Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS20 compact camera

Sample shots
Click for full-size images

The Food mode is supposed to eliminate the ambient light... we prefer the Food mode switched off (left)

The 4x zoom gets closer to the action, but the wide setting offers the equivalent of a 30mm focal length on a 35mm camera

The DMC-FX20 produces pictures that look good even when printed at A4 size

You can also use the high speed burst from the Scene Mode menu and shoot 2MB images at 6f/s with an upper limit of 100 images - assuming you’ve got enough space on your memory card. We tried this feature at the side of a dual carriageway, with cars tearing past us at around 60mph, and were very impressed with the results.

The Food mode, however, was disappointing and made our lamb roast look very unappetising indeed. The macro setting lets you shoot up to 5cm from an object and was superb. We weren’t sure about one or two other features, such as the pet mode, which simply lets you add text to the image of your favourite animal. However, there are also some useful in-camera editing functions, including the ability to crop or trim images.

Verdict

Overall, we liked the DMC-FS20 very much. It lacks some of the glitz of other models in a similar price range and it doesn’t offer a great deal when it comes to manual control. But then again, this is exactly what many digital camera owners are looking for. The next time you’re in the market for a digital camera, may we respectively suggest that, in addition to considering the usual suspects, you check out this Panasonic offering as well.