The Panasonic Lumix DMC FX550 is a 12 megapixel digital camera with a wide angle, 5x optical zoom lens. If you decrease the amount of megapixels you are shooting at more zoom becomes available. For example if you shoot at 5 megapixels you can use up to 7.8x zoom. 4x digital zoom is available too

The focal length of the lens is equivalent to 25-125mm in 35mm format.

• Image stabilisation
• Self timer 2 or 10 seconds
• Key features controlled through touch screen
• Still Image Rec. with Audio 5 sec
• Audio Dubbing Max. 10sec
• Colour Effect Mode Black & White, Sepia, Cool, Warm
• Picture Adjustment: Contrast, Sharpness, Saturation, Noise Reduction
• Special resolution for widescreen television playback
• Special resolution for 6 x 4 inch prints
• Color Bracketing: Standard, Black & White, Sepia (3 images)
• Sensor size: 1/2.33 inches
• Digital Red Eye Correction
• Macro focusing: 5cm
• Face Detection focusing

The LCD monitor is 3 inches in size. The screen is made up of around 230,000 dots.

The flash modes are: Auto, Red-eye Reduction, On, Slow Sync./Red-eye Reduction and Off.

The maximum flash range is 6m. This falls to 2.8m when the zoom lens is fully extended.

There are a number of preset scene modes. These are: Portrait, Soft Skin, Transform, Self-Portrait, Scenery, Panorama Assist, Sports, Night Portrait,, Night Scenery, Food, Party, Candle Light, Baby1, Baby2, Pet, Sunset, High sensitivity,, Hi-Speed Burst (Image Priority, Speed Priority), Flash Burst, Starry Sky, Fireworks, Beach, Snow, Aerial photo, Pinhole and Film Grain.

You can shoot High Definition movies with a widescreen resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels. The top recording speed is 30 frames per second. Sound can be recorded and zoom can be applied before shooting starts.

Among the more advanced features are:

• ISO: Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 High Sensitivity (ISO 1600-6400)
• Manual exposure mode
• Aperture Priority
• Shutter Priority
• Metering: Intelligent Multiple, Center Weighted, Spot
• Auto (AE) Bracketing +/- 1/3 EV ~1EV step, 3 frames
• Backlight Compensation
• Exposure Compensation 1/3 EV step, +/-2 EV
• Unlimited consecutive shooting at around 1.8 frames per second
• Aperture: F2.8 - F8.0 Tele: F5.9 - F8
• Shutter Speed 60 - 1/2000 seconds
• White Balance: Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Halogen, White Set, Color Temperature, White Balance Adjustment (2-axis adjustable, ±9steps each, Blue/Amber and Magenta/Green bias), (Selectable at Portrait, Soft Skin, Transform, Self-Portrait, Sports, Baby, Pet, High Sensitivity, Highspeed Burst, Pinhole, Panorama Assist mode)

All the necessary cables and software are supplied to attach the Panasonic DMC FX550 to a computer, television set and compatible printer.

Description:	12 megapixels and a 5x optical zoom
Ease of Use:	9
Features:	9
Colour:	8
Macro:	8
Indoors:	8
Value for Money:	8
Style:	8
Movie Mode:	9
Image Quality:	8
Build Quality:	8
Total:	83
Verdict:	This is a feature packed smaller compact. It offers a manual exposure mode, High Definition movies, touch control for key features through the 3 inch LCD screen and a wide angle lens. Picture quality is very good and it is a well thought out camera.
Review Date:	May 2009
Related Pages:	Panasonic DMC FX550 Specification Panasonic DMC FX550 Sample Images Panasonic DMC FX550 Features
Comparisons:	Canon IXUS 990 IS vs Panasonic Lumix DMC FX550

	GBP 199.90
	GBP 208.99
	GBP 219.00
	GBP 229.13
	GBP 264.99
Click a flag for prices from other countries:

Camera	Rating
Panasonic DMC ZX1	83
Panasonic DMC FX550	83
Nikon Coolpix S630	81
Fuji Finepix F200exr	81
Olympus MJU 7000	81
Olympus MJU 7010	80
Olympus MJU 5000	80
Sony DSC W270	77

Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information on this site, please make sure you double check the feature set and specification at the point of purchase.

Panasonic DMC FX550