Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3 (Lumix DMC-TZ7)

Opinion: This is my third Panasonic superzoom, and the only one
i have a few complains about! The first is that the
camera build quality is definitely lower than the past
Lumix superzooms, which is a crying shame.

However the video is great, the zoom range and wide
angle is is fantastics (competitors now offer high zooms
and wider wide angles!), the optical stabilization is the
best in the market. The lens aperture range is not
great, but its one of the faster lenses at telephoto in
the market, but at wide angle it could be better (only
f3.3).

The image quality indoors though better than the
former models is still rather sub standard, and the weak
flash is a problem when taking group photos. However
outdoor the camera is wonderful.

The video is high quality, and more importantly the
audio which used to be bad in the TZ4/5 range is now
very good. AVCDLite offers much higher bit range, but
sadly though its said to only need 2-3Mbps writing
speeds, i find that unless you format your card regularly
and have only a few files, the camera is unable to
record stating the card is unable to support the
required speeds even when i use good quality Class 6
memory cards from Transcend, Kingston and Patriot.

Manual controls was a feature i would have loved to
see, and the newer model finally has it, sadly it seems
they decided to take on the mega pixel race and the
image quality indoors is supposedly worse than the ZS3
since nothing much has changed in the lens.

Opinion: Just one word : Great!
The right moment to buy a TZ7(lower prices but still pretty new technology). Excellent pictures and astonishing HD movies. Really impressive to me.

Opinion: My beloved Lumix TZ4 was unfortunately stolen last week, so I went out today and snapped up the ZS3 (TZ7) (from an individual on Craigslist - barely used it). I knew I wanted this particular model because a person on YouTube posted a ton of concert videos they had taken with the ZS3 and the quality was absolutely stunning. I mostly use the camera for taking live concert shots, and I've gotten some amazing ones with the TZ4. I've personally inspired about 3-4 people to purchase the Lumix based on some of the photos I've taken! So far, I'm extremely happy with this camera!

Opinion: Replaced a lost TZ5. Nice update. Like the screen, video mode, antishake, wideangle.

Opinion: Extra feature set make this a nice upgrade from my previous TZ5

Opinion: My Canon SD630 has finally checked out. Nice little point and shoot device had served me well. I picked the Panasonic Lumix ZS3 up at Costco for a very reasonable price of $259 which included an in club promo of $40 off the normal $299 price. I've had good luck with Costco and on cameras they still have a no questions 90 day return policy and double the Panasonic warranty. If you are lucky enough to find the camera you're looking for offered by them, I can't see any reason to purchase elsewhere. That being said I love this camera so far and the positive things being said about it are spot on.

Opinion: Just simply a great camera and damn the HDvideo is great.
I have an old Panasonic DVC and that I dont need any more. TZ7 has it all.

Opinion: I'm a keen Canon user from years. I needed a good camera for my wife: small, light, flexible, with effective zoom, well designed and with a HD video. My wife loves small 15-30 sec. motions - a kind of photography commentary. G11 is too big and doesn't have HD, S90 small but mediocre video so I started another brands research. Revives pointed to Panasonic TZ7 (ZS3) so I bought it. I'm nicely surprised. All expectations I wrote above is in this camera, IQ is great - astonishing because sensor is small. You can use pics without PP but with small PP some of them are really great, most of them are very good. Zoom is quite fast and well focused pics are sharp. On 16:9 HD TV via HDMI video is great with a good sound, on good monitor is even better. Value for money unbeatable to me.

Opinion: Pros:
-Well built, save the battery door.
-Usable zoom range.
-Accurate, fast focusing.
-Great HD video.

Cons:
-Horrible image quality in anything but bright sunlight with an ISO < 400.
-Poor battery life.
-AVCHD is nearly useless.

I've owned this camera for nearly half-a-year, and I no longer use it. It's nice to have such a large zoom. But the images from this camera in anything dimmer than bright sunlight look like a watercolor painting. At ISO 400, the smearing starts, and no setting can make it go away.

While I was prepared to sacrifice SOME image quality for a longer zoom, I didn't expect such a highly regarded camera to take such poor pictures. The short battery life sealed its fate to the dustbin.

Maybe I got a dud, but it seems that a few others here have had similar experiences as me. I would recommend not bothering with such a long zoom in a compact.

I've gone back to using my old reliable Fuji F31d for a P&S and purchased a GF1 for higher quality photos. I'll save the big zooms for the SLRs where they belong.