics by extending the zoom range they made it difficult to justify introducing a larger sensor with a 24-60mm zoom range, even though that would have had better image quality than its rivals, which is afterall the reason why the LX3 was such a success.


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## editor (Jul 22, 2012)

I much prefer the LX5 over the LX3. It's a significantly better camera, IMO.


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## leftistangel (Jul 22, 2012)

Sadly I didn't find that to be so when I bought one, so I sold it and kept my LX3.

What it came down to is I didnt use or need the extra 30mm reach as much as I had thought. And while there were a few extra features and the sensor had slighter less noise (though nothing that couldnt be tackled in raw) I couldnt overlook the compromised opitics of the 24-90 lens, which resulted in poorer image quality.  See the DpReview studio test for an objective example   http://tinyurl.com/dy4g24p   The LX5 is significantly softer than the LX3.

My advice for anyone who is efficient in processing raw files and isn't hampered by the 60mm reach of the LX3 is choose that over the LX5. You'll be astounded by the results. And sadly I am highly sceptical if those results have been improved by the even more compromised optics of the LX7.

If only Sony had stuck a 24-60 lens on the RX100!


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## editor (Aug 13, 2012)

The LX7 has picked up a very positive review here: 


> Priced at around £449.99 / $499.95, the LX7 is another recent high-end model that further blurs the line between compact and larger-sensor cameras. Consumers have never had so much choice at this price-point - premium compact, mid-range compact system camera and even an entry-level DSLR are all available. Were it not for the arrival of the Sony RX100, the LX7 would have been our defacto choice as a pocketable and user-friendly compact for keen photographers that delivers excellent image quality considering the small size of its sensor, but Sony's offering produces even better images from an even smaller camera, admittedly at an even higher price. Ultimately we prefer the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7's interface and handling, but clearly give the nod to the RX100's extensive feature-set and amazing image quality.
> 
> So two years on from the previous LX5 model, the LX7 is still a great pocket camera, but is no longer king of the rather niche Premium Compact market. It's still Highly Recommended, but make sure that you check out the competition first...


http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/panasonic_lumix_dmc_lx7_review/


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## Firky (Aug 13, 2012)

£450! I was looking for a new compact but I don't think I'll bother with this, was looking at spending around £200-£250... but then buying cheap is a false economy when it comes to digital cameras IMO.

D300 is a bit of a lump in the pocket.


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## editor (Aug 13, 2012)

firky said:


> £450! I was looking for a new compact but I don't think I'll bother with this, was looking at spending around £200-£250... but then buying cheap is a false economy when it comes to digital cameras IMO.


It'll probably drop a fair way down from that price on release. The LX5 did.


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## Firky (Aug 13, 2012)

It is the kind of thing I was looking at, I'd get frustrated with a cheaper compact and it's lack of features.

If it is priced around £300 I'd think about it. Have you any recommendations?


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## editor (Aug 13, 2012)

firky said:


> It is the kind of thing I was looking at, I'd get frustrated with a cheaper compact and it's lack of features.
> 
> If it is priced around £300 I'd think about it. Have you any recommendations?


The LX5 will probably drop in price now - as are prices for some of the Olympus m43 compacts.


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## Firky (Aug 17, 2012)

Pre-orders being taken at £399.


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## editor (Aug 17, 2012)

£370 here:
http://www.digitalrev.com/product/p...AwMTEwMA_A_A?gclid=CL7n94q77bECFc0mtAod30wACQ


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## Firky (Aug 17, 2012)

And it is in stock...

No, I said £300 and I am sticking to that price - for today


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## editor (Sep 15, 2012)

Pretty damn good review here. The lack of a touchscreen remains a bit frustrating but that aperture ring and f1.4 looks tempting....


> anasonic clearly sees the Sony RX100 as the main rival to the LX7, despite the fact that it uses a smaller sensor. Happily, it's quite a match for Sony's offering, despite the smaller sensor size.
> 
> Image quality is great, while our labs test indicate that the Panasonic LX7 shows an improvement in quality in the raw files, with less noise and greater dynamic range. However, when it comes to the JPEG images, dynamic range results between the LX5 and LX7 are close, with the LX5 just having the edge. Signal to noise ratio results at the lower end of the sensitivity scale show the LX7 has better noise performance, at the top end of the sensitivity scale, however, the LX5 performs better.
> 
> ...


http://www.techradar.com/reviews/ca.../compact-cameras/panasonic-lx7-1089288/review


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## editor (Oct 7, 2012)

Did anyone buy this in the end?

It's got another very good review here:


> Several things give the Lumix LX7 a lead in this market. Most important is the extraordinarily bright f1.4-2.3 lens. There's few models that can match its maximum aperture at the wide angle angle end of the range and the longer you zoom the bigger its advantage gets.
> 
> This crucially allows the LX7 to claw back some of the noise advantage of rivals with bigger sensors as their generally slower lenses means they're forced to operate at higher ISOs than the LX7 under the same conditions.
> 
> ...


http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/Panasonic_Lumix_DMC_LX7/verdict.shtml


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## Hocus Eye. (Oct 7, 2012)

No, I am still very content with my LX3 thank you. That is itself a recommendation for the LX7 its successor, for someone in the market at the moment.


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## editor (Oct 7, 2012)

Hocus Eye. said:


> No, I am still very content with my LX3 thank you.


That's fantastic to hear. I'm lucky enough to have sold quite a few photos and seeing as they're often only ever taken on smaller cameras, I'm always on the look out for improved image quality, especially in low light. 

I'm still happy with my LX5 (although the zoom lever has gone all 'sticky') but I am looking at the new Olympus Pen E-PL5 as that comes with the same fantastic sensor as the OM-D but in a smaller package.


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## Garek (Nov 20, 2012)

I am considering one as my last camera has died. It was a £100 Panasonic that I loved though the picture quality was questionable at times. Just seen the price has fallen to £275. My decision will ultimately come done to a) whether I can afford that b) whether I can justify it c) whether I will actually learn how to use its features.


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## editor (Nov 20, 2012)

Even when it's just used as a point and shoot, the LX7 is a fabulous compact.

I bought the E-PL5 recently and it's very, very good - although noticeably bigger than the LX5/7 is you have anything other than the 14mm pancake lens fitted.


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## kage (Nov 23, 2012)

I just bought the girlfriend one for Xmas, well I imagine I might use it as well on occasion. 

It was reduced from $499 US to $299 due to it being Black Friday, after importing it to Canada and paying the duty it'll be more like $390, still a bargain. It'll make a nice change from lugging around the D300


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## editor (Nov 23, 2012)

That's a great price.


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## Garek (Nov 28, 2012)

editor said:


> Even when it's just used as a point and shoot, the LX7 is a fabulous compact.


 
Well I have asked for it for Christmas/Birthday so with any luck I shall be getting one. And I will read the manual and try and learn how to do all the different things with it. On my old Panasonic I used to just use the auto thing which could be a bit hit and miss.


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## Garek (Jan 10, 2013)

Well I got it! And I love the look and feel of it. Haven't actually used it yet though as I haven't got a memory card for it 

So what's the deal we memory cards? Are they like speaker wire or are there genuine differences with the more expensive ones? I was looking at this. Is that a good price?


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## Hocus Eye. (Jan 10, 2013)

Garek said:


> Well I got it! And I love the look and feel of it. Haven't actually used it yet though as I haven't got a memory card for it
> 
> So what's the deal we memory cards? Are they like speaker wire or are there genuine differences with the more expensive ones? I was looking at this. Is that a good price?


That looks like a good price to me. Cards have come down in price quite a lot. If you have a few hours to spare you can read all about them here:


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## editor (Jan 10, 2013)

Hocus Eye. said:


> That looks like a good price to me. Cards have come down in price quite a lot. If you have a few hours to spare you can read all about them here:


7dayshop.com is the place for memory cards. Unless you're likely to be firing off endless bursts of RAW shooting, any modern card will be fine.


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## Garek (Jan 10, 2013)

I especially like the clicky manual adjusters on it for shooting modes, aspect ratio and something else which I don't understand. The aperture. Much better than my old one where you had to through the LCD menu to change all that.


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## editor (Jan 10, 2013)

The aperture ring is great. I've never touched the aspect ratio control on any of my LXs. Seems pointless to me.


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## Hocus Eye. (Jan 10, 2013)

editor said:


> The aperture ring is great. I've never touched the aspect ratio control on any of my LXs. Seems pointless to me.


I went through a phase of using the square format on my LX3 just to see how it affected my photography. Part of the reason for this interest was that when I bought the camera there was no square format option but it came later as a firmware download. It meant that it could only be accessed via the menu as you cannot download a hardware modification of course. I still sometimes use it but it cannot be set with Intelligent Auto. I have square format set as a default so that when I switch to Manual setting or for that matter Programme, Shutter or Aperture settings I get the square picture. This warns me that I am not in iA mode. I have to admit that I mostly use the camera on Intelligent Auto which I have described before as 'cleverer than a dolphin'. All those years of learning about aperture, shutter speed, depth of field gone out of the window.


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## fractionMan (Jan 10, 2013)

It's now about 255 quid in the uk.


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## Piers Gibbon (Jun 12, 2013)

I still love my LX3 - I love the Ai dolphin cleverness...for some reason I just always get better shots with it than the pocketable Canon s95 - which is a damn fine camera. And this time I am learning my lesson (from recently selling an under used old video camera), instead of hanging on to the canon and then selling it for ebay peanuts I am going to spread the lurve and give it to my brother so he can take photos of my nephew

IF IF IF I was replacing the LX3 due to an excess of cash (sigh) I would be looking at the fuji x100s I think..


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## editor (Jun 12, 2013)

Piers Gibbon said:


> IF IF IF I was replacing the LX3 due to an excess of cash (sigh) I would be looking at the fuji x100s I think..


The x100s is a lovely camera but really pricey and not as compact as I'd like. I'd still take one if you're offering, thanks.


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## Piers Gibbon (Jun 13, 2013)

Post reported for greed in a parallel universe


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## Kanda (Jun 13, 2013)

I've managed to source an underwater housing for this  Selling my D80 and lenses to cover the cost


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