Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX37

Panasonic is nurturing its flagship compact, the FX35, adding an extra 25 mm to the zoom to bring us this FX37. It's one of the best compact digital cameras available at the moment, pairing easy-of-use with good quality images.

Advantages: - Good quality stabilized 5x optical zoom (25-125 mm), - Smaller case, - Quite good electronic noise handling, - HD video 1280 x 720 pixels, - Powerful automatic modes

Disadvantages: - LCD screen a little too bright, - No optic zoom for videos, - No manual mode, - Sound is poor on videos, - Good be quicker to start up

Panasonic’s new ultra-compact is slim and gorgeous, but has it got brains as well as beauty?

Panasonic is nurturing its flagship compact, the FX35, adding an extra 25 mm to the zoom to bring us this FX37. It's one of the best compact digital cameras available at the moment, pairing easy-of-use with good quality images.

Advantages: - Good quality stabilized 5x optical zoom (25-125 mm), - Smaller case, - Quite good electronic noise handling, - HD video 1280 x 720 pixels, - Powerful automatic modes

Disadvantages: - LCD screen a little too bright, - No optic zoom for videos, - No manual mode, - Sound is poor on videos, - Good be quicker to start up

Panasonic?s new ultra-compact is slim and gorgeous, but has it got brains as well as beauty?

Bottom Line The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX37 can record gorgeous HD video, but it loses points for so-so still images, which exhibit some color fringing.

The cute and compact Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX37 offers some competitive features including HD video capture (1,280 by 720 at 30 frames per second), but its still-image sharpness is not on a par with other 10-megapixel cameras. In a crowded sea of similar point-and-shoot cameras, it's hard to get excited about this one?especially given its high price ($349.95 direct).

Advantages: Very compact, Records HD video (1,280 by 720 at 30 frames per second), Solid controls, Fast boot-up and recycle times.

Disadvantages: Moderate amount of color fringing, Subpar sharpness for a 10-megapixel camera, Noticeable shutter lag, LCD shows iderable motion blur.