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"EXCELLENT CAMERA"
on by gman76Pros Long zoom, light, fast, easy menus
Cons LCD could be bigger, not much else
Summary I wanted to get a 10 or 12x zoom, fast shooting for sports shooting, good price, 4Mp or higher, and one that doesn't go thru batteries. Takes great pictures, burst mode is fast, AF is pretty quick, has HDTV 1080p still capture. This camera can be had for well under 300 bucks (sept '05) and yes, you could go to the FZ5 but I didn't find the extra 75 bills was worth it. The Canon S1/S2 were in the running but the FZ cams are smaller and easier to handle. The Sony H1 is too big. I like the menus better on the Panasonic, Canon menus are OK but not as intuitive. The FZ4 can zoom like crazy and the anti-shake works great. And there are enough manual controls to satisfy most users. I tested it in low light, not bad, my Oly 2040 was a bit better, but that had a f1.8 lens. No 300 dollar cam has such a fast lens anymore. For all you other cnet reviewers, a small memory card is NOT a "con". Get real! Anyway, the FZ4 won't disappoint. Oh and the proprietary battery is a LiIon which is better than NiMH. And for you engineering types out there, the camera generally pulls about 250mA - so the battery lasts a good long time. Overall this digicam is awesome.
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"This camera is a BIG disappointment"
on by rheeismPros Zooms in right it just can't take clear pictures
Cons The colors are not crisp at all. It also has purple outlining which kills any good pictures.
Summary I bought this to take my daughter's pictures but it is really poor in quality. Yes, it zooms in but it can't get the clear pictures not matter what you use. POOR POOR POOR>
I wish I can returned it. I have seen lower quality cameras under $150 take clear and more crisper pictures. -
"Pass on this one - lens wont retract"
on by ricanzPros OK Pics, alkaline batteries are OK
Cons bulky, doesn't work
Summary Similar to another user's report, this camera worked OK, but all of the sudden the lens won't retract. You can hear the motor trying to retract it, but it won't work. Don't waste your money - there are a lot better deals out there.
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"Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ4S = USE AND THROW"
on by DMC200Pros Good Camaera, Good Price, Good Picture Quality., Easy to Use
Cons Very Bad Customer Services
Summary My camera stopped working (Lenc will not retract after about 4 months). IL was the closest service center on Panasonics website. Boy there customer service sucks big time, its like talking to your enemy. Even though my camera was under warranty I had to pay $115 for labor and its been more than a month and I have still not got my camera back. My 2 cents opinion Panasonic is a good use and throw camera once you have a problem you will be better off buying another new one.
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"A Best Buy"
on by honest edPros anti-shake, great tele lens
Cons wrong shape for pocketing
Summary The Panasonic FZ digitals invented the 12X lens for non-SLRs. The FZ4 is by far the best buy of the FZ series. It tops the FZ3 in handling and in performance and, at the same time, it is close to the FZ5 in most parameters. Panasonic put out as a loss leader, I suspect, and did not promote it at all, concentrating on the FZ5 and their P&S models. This meant the savvy shopper could get a camera at about a third less than the FZ5 that would do everything except record sound when shooting movies and had a 1.5" LCD compared to a 1.8". In return, however, it got a burst program that is faster (4 frames/sec vs 3 and 10 frames max vs 7 for the FZ5). The FZ4 is a delight to use; it is ready just a couple of seconds after being turned on and has as a brief shutter lag as can be found. I use mine mainly for nature shots around the pond my home is by and for shooting sports events and casual gettogethers. It is not a studio camera nor does it pretend to be. It is, however the best allround digital I have found, as long as you don't want 9"X12" prints. It will disappear from the marketplace in the near future so get yours now. You won't regret it.
Updated
The FX4 was put on the market to fill a gap between the FX3 and the FX5. The FX5 was heavily marketed in the 5 megapixel group and the FX4 became more or less a loss leader, not advertised and dropped within a year. It was Panasonic's best buy digital camera this decade but
Panasonic never realized what a bargain it was and let it die on the vine. The FZ4 did everything the FZ5 did except record sound when in movie mode; also it has a 1.8 inch LCD rather than the FZ5's 2 inch. The biggest difference was that the FZ4 packed 4 megapixels as compared to the FZ5's 5 megapixels. However, they both use the same ccd, which gives the 5 a slightly sharper picture but in return the 4 has less noise and much less color fringing. In everything else the two are just about impossible to tell apart, pgysically and photographically. When I bought my FZ4, almost a year ago, it sold for about a third less than the FZ5. I've used a lot and I'm still very pleased with. It is a great snap shooter and nature camera (I shoot a lot of pics of the birds around a pond next to my home, ducks, geese, hawks and one blue heron) and an excellent camera for photographing sporting events, which is important because I live within 25 miles of NC Stae, UNC, Duke, the Durham Bulls, the Mudcats and the World Champion Carolina Hurricanes, so the 420mm lens and image stabilization get quit a workout. No complaints, just praise and enjoyment of a small $240 digital camera.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ4S user reviews
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Results 1-5 of 6
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Quick Specifications
- Digital camera type Full body
- Resolution 4.0 megapixels / 4.0 megapixels (interpolated)
- Optical zoom 12.0 x
- Lens 35 - 420mm F/2.8
- Optical sensor size 1/2.5"
- Optical sensor type CCD
- Image stabilizer Optical
