Panasonic Announces FZ45 and FZ100 to Replace the FZ38 Bridge

Panasonic Lumix FZ45 MARCHANDS €     Aboutbatter...  23.40  Rue du comm...  23.40  Batterieland  24.00  Amazon.fr  28.15  Amazon.fr m...  43.53  Redcoon  54.17  Compare prices

With all the regularity of a well-oiled atomic clock, Panasonic yesterday presented its annual bridge camera. This year however, the firm won't just be releasing one bridge model, but two—the FZ45 and FZ100—which will replace the still-fledgling FZ38.

The two new models have a lot in common, including several improvements to the general design and handling. Like other cameras in the range, led by the new LX5 (also announced yesterday), Panasonic has equipped its new bridges with all the standard features you'd expect to find in the latest micro-four-thirds cameras, such as a video record button on the top of the camera and a clickable thumb wheel for the settings (ditching the kind of joystick control used in previous generations).

Both new models will have a previously unseen 24x zoom, with a focal length equivalent to 25-600 mm. A 25 mm wide-angle therefore becomes a standard feature in all of the brand's superzooms (25-200 mm for the ZX, 25-300 mm for the TZ). Unfortunately, though, there's no multi-aspect sensor, which means this wide-angle is lost in 16:9 format and in video mode, at 31-735 mm. With f/2.8-5.2, the brightness is reasonable but not extraordinary.

Subtle but real differences

Panasonic Lumix FZ100 MARCHANDS €     100000volts  15.50  Aboutbatter...  23.40  Rue du comm...  23.40  Batterieland  24.00  Amazon.fr  28.15  Amazon.fr m...  47.95  Compare prices

So how are the two models different? The FZ45 has a 3-inch screen with 230,000 pixels, firmly fixed to the camera body, whereas the FZ100 has a much more interesting 460,000-pixel screen, which flips out on a side-mounted hinge and can be tilted as required.

However, the key difference that's likely to be the real deciding factor when picking one or the other camera ha the sensor. The FZ45 has Panasonic's classic combo of 14-Megapixel CCD with Venus Engine HD II, while the FZ100 has the new 14-Megapixel MOS sensor and Venus Engine FHD, also presented yesterday.

The MOS sensor has several advantages over the CCD (follow the link above to find out more) including 1080i HD video instead of 720p and a burst mode of 11 fps instead of 1.8 fps. One small drawback, however—no doubt due to the mighty power of the Venus Engine FHD—is that the FZ100 has an advertised battery life of just 410 images (max.), whereas the FZ45 can keep on snapping for 580 photos, according to its spec sheet.

Equipping two identical cameras with different sensors is a pretty risky choice for Panasonic, especially when one of the sensors is brand new, with plenty of vultures waiting to dive in and see just what it's made of. However, it may be risky for Panasonic, but it's great news for us, as it means we'll be able to directly compare a 14-Megapixel CCD with a 14-Megapixel MOS. Hopefully we'll be able to find out whether the new sensor brings real improvements across the board or whether picture quality suffers as a result.


At Panasonic's presentation event, we managed to spend a few hours playing around with a FZ100, although it wasn't a final model. It did have a few small bugs, notably for saving the first frame of a fast burst, but hopefully this will have been corrected in the final version. On the whole, though, it was competent, responsive and effective camera, and we preferred its design and handling to the FZ38. Unfortunately though, we can't comment on the picture quality, the feature that will ultimately determine this new model's success.

The FZ100 and FZ45 are both due for release in August with UK pricing yet to be confirmed.

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