Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH20K 14.1 MP Digital Camera with 8x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.7-Inch LCD (Black)

I own an older Lumix and I love it, so when I wanted to buy cameras for my siblings this summer I bought two of these new ones and they were very happily received gifts! For the money this is an excellent camera - it has a super zoom which allows you to photograph things from far away, which will be great for my stepsister taking photos of her horses in the pasture, and it is absolutely tiny, which is great for my brother as he likes to stuff everything (ipod, books, you name it) into the pockets of his cargo pants. It takes wonderful photos and makes it really easy to grab a quick home movie on the fly. The controls are nicely balanced, if you just want to get a snapshot without thinking about it too hard it is easy to use in idiot mode, and if you want to have more input into what your picture looks like there are plenty of serious-photographer options for you to choose from, although there is no manual focus. And it comes in variety of fun colours - I chose a red one for my stepsister and a black one for my brother.Unlike my older Lumix - a DMC TZ3 - this one does not come with a Leica lens, it has an 8x optical zoom rather than a 10x optical zoom, and it is manufactured in China rather than Japan. But then again it costs less than half the price I paid for my old DMC TZ3, and it is about half the size. If you want a Leica-lensed more serious Lumix you can still buy one, they make new models with the Leica lens, loads more options and a price to match - this one, the DMC ZS7 looks pretty awesome: Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7 12.1 MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3.0-Inch LCD (Black). But if you want to get a great camera for a very low price you will be very happy with this one, it is a lot of fun in a small package.

I chose this camera because of the possibility of recording HD video. And it does a very decent job when it comes to video. It's not like having a professional camera, but hey, you're getting what you're paying for. The quality of the still pictures is very good, and the intelligent auto feature comes in very handy.After less than a month of purchase, I had a problem with the camera and had to send it to the McAllen Exchange Center. They promised to send me the unit back in 10 days (according to the site), but it took 1.5 month. When they finally sent, it was not in the original box, and the battery charger was a wrong model, that doesn't work with this camera. Their customer support is the worst I've ever seen. It's almost impossible to talk to someone by phone, as it's always busy, and they don't respond emails. After 1 week insisting on the phone, I was finally able to talk to someone, and she lied on my face saying that the charger sent back was exactly the same one I originally sent. When I started insisting it's not fair I pay for their mistake, she hand up the phone on me. With no resources and no one else to complain, I ended up having to buy another charger.My wish was to get rid of this camera just because I don't ever want to deal with Panasonic again. I feel I was treated like I had no value for the company.

This is my third Panasonic Lumix point-and-shoot camera, and I must say I am very impressed with the quality of such an inaxpensive ultra compact. My first two Panasonic Lumix cameras were the more expensive high end FX12 and FX33 ultra compacts and I didn't think the quality of this camera would be quite as good as the Leica lens FX series. I was pleasantly surprised with the new features and the quality of the FH20. The reason I was attracted to this camera other than another FX was the lower price (I am on a very scrawny budget), and twice the zoom (which is allot better than most ultra compact digital cameras), which was enough along with all the positive reviews for me to get the FH20 instead. And boy did I make the right choice. This camera looks allot nicer than my older ones with its highly polished brushed aluminum finish and you can feel the quality of the camera just by holding, it is indeed a very sturdy little thing. The detail in the pictures blow me away, but don't expect SLR quality. I love the macro zoom mode, the digital zoom doesn't degrade image quality at all. HD video is magnificent, even on my enormous TV. There are no real issues with this camera that I can see being an experienced amateur photographer.If you are looking for an easy to use pocketable camera that doesn't take allot of brain to operate but still produces excellent photos in all scenarios than this is the right camera. On the other hand if you are looking for a camera where you can take advantage of full manual controls than maybe you should invest a little bit more in your final decision.Bottom Line: Best camera you can get in the price range, packs allot of punch for such a small package.