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Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX36

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It is a growing trend for compact cameras to sport ultra wide-angle lens, and the FX36's closest competitor would be the upcoming NV24HD from Samsung which has a 24mm lens. Both models are also capable of capturing 720p HD-quality video, and the usual fare of face detection, scene selector, etc.

The 4x optical zoom lens is 25mm at its widest, which gives approximately twice as much view compared to conventional digital cameras (at 35mm wide). The 25mm lens, possibly the widest lens we've seen in a compact Lumix, proved handy when we were taking group shots and landscapes.
If you need to zoom further, you can activate the Extra Optical Zoom. This function takes the reading off the center portion of the CCD sensor to magnify the image, increasing the zoom to 7.1x. However, this extra zoom is achieved at the expense of a lower image resolution (3 megapixels and below).

The consecutive burst shooting mode is great for capturing kids and sports as the camera continues to snap for as long as you hold down the shutter button. However, the camera will take the exposure for only the first shot and apply it to subsequent images. So it's something to take note of if the lighting condition tends to change.

The FX36 comes with the new Digital Red-eye Correction which automatically removes unsightly red-eye effects from portraits after the picture is taken. Although this is not a new feature for digital cameras, it worked fine when we tested it.

The FX36 boasts an Intelligent LCD which will adjust the brightness of the screen according to its surroundings. A quick test proved that this feature worked well. Under glaring sunlight, we could still view the LCD display. There is also a High Angle LCD mode which will increase the brightness of the LCD to the maximum for optimized viewing even when the camera is held at an angle above eye level.

The FX36 has 50MB of internal memory, which is probably good for about 12 to 15 shots in the highest-resolution capture quality. Memory expansion comes in the form of SD, MMC and the higher-capacity SDHC flash media.

 
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