The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ70 ($299.99) is a bridge-style superzoom with a long 60x zoom lens. The 16-megapixel camera covers a 20-1,200mm equivalent field of view, making it possible to capture breathtaking wide angles without giving up the ability to hone in on distant subjects. The FZ70 cuts some corners to hit its price point, but despite having a low-res EVF and rear LCD and omitting Wi-Fi, image quality is quite strong. It's a solid budget option for this class of camera, but if you can spend a bit more, the Canon PowerShot SX60 HS, our Editors' Choice for superzooms with 50x or longer ratios, is a more complete package.

Design and Features
The FZ70 ($225.00 at Amazon) is similar in size and form factor to a small SLR with a kit zoom attached, but its zoom lens covers a wider breadth than any starter SLR lens can manage. It measures 3.8 by 5.1 by 4.7 inches (HWD) and weighs about 1.3 pounds when loaded with a battery and memory card. It's not far off in size from other cameras in this class, even ones with shorter lenses like the 50x Olympus Stylus SP-100 ( at Amazon) (3.6 by 4.8 by 5.2 inches, 1.3 pounds).

The 60x lens covers a 20-1,200mm (full-frame equivalent) field of view with an aperture that starts at f/2.8 and diminishes to f/5.9 when zoomed all the way in. It's the widest angle in the class—Canon's SX60 HS comes close with a 21mm wide-angle lens—and the extra coverage at the wide angle shouldn't be discounted when shopping for a long zoom camera. The Nikon Coolpix P600 ($246.50 at Amazon) also features a 60x zoom ratio, but its 24-1,440mm zoom lens doesn't capture quite as wide of a field of view at its widest setting.

Many zooms in this class, including the SX60 HS and the P600, include a framing assist function. This is usually a button or lever that temporarily zooms out, so that you can reacquire a subject you've lost track of. A box is added to the LCD or EVF to show you what the zoomed-in view captures, and releasing the button or flipping the lever again returns the zoom to that position. The FZ70 doesn't have this, and it's a shame, as it's a function that's very useful when capturing images with such a narrow angle of view.

Controls are located on the top and rear plates. On top you'll find a mode dial, with the power switch located at its side, the zoom rocker and shutter release, and buttons to record movies, adjust the burst shooting mode, and adjust the active focus area when the FZ70 is set to its 1-Area focus mode. Other focus modes include Face Detection, Tracking, and 23 Area (which automatically selects a focus point); by default they're set via the programmable Fn2 button on the rear.

Other rear controls include a mechanical release for the pop-up flash, a button to switch between the rear display and EVF, and the programmable Fn1 button, which activates exposure and focus lock by default. There's an AF/Macro AF/MF button that adjusts the focus mode, the standard playback and delete controls, and a four-way controller with a center Menu/Set button. Its directional presses include the aforementioned Fn2 button, and dedicated buttons to adjust the ISO, white balance, and self-timer. The final rear control is a dial; it can adjust aperture, shutter speed, or exposure compensation depending on the shooting mode. You'll need to press it in to toggle its functionality. That's pretty typical for a Panasonic camera—the FZ1000 ($497.99 at Amazon) has a control dial that behaves similarly—so you'll want to take care to note which function it's set to adjust before turning it. Its function can change from how you've set it if the camera goes into sleep mode.

The FZ70 uses Panasonic's on-screen Q.Menu system for additional adjustments to shooting settings. It's only active when the camera is set to capture images (it doubles as the delete button when reviewing photos). It allows you to make quick adjustments to the picture output settings, adjust the flash output, set the video and still resolution, change the autofocus and metering modes, and adjust aperture, shutter speed, or exposure compensation. The menu runs across the top and bottom of the Live View feed, so you can still see what the lens is able to capture while making adjustments.

You can frame images via the rear LCD or eye-level EVF. The LCD is a 3-inch panel with a 460k-dot resolution. The display is adequately sharp for shooting, but it does fall a bit short when reviewing images when compared with a 922k-dot panel of similar size. Canon uses one of those on the SX60 HS, and mounts it on a vari-angle hinge so it can be viewed from above, below, or the front of the camera, just in case selfies are your thing. The SX60 HS also has a sharp (922k-dot) EVF, which is noticeably nicer to look through than the 202k-dot EVF Panasonic uses in the FZ70. The disparity isn't as large in real life as it sounds on paper, but it's easy to tell that the FZ70's EVF doesn't offer the same level of crispness as that of the Canon.

The FZ70 doesn't include Wi-Fi or a GPS. The former is integrated into just about every camera released today, and the latter is not uncommon on long zoom cameras that are likely to be utilized for travel. If transferring images on the go is a must, you can add an Eyefi Mobi ( at Amazon) memory card, but that adds to the cost of the camera. More expensive models like the weather-sealed Fujifilm FinePix S1 ($448.00 at Amazon) include built-in Wi-Fi. And when you account for the cost of the Mobi card, the price gap between the FZ70 and S1 isn't quite as vast.

Performance and Conclusions

Performance and Conclusions
The FZ70 starts up and captures an in-focus image in about 1.2 seconds, which is fast for a camera with such a long zoom lens. Its autofocus system is also quite speedy; at the wide end of its zoom range it locks and fires in just 0.1-second, and slows to just 0.4-second. Compare this with the Nikon P600, which starts in a reasonable 2 seconds and focuses in 0.2-second at wide angles, but slows to 1.7 seconds when locking focus at its maximum focal length.

See How We Test Digital Cameras

There are a few different burst shooting modes. At full resolution the FZ70 is capable of capturing photos at 9 frames per second, but with one giant caveat. Regardless of whether shooting in Raw or JPG, the FZ70 is limited to capturing three images at that speed. There's a 5fps mode with continuous autofocus that's also limited to three shots before slowing down, and a 2fps mode with continuous autofocus that manages 5 shots at that pace. Many superzooms capture quick bursts of images; the Samsung WB2200F ($599.30 at Amazon) is capable of capturing photos at 6.9fps, but it pauses after 7 shots.

I used Imatest to check the sharpness of the FZ70's lens. At its widest angle it exceeds the 1,800 lines per picture height we use to call a photo sharp, but only by 7 lines. Imatest checks an SFRPlus test chart and computes a center-weighted score that gives more importance to the center third of the frame. The FZ70 scores well in this area, but the middle third (1,591 lines) and outer third (1,429 lines) are a little soft. The lens gets better as you zoom in a bit; at the 70mm equivalent it scores 1,882 lines, with even performance across the frame. But it does suffer at longer focal lengths; at 110mm it shows 1,759 lines and at 200mm it scores 1,732 lines. Images are a little soft if viewed at full resolution, but look fine at the sizes that are frequently shared online. They're actually clearer than a competing model that scores higher on the same test, the Olympus SP-100 (2,604 lines), which processes its images in a way that washes away texture and detail.

Imatest also checks photos for noise, which can sap detail and introduce unwanted grain at higher ISO sensitivities. When shooting JPGs the FZ70 keeps noise under 1.5 percent through ISO 400, and shows just 1.6 percent at ISO 800. I took a close look at images on a calibrated NEC MultiSync PA271W( at Amazon) and was happy to see that image detail was strong, even at ISO 800. At ISO 1600 things get a little muddy, but you can still make out the individual lines in the foreign bank note that's part of our ISO test scene, but those lines have run together at the top ISO 3200 sensitivity. The Canon SX60 also controls noise through ISO 400, but its JPG output lags just behind the FZ70 in terms of detail, but you really have to look closely at side-by-side comparisons to see the difference.

The FZ70 also captures image in Raw format. I looked at its output using default develop settings in the latest version of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom. There's no in-camera noise reduction applied to Raw photos, so they capture a bit more detail. If you don't mind some grain, the FZ70 is useable through its top ISO 3200 setting. I've included pixel-level crops from our ISO test scene in the slideshow that goes along with the review so you can check the JPG and Raw detail for yourself.

The FZ70 records video in AVCHD or MP4 format at 1080i60, 1080p30, or 720p60 quality. Despite not supporting 1080p capture, the footage is crisp, but there is some evidence of rolling shutter when panning quickly. The lens can zoom and the camera can refocus while recording footage, but the sound of the lens moving in and out is audible on the audio track. When zoomed all the way in, handheld footage is surprisingly smooth, but a wobbly effect caused by the image stabilization system gives the footage a wobbly look. Static subjects seem to shake just a bit, but the dramatic handshake you'd expect from a lens that zooms to 1,200mm is absent. The sound of the stabilization system working is also audible on the soundtrack, and the FZ70 doesn't have a microphone jack, so you'll have to live with the in-camera mic.

Other ports include a proprietary USB connection and mini HDMI. The FZ70 supports standard SD, SDHC, and SDXC memory cards. A dedicated wall charger is included, which is a plus for any camera likely to be used when travelling—if you add a second battery, you can charge one without having to stop shooting, which isn't an option with cameras that require you to charge the battery in-camera.

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ70 has one of the longest zoom lenses you'll find in a camera anywhere, and doesn't skimp on the wide-angle coverage with 20mm equivalent when zoomed all the way out. Despite images that are a little bit soft, its high ISO image quality and autofocus speed are very good, and slightly better than our Editors' Choice Canon PowerShot SX60 HS. But the FZ70 isn't the total package like the SX60; the Panasonic lacks Wi-Fi, has a low-res EVF and rear LCD, and skips out on the framing assist function that is quite useful when trying to keep track of a moving subject at maximum zoom. If you don't mind missing out on some features, the FZ70 is a very capable long zoom camera, especially at its price point. If you can't justify the $550 asking price that Canon has attached to the SX60 HS, but want a camera with a few more bells and whistles than the FZ70 offers, the Fujifilm FinePix S1 is a strong alternative thanks to speedy focus and a weather-sealed design, but that 50x shooter is still a bit steep thanks to a $500 MSRP.

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