I took the Panasonic Lumix LX-1 to Europe last year and loved it. But it was too big for my front pocket and I wanted to downsize to a consumer-grade point ‘n shoot. So I bought the FX-01 and loved it even more. Since then I’ve recommended it to several people (Chris, Jeff, Marc, Graham, Sarah) and they all love it. It’s small, fast, high-quality, and easy to use. The two big reasons it’s great is that 1) it has a 28mm lens, very wide for a cheap camera, and it’s good for indoor group shots of people as well as outdoor scenic shots; and 2) it has optical image stabilization, so you can often turn off the flash indoors for more natural photos. Currently $229 at Amazon.
In getting the links, it turns out that the LX-1 is now the LX-2, and the FX-01 is now the FX-07 or the FX-30. The 28mm lens is the must-have feature. Everything else is gravy.
February 8, 2007