Size
Weight
IS
Lens quality
Range of exposure modes
28mm equivalent
16:9 format
Raw file

Noise at ISOs above 100
Not quite shirt pocket size
16:9 is not true panoramic
Battery life not outstanding (but spare ones are cheap)

I purchased this for two reasons: one, I wanted a portable carry-anywhere camera; and two, I liked the idea of a panoramic format but could not face going back to film!

Overall I am quite pleased with this camera, I use RAW and Aperture-Priority or manual exposure most of the time. RAW files are processed with Pixmantec Rawshooter Premium 2006.

Noise is an issue at ISO's above 100, but IS means outdoors most of the time it's left on 80 anyway. Noise Ninja (or Neat Image) seems quite effective anyway (a Noise Ninja noise profile specific for this camera is available).

16:9 format, weight, size, IS and 28mm lens make this a good camera on a long mountain hike. I took a picture of my friend silhouetted standing on a rock outcrop, with the rising sun behind, used manual to get the exposre I wanted. Ran this through Neat Image and printed at 20"x8" - looks great, even if I do say so myself! No flare, no visible noise.

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Fuji S7000

-sharp 28mm wide angle lense, 112mm zoom. -very fast shutter response. -3 fps burst -excellent colors. -smooth, easy to use manual controls. -small, light weight. -quality build. -RAW -understated design. -great image quality.

-no hotshoe, no auxilary flash potential. (would've given it a 5 star rating if it had a hotshoe)

i purchased this little camera with the intent of shooting mountain biking. so, a quality compact, manual, responsive camera with a wide angle lense was required. A DSLR was ruled out because of cost, size, weight and the burdan of such a camera would restrict the frequency of use. The S-80 was a candidate, but the larger, sharper leica lense and 16:9 aspect ratio made the LX-1 more desireable. when the black LX-1 arrived, i was suprised at how small the body was, yet how large the glass was. with a metal body and a metal lense surround, the build quality is really impressive. the camera is light, but you can feel the majority of weight is in the lense, a good sign. right away i was loving the 28mm wide angle lense, so sharp! and the shutter response is awesome, both of which were lacking from my old POS P&S. manual controls are easy and smooth, with quick access to shutter speed, aperture, white balance, ISO, and image quality. two switches on the lense barrel control aspect ratio and focus settings (auto, macro, manual). the LX-1 really encourages creative control. for mountain biking, i am stoked on the speed of this thing. shutter lag is negligible (it's fast), and the 3 fps burst is dslr like. the colors recorded by this camera are vivid, but not artificial. the images are really sharp and do not feel processed. my only reservation when buying, was all the fuss about noise. i was expecting the worst. at ISO 400, it's noisy, but no worse than any other small sensor compact camera. at ISO 80 and 100, the images look fantastic, noise is not a factor. noise kicks in at iso 200. i've concluded that what noise exists, is because of low processing. in other cameras, you can see murky affects of noise reduction. the RAW capable LX-1 leaves noise processing up to the user. with such a sharp image, there's room to process. but, really, i am so satisfied with the images, that i feel no need to process noise at all. if i really need the sensativity of iso 400, i'll just shoot in b&w and embrase the grainy look. my only complaint about the LX-1 is no external flash potential. the flash on the camera works allright, but no hotshoe is really restricting my night options. overall though, i am totally satisfied with my purchase of the LX-1. it's a great photo tool that is condusive to creative expression, completely capable of producing a high quality image.

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canon S-60

Size. So many features packed into this pocketable gem - Leica lens, anti-shake, 28-112 zoom, 3 different shooting formats, plus the camera will shoot RAW.

Noise.

There are a lot of reviews out there that pan this camera, but for what it is, it is fantastic. Yes, noise might be a problem for some, but with a little work - shoot RAW and use Noise Ninja, it is not an issue. One thing I like about Panasonics, is their files look very film-like and colors are quite natural.

Customer Service

Not had to use.

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Panasonic DMC LC1, Canon Powershot Pro 1, Canon 20D