New: Leica V-LUX 20

[ChuckW]

Ignoring for the moment whether the V-Lux 20 is a Leica or not, it is an interesting camera with its mega-zoom lens. And Panasonic is producing some very intriguing and high-quality cameras of late. Too bad that the V-Lux 20 doesn't shoot raw!

[JohnT]

Originally Posted by ChuckW

Ignoring for the moment whether the V-Lux 20 is a Leica or not, it is an interesting camera with its mega-zoom lens. And Panasonic is producing some very intriguing and high-quality cameras of late. Too bad that the V-Lux 20 doesn't shoot raw!

Just noticed on B&H that it doesn't shoot raw. Strange for a $700 camera.

[Hogleg 44]

Originally Posted by JohnT

Just noticed on B&H that it doesn't shoot raw. Strange for a $700 camera.

...and according to it's spec sheet it has a 1/2.33 CCD sensor, and not a MOS or CMOS. Could be noisy???

[JohnT]

Originally Posted by Hogleg 44

...and according to it's spec sheet it has a 1/2.33 CCD sensor, and not a MOS or CMOS. Could be noisy???

I would expect noisiness given it's a small-sensor camera. I'm curious about other aspects though. I'll be checking the reviews for the heck of it.

[sporkthedork]

I've been looking to see if there is a Panasonic branded "equivalent" of this camera.

Anybody know?

[johnastovall]

Originally Posted by sporkthedork

I've been looking to see if there is a Panasonic branded "equivalent" of this camera.

Anybody know?

Off course,

Leica has unveiled its first compact superzoom, the V-Lux 20 which also features built-in GPS tagging. A near-identical twin of the Panasonic ZS7/ TZ10, but with a more expensive price tag of US $699/£495 GBP, the camera includes almost all of the features including a 12.1MP sensor, 460k dot 3" LCD and 12x optical zoom (25-300mm equiv.). Like the ZS7 it also features 720p HD video recording, however it can only shoot it in a less sophisticated Motion JPEG format than the Panasonic's AVCHD Lite format.

[chris00nj]

I have the D-Lux 4 which is a capable camera, but I'm not sure how much I'd like the V-Lux. It gives up a lot to have a long zoom, but a long zoom on a compact camera with a tiny sensor tends to deliver worthless result anyway.

The V-Lux maximum aperture is only 3.3 and the sensor is smaller than the D-Lux 4.