Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZX1 review

Boasting a 25mm angle 8x optical lens we discover if the new Panasonic ZX compact’s bite is as big as its bark

Resembling previous FX generations of the Panasonic compact family tree, the ZX1 displays a rather ordinary aesthetic, stimulating little in the way of adoration or interest. In fact, in a market where new shapes, curvatures, colours and styles are being explored by its competitors, Panasonic has pursued a mundanely average look which dangerously borders on appearing dated. Although the ZX1 is available in a modest array of colours: black, blue, white, red or silver, compared to its rivals its overall physiognomic is boxy, plain and uninspiring - in essence; vanilla. That said some may interpret its pronounced weightiness as a sign of durability and as trade off for housing a relatively extensive zoom lens. 

Packed within the innards of the machine is a Leica lens offering the equivalent focal length (on a 35mm camera) of 25-200mm, an extensive telephoto reach for a camera of this calibre. As well as yielding an 8x zoom the compact also presents an ‘E’ zoom promoting this range to 15.6x, albeit at the detriment to the resolution which is reduced to 3MP. With maximum apertures of f3.3 and f5.9 the lens isn’t particular fast at its wide angle or telephoto capabilities, but in good light the Power O.I.S system, which has been incorporated to aid stability and reduce camera blur, is of benefit. In low light scenarios or in some cases when the full focal range of the lens has been exploited the system fails to prove of little worth as in many cases we found blur had ruined the resulting frames. When high ISO was introduced to aid the problem we discovered the uncomfortable level of noise degradation, rendered the frame unusable.     

A curved shooting grip adorns the right side the frame, whilst a pronounced thumb pad is positioned on the reverse to aid handheld captures. Layout of the controls has been well thought out and the modest size and shape of these shouldn’t faze those with larger digits. In terms of font size, simplicity and ease of navigation the onboard menus are a delight, furthermore the incorporation of a Quick menu provides the photographer with instant access to the most commonly required manual settings. The only niggle we have with it is once in the menu, users need to remember to confirm selections or enter sub menus by operating the arrow keys rather than the traditional method of using the OK button, which will instead boot the user out of the menu.

We applaud Panasonic’s foresight off including some level of manual operability and perhaps this is the compact’s overall saving grace. For entry level users the addition of iAuto mode will be useful, and the 30 scene modes are sure to attract photo enthusiasts who may want to exploit the presets for creative gain, for example starry sky mode offers longer exposure times of 15, 30 and 60 seconds which can be also be utilised for capturing traffic trails, night cityscapes and light graffiti. The MS mode is another time saving facet which sweetly stores your favourite settings. As with many compacts today the device includes a ‘HD’ movie feature, recording clips at 720p at 30 or 15 fps, although there is no HDMI port. The control is presented on the mode dial rather than having its own independent button as seen else where in the brand’s collection. On the one hand the feature allows for 3x optical zoom control during capture but on the other this is slower than still capture, focus isn’t sharp throughout and sound recording is limited to mono.

Stacked with a tide of focusing options, including face detection (to a maximum of 15 faces) and AF tracking, the ZX1 focuses quickly and usually accurately. It also delivers face recognition ‘remembering’ up to six registered people and users can later opt to playback images of a certain individual. What is more photographers can specify the person’s age and if that subject is listed as under 3 the camera will automatically switch into baby mode.

In terms of image quality we felt the ZX1 produced shots of an adequate standard with few stellar exceptions. Noise crept in from ISO 400, and by ISO 800 was uncomfortable. Minor chromatic aberrations, with a small degree of purple fringing were apparent in some shots of high contrast. Flash was powerful enough for most scenarios but occasionally bleached portraits at closer range. Macro mode offered a varying degree of success but most shots failed to exude that level of clarity we’d expect of a unit circulating at this price point. The compact metered well, but had a tendency to underexpose but this can be overridden by manually adjusting the compensation. Colour rendition was slightly off kilter, failing to accurately deliver the hues of the scene or subject and ultimately lacked that punch of saturation we’d expect, most notably greens appeared more yellow than in reality and the blacks failed to deliver the necessary depth.