Panasonic Lumix ZS20 14.1 MP High Sensitivity MOS Digital Camera with 20x Optical Zoom (Black) (OLD MODEL)

Okay, I like the Panasonic's Zs cameras. They're easy to get the hang of and I've had no reliability issues. I started with a Panasonic Zs3. Later on I upgraded to a Zs7, then when I saw Amazon was selling a Zs9 which was the same as the Zs8 but with a stereo microphone and the price wasn't much over $100 (from Amazon Warehouse), I couldn't resist buying it for its 16x zoom. It's been a great camera. I love my Zs9 with it's long zoom despite it not having GPS (which I didn't care about) or HDMI out, and with a lower LCD screen resolution than the Zs7. I thought the screen clarity was fine and didn't miss the 460,000 dots on the Zs7. Well, I couldn't resist this newer upgraded Zs. The Zs20 is my 4th Panasonic Lumix Zs camera (all of them purchased from Amazon), and I can say without reservation that this is the best of them all. I love the fast burst shooting made possible by the CMOS sensor. The 16x zoom on the Zs8/9 is really great. I've taken some fantastic close-up shots with it. Now I have a 20x zoom. Amazing. It's operates when shooting video too. Canon's G series, by comparison, has a larger 1:1.7 sensor compared to the Zs20 1:2.33. But, the zoom is very limited on the Canon and the camera is too big to carry around in your pocket - and it cost twice as much (and the older unavailable G9 model is better than the later ones I hear.) Their competitor for this Panasonic is their 20x zoom model SX260SH with a similar 1:2.33 CMOS sensor. Professional reviewers are rating the Zs20 higher than the comparable Canon, which is slightly larger, heavier, and costs more. Everyone raves about Panasonic's Leica lenses, with good reason. The Zs20 is just an amazing camera for the price. It's even slightly smaller than the Zs 7,8/9/10 and easy to carry in your pocket in a thin stretch case. Like the Zs7 (which never cost less than about $250.00) it has the 460,000 dot bright LCD screen, HDMI out, and GPS. It also has more features than the Zs7 or 8/9/10. Don't expect the price to get much lower. As I recall, the Zs10 (the real predecessor of the Zs20) price came down to about the Zs20 price today, or maybe at the very end, a few dollars less, but I wouldn't wait. Panasonic may refuse to lower the price any further. It's already so heavily discounted, and there is a limit to how low they'll go. If you want the absolute best deal, get a "used" one from Amazon Warehouse. It's hardly, if at all "used," and most likely brand new but returned for some reason and re-packaged. You have 30 days to send it back if there is anything wrong with it. You don't get the one year warranty however, so if that's important to you, but a new one. It's definitely worth the price. I already had an extra battery but you can buy a non-proprietary battery very inexpensively that lasts even longer than the battery that comes with the camera. I also had a wall charger (two - from my Zs7 and Zs9)), so I didn't have to buy that. I'd say that's the only thing Panasonic let down on. It's worth getting a wall charger, but it should come with the camera. This is the first time it doesn't. Don't let it deter you.

I had the Lumix ZS1 I think it was called before this one. The reason I don't totally remember the name is because I gave it to my sister after buy this camera and she loves it. It was a great camera and still had a lot of life in it but I just wanted more. I can take over 100 pictures a day, I have been known to take over 3000 during a special event. I live up in the mountains by a lake, with deer and all kinds of wild life and a lake I can see from my deck. My camera needs to be small to be carried in my purse and/or pockets. I need it to work on the spot and have the best zoom ever. Well saying all that, my Lumix ZS20 does all that, the zoom is outrageous for such a small camera. I took a picture of the moon like it was at arm link and we all know how far the moon is away from us. I could see ever crater on it. I placed that picture on Facebook and no one could believe I took it with a pocket camera. This camera takes picture like a high power, expensive camera. The GPS is nice too, but I think it helps eat up the battery. I did not like the battery that came with this camera or the charger so I bought me a 2 battery charger deal at a cheap price out here in Amazon and it works great and I bought a 16gb card. I have not missed a sunrise/set or deer picture yet. And it take great grandbaby pics too. It is a very easy camera to use and has professional settings for all you who like to set your own cameras to work how you want them to work. Great buy. Great camera.

I never take the time to write reviews on any items,but i thought this might help someone with their decision making. First let me start by saying that I'm one of the pickiest person when it comes to buying a camera. Over the years I had few favorites and when they broke down I dreaded the process of looking for another great camera. I hate reading GREAT REVIEWS, buying the product, taking it for a ride in different environment only to discover that the camera works great in some instances but not in others (i.e. sometimes a camera it's great in day light but lacks during night scenes, or it's great when you use the zoom a little bit but not so great when you zoom all the way out, or it's fast in day light and slower at night, etc., etc.). I bought and returned so many cameras I lost count. After my everyday point-and-shoot camera broke down few months ago I thought I'll never find a great camera, but I did, actually I found 3 and one is a WINNER! I bought many cameras, my recent purchases were: this camera ( Panasonic dmc-zs20),PANASONIC DMX-ZS25, and PANASONIC DMC-ZS19. I have to say that all 3 cameras are outstanding,and I had a hard time deciding which one to keep. I was so set to keep ZS25 for many reasons: although it's similar to zs19 the thing I love about ZS25 were the on/off button (it's push and not slide)& the review button (it's push and not slide, which is annoying on zs19/zs20). If you don't care for those two items than all 3 cameras seem to be the same. The major difference between the them is: 1. zs20 has a GPS while the zs19 doesn't (which I don't care for anyway, since it just kills the battery) 2. zs19 has a semi-touch screen and zs20 doesn't ( this is a pretty handy addition when reviewing pictures in a hurry, unfortunately you can't delete pictures with a touch which would've been great). The touch screen can be used when you want to take pictures by just touching the screen and focusing on certain things. 3. during recording with zs19 you can take 12 pictures, while with zs20 you can take only 1! AND THIS WAS THE DEAL BREAKER FOR ME WHEN IT CAME TO THE ZS20 AND THE MAIN REASON WHY I HAD TO PICK THE ZS19 AS A WINNER. EVEN THOUGH YOU CAN STOP AND SAVE A STILL PICTURE FROM A VIDEO, IT'S STILL NICE TO HAVE THE OPTION TO CHOSE EXACTLY WHEN YOU WANT TO TAKE A PICTURE DURING RECORDING! I love everything about both cameras, the quality it's the same, the LCD it's a bit more colorful on the zs20 (only when viewing, the pictures LOOK nicer on the zs20 but the quality it's exactly the same when viewed on a computer), the pictures are great in any situation even at night and in low light ( which it's the problem with most cameras). WHAT IMPRESSED ME THE MOST ON BOTH OF THESE CAMERAS IS HOW FAST THEY ARE (IN LOW LIGHT TOO) AND A HUGE PLUS FOR BOTH IS THE BUST MODE WITH FLASH (ON ALL SETTINGS EXCEPT FOR iAUTO) WHICH ALLOWS YOU TO TAKE A SERIES OF RAPID FIRE PICTURES WITH FLASH FULLY WORKING! Like I said I tried many cameras ( different models, brands, prices, etc.) and all the cameras that I tried that have a BURST mode option don't have BURST WITH FLASH (which in good light is not a problem but when you do need a flash...and most of the times indoors you need a flash...the pictures taken with BURST MODE WITHOUT A FLASH WILL LOOK LIKE CRAP). I was really impressed with both cameras so far but few days ago I went on a field trip with my son and the zs19 won me over (I'm sure zs20 would've been the same). The pictures I took with the zoom fully extended were UNBELIEVEABLE!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN EVERYDAY :) SO FAR I TOOK PICTURES INSIDE, OUTSIDE, RAIN, SNOW, COLD, SUNNY, BIRTHDAYS WHERE KIDS MOVE CONSTANTLY, SOCCER GAME WHERE THERE IS A LOT OF ACTION, ETC. AND I LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT. ONE THING I NOTICED THAT THIS CAMERA DOESN'T HAVE AND I WISH IT DID IS A SNOW/BEACH SETTING WHICH I FOUND VERY HANDY ON MY OTHER CAMERAS. ONE MORE THING IT'S GREAT ON THOSE TWO CAMERAS IT'S THE PANORAMA SETTING,ON SOME CAMERAS YOU HAVE TO TAKE ONE PICTURE AND FOR THE NEXT ONE YOU'LL HAVE TO ALIGN THE PREVIOUS PICTURE ON THE SCREEN IN ORDER TO MATCH THE NEXT ONE, ON THE PANASONIC ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS KEEP THE SHUTTER PRESS AND MOVE YOUR BODY 360 degrees,it's super cool even my kids were very impressed :) So, overall both cameras are outstanding but for me the fact that I have the choice to take more than one picture while recording made me decide to keep the zs19. If the zs20 would've had this option I would've loved to keep it because I liked the two buttons better (on/off and review) and the LCD was a bit more vivid. One more plus with the zs19 was the touch screen. I think it all depends on what you're top requirements are. I hope I helped someone by writeing this review. Good luck.

I debated a couple of months about replacing my 18 month old ZS19 with the ZS 20. Specifically, I needed to replace the ZS19 because I damaged it when it bumped a table because I had it on the strap on my wrist. The bump caused a lens error that would have cost about $180 to have Panasonic repair look at it and possibly more than that. The ZS20 came up on sale for less than the repair cost, so what to do? I really really liked the ZS19 - GREAT zoom acuity, plenty of features for the wanna-be photog who likes to take more than vacation shots but doesn't want to be bothered with the bigger camera and the changeable lenses (downside - no viewfinder, which took a while to get used to, and which I would love to have - maybe when the costs come down). So, I went back and forth, back and forth, looking at tons of options. Do I chance getting the same camera (difference is the ZS has GPS, which doesn't matter to me) getting damaged easily, or do I go for more sophistication? Do I spend more money on something I don't really need just because I fear damage. Decided to stay with the ZS family, and I'm not sorry, yet. Same great photos, great zoom, small size - stick it in a pocket or purse, BUT DON"T CARRY IT ON A WRIST. I DID purchase the additional warranty for less than $40 for 2 extra years. After my experience with the ZS19, it seems well worth it. Hopefully it will not be necessary to use it. I would definitely recommend this camera to anyone wanting a good camera without the costs of additional lenses.

I'll leave image quality review to others and just say it's not as nice as reviews led me to believe. You won't want to view them on your monitor at 1:1. Luckily there's enough resolution, you probably won't have to. The amount of zoom is great! That is certainly the best thing I can say about the camera. The GPS is essentially useless. In the past, I've carried a hand-held GPS and geotagged my photos later. I absolutely will still have to keep doing this. If the camera's GPS manages to get a fix (and that's a big "if"), it doesn't update very often at all (maybe every four minutes at best but probably a whole lot longer). I spent an hour walking in a wide open parking lot and it never updated once after the initial fix. According to it, all the photos were taken in one spot. In the woods? I hiked for around four hours, mostly on top of a mountain ridge with normal tree coverage. The camera NEVER got a single GPS fix. It can get one if you sit it on the dashboard of your car. At least it can if you're in an open location. Also, if you want the GPS to be able to lock with any speed, you have to hook up to the internet once a month so it can update it's "assist" data. The first two days I tried, Panasonic's servers apparently were down. On the third day it was successful. Before the assist update, it couldn't get a fix while inside my house. Afterwards, it could but keep in mind the assist data is only good for a month. So, be prepared to do it on a regular basis. Note the manual warns that the servers may be shut down some day in the future. So, count on it taking a few minutes to get the first fix unless you've updated the assist data. As I mentioned previously, the GPS doesn't update it's coordinates in real time. It looks like it tries about every four minutes at best, but often a lot longer. Even then, it may not be successful. You can force an update but be prepared to wait 30 seconds or so before taking your photo. I'm sure the limited updating is to save battery power but it would be nice if Panasonic gave us a setting so we could tell it how often to update. Hey Panasonic, if it's a power issue then just don't have it update until somebody takes a photo. Then update and tag. Don't use coordinates that are an hour out of date! I'd rather have no tags than ones that are incredibly wrong and misleading! I am also very suspicious that it doesn't quite understand daylight savings time. This morning, it updated the coordinates. I drove fifteen minutes. When I looked at the status, it said it hadn't updated for an hour and 15 minutes! I saw it do the same thing yesterday. It updated at 1:00 but a short time later it said it hadn't updated since noon. Yes, you can view maps on the screen. North America will take up 2GB of your SD card. No, you can't just upload a state or two. Don't count on using the maps like a car GPS unit. It doesn't update your location in real time. Maybe a few minutes later. Maybe a few hours later. Also, it shows little street detail until you zoom in quite a ways. Unless Panasonic gives us an update, I'll probably just delete the map data. It's pretty useless. So, if you're interested in this camera for the GPS, look elsewhere. It's not at all like the GPS in your car or the one you take hiking. As for the touch screen. I'll say it's at least as worthless as the GPS. It seems to ignore touches when it shouldn't, but will notice touches that are unintended. Trying to shot one-handed? There's a good chance you'll touch the screen and send it into some mode where the shutter won't fire. If I could turn off the touch screen, I definitely would. The screen looks nice in shade or low light. In sun, though, it's nearly unusable. There's no optical viewfinder, so you have to rely on the screen. No external charger? What?! That's just silly and cheap of Panasonic. At least you can shop around Amazon and find one cheap (along with much cheaper batteries that work just fine). You shouldn't have to buy it separate, but you can. The ability to pan while shooting a panorama is cool, but has limitations and aggravations. You won't be shooting at high resolution! Also, you'll probably have to try multiple times before you get the shot. Even then, you'll probably find it cut off the end. A full 360 degree panorama? It can be done, but don't count on it happening on the first attempt. Practice spinning in a circle in eight seconds. Too fast and it'll give up. Too slow and you won't make it back to the beginning. Personally, I wish it had the older type mode where you splice images together on your computer. With that old mode, you get much higher resolution. Think you can do that with this camera? If you're in auto-exposure mode, they'll all have different aperture and shutter settings. Plus, you won't get on-screen overlays to see where to start the next shot. And what the heck is that little rubber flap on the bottom on the battery cover? The manual gives no explanation. Opening it up just gives a tiny view of the end of the battery. Is that it's sole purpose? Just to be able to see if there's a battery in the camera? Most people will probably never even take the battery out anyway since you have to charge it inside the camera (unless you buy a bootleg charger). Overall, I'm pretty disappointed. The giant zoom is very nice and the only reason I'm keeping the camera. Panasonic could improve some of the problems with an update, but companies seem to abandon their products pretty quickly these days. If they make a non-GPS and/or non-touchscreen version, definitely go that route. UPDATE: Two years later and my complaints are still the same, but I have raised my rating from two to three stars. I do like the camera and it's the one I grab when I don't want to lug around my DSLR. The GPS and touch screen are still disappointments but the zoom is incredibly handy. If it had never been sold with GPS and touch (and at a lower price), I'd give it five stars. Paying for those two useless/annoying features takes away some stars, though. Today, it looks like the camera has dropped nearly half in price, so I'd rate it four stars if bought today. I just really wish I could disable the touch screen!

Update after about a year: For a pocket camera, this is more than I had expected. I didn't even bother bringing my larger Canon DSLR with us on vacation. This camera took great videos and photos. I'd still buy it again. Old Review: I did quite a bit of research via amazon, newegg and other websites as well as visiting local retail stores. What I found was that virtually all of the cameras had at least some negative reviews, usually related to a user getting a lemon. It would appear that quality control is a bit of a problem for all of the major brands. That being said, I wanted a camera that was small enough to easily fit into a pocket, a better than average zoom, could shoot panoramic shots, intuitive user interface and had better than average HD video. This camera has not disappointed me in any way. It has actually exceeded my expectations. One of the reasons I purchased this camera is because of its GPS capabilities. I must digress for a moment here. I bought this as a present for my wife. She had the patience to figure out how to use the GPS function. I was amazed that once she had it set up, the location, including the special attraction we were at, scrolled across the bottom of the photo. Awesome!!!! There is one function for taking photos through glass which has been very useful when taking photos through the windshield of the car while moving. It virtually removed all reflections. The quality of the photos ( crispness and color) is excellent. I was really surprised by the quality of the HD video that was taken inside in low light. Although not perfect, it was definitely acceptable, considering the lighting level. The sound quality was also acceptable, especially when considering that the primary function of the camera is still photos. For the money, I think it is a great camera loaded with some unique features that many other cameras don't have.

This camera takes good pictures but there are more issues other than that. When I try to switch from camera to the view the picture there is a 1-2 minute wait. then when I want to go back to picture taking mode another 2 minute wait. I miss a lot that way.That is to long to wait for it to switch. The GPS is very hard to get calabrated, hard to findsatelites. The date stamping is very slow. I was in Israel and took around 50 pictures one day, I wanted to date stamp them so I set it up to do that. Date stamping takes a long time for that many pictures, so I just got it started and went to bed leftit plugged in to the outlet so so all night it worked and by morning it was still not finished and I had o turn it off because I needed the camera for that day. I lost about 50% of my pictures. After that as I resumed the use of the camera the problem started with it locking and as described earlier it was very slow in switching from picture to camera mode. I sent it back to MC Allen Tx for repair it was under warranty and they told me nothing was wrong with it. it came back to me and I continued the use of it and it got worse. I decided to just pay for the repair if they would fix it. I sent it back to them, they wante dmy CC and told me it would cost 178.00 to fix. I agreed to do it. 2 weeks later I called and they, they told me that still there is nothing wrong with it but they would have to charge me to inspect it. I paid 250.00 for the camera and they after two tried they are charging me to look at again and tell me that there is nothing wrong with it. I will have to buy another camera but it will not be a Panasonic. I will say it takes superb pictures and vedio. They told me that they might not charge me the total of 178.00 I will wait and see. I am totaly disgusted at Panasonic. more problems I forgot is sometimes it will not switch off I have to take the batteries out to get it to go off.

So let's get the low-light thing out of the way... I owned two of the early models of Lumix and was a big fan. Big enough such that I only gave other brands a cursory glance when looking for another new camera. The low-light problem has, however, been a problem with these models for a long time. It can be somewhat mitigated with the flash and exposure time, but low-light pictures can still be frustrating. While I was already a fan of the camera despite this one issue, this weekend solidified me as a customer for life. Less than 24 hours after receiving the camera from Amazon I was on a rooftop bar in Asheville, NC taking wonderful photos of the mountains in the distance. When the people in front of us moved from their table next to the edge, we moved over to get a better view. A decision which next lead to me knocking the camera off the side of the balcony. Five stories up. I watched the camera twist and fall and finally, with a *thunk* land LCD side down on the roof of the building next door and then slide 30 feet and smash against the side of that roof. I was sure the camera was gone, but I went down to check on it anyway. To my complete surprise and delight the only noticeable damage was some very minor scratching on the LCD screen itself. Even more shocking was that the camera still turned on. And took pictures. And video. And the flash works. Amazing. The form-factor on this camera is wonderful. The zoom is fantastic. The LCD screen is bright and clear, and I'm a fan of the quick-switch b/t taking pictures and viewing. (definitely a complaint I had with my first model) But, really, if you're looking for a camera that just won't quit, this is it. Not that I suggest you try drinking on a rooftop and kicking your camera over the side... but if you do, I won't be surprised to hear that it survived.