The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5 was announced in January 2008, exactly one year after its predecessor, the enormously successful Lumix DMC-TZ3. The earlier TZ3 was arguably the perfect travel camera, a pocketable compact which managed to squeeze in nothing less than a 10x optical zoom lens complete with image stabilisation and a generous 3in screen.
It was one of our favourite compacts of 2007, with pride of place in our Best Buys section and a justified best-seller. The new Lumix TZ5 doesn’t mess too much with a winning formula. It keeps the same 10x stabilised zoom with its useful 28-280mm equivalent coverage, but in a move which will delight many photographers, has reinstated the ability to optically zoom the lens while filming videos.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5 / TZ15 review Cameralabs introduction