Secaucus, N.J. – Looking to get better attention in the U.S. for
its advances in digital photography,
will use the upcoming PMA Show to announce a $30 million national advertising
and promotional push behind its 2010 Lumix digicams that will feature an expanded
assortment of compact point-and-shoot models.
The company has also elected to put the Panasonic brand back on
the front of its 2010 models to give them stronger pull with U.S. consumers,
who are less familiar with the Lumix sub-brand on its own than consumers in
other parts of the world.
Panasonic’s broadened digital camera lineup will include price
ranges spanning the gamut from mass-merchant audiences to photo specialty
clientele, said Dave Briganti, Panasonic digital cameras senior product
manager.
“The co-branding on the front of the cameras and our advertising
campaign will be huge for us,” Briganti said. “The product has always been
there, we just need to start educating the consumer about the technology.”
Four of the step-up compact models in the 2010 line will include
Panasonic’s new Intelligent Resolution and Intelligent Zoom technologies, which
work hand-in-hand to digitally expand the optical zoom range of the camera
while providing an image noise cleanup system to remove digital artifacts and
render clear, sharp zoom shots taken at longer extensions.
The camera’s processor will automatically detect areas of
deterioration in the image created by the digital zoom and correct just the noisy
areas of the image, such as blurring in fine areas or jagged lines in areas of
edge contrast.
The effect in the new advanced ZS series of point-and-shoot
models, for example, is to give a 12x optical zoom an effective extension to 16x,
while keeping images sharp and clear.
In ZR-series models, an 8x optical zoom lens is boosted to 10x,
and in a new Tough Camera, a 4.6x optical zoom is boosted to a 6x effective
zoom range using the new technologies.
When placed in Panasonic’s Intelligent Auto (iA) mode, all
cameras carrying the feature will automatically shift into Intelligent Zoom and
Intelligent Resolution modes. The system can either be switched off or on in
any other mode.
Intelligent Resolution will also function in scenes that don’t
require zooming to provide greater noise reduction in difficult areas, such as low-light
settings.
The new flagship, high-zoom compact DMC-ZS7, which replaces the DMC-ZS3,
offers the same cosmetic design as last year’s model, but steps up the optical
zoom range to a Leica 12x optical zoom lens/16x extension in Intelligent Zoom
and Intelligent Resolution modes.
Also included is 12.1-megapixel resolution; a 3-inch,
460,000-pixel LCD viewscreen; 720p/30 fps HD video recording using the AVCHD
Lite codec; Dolby stereo mic; HDMI output; and a full suite of intelligent auto
modes, including face detection for focus priority and image sorting, and AF
tracking. It also adds a 2x improvement in optical image stabilization using a
newly named Power OIS system.
A new Sonic Speed AF system in the camera reduces auto focusing
time to 0.3 seconds, putting it in a class with many digital SLRs.
The DMC-ZS7 will also add GPS technology to add image location tagging,
in addition to automatically inserting the correct date and time in the
picture’s XF data. When combined with Google Maps, the feature will present a
map showing everywhere a group of images was taken. All DMC-ZS models will have
manual over ride control. The DMC-ZS7 also will be offered in a choice of
silver, black, red or blue.
The DMC-ZS5 will replace the DMC-ZS1 and offers the same basic
feature set as the DMC-ZS7, omitting the GPS function, the AVCHD Lite codec
(substituting Motion JPEG for 720p HD recording), and substituting a 2.7-inch
LCD screen for the 3-inch screen on the DMC-ZS7. It will be offered in black or
silver.
The DMC-ZR3 will replace the DMC-ZR1 and will include a compact
body design, a Leica 8x optical zoom lens (starting at 25mm) with 10x extension
using Intelligent Zoom and Intelligent Resolution, full suite of iA features,
Power OIS, 14.1-megapixel resolution, and AVCHD Lite for 720p HD video capture.
It will be offered in blue, red, black and silver.
In the Tough Camera lineup the DMC-TS2, which will ship in mid
March, will replace the TS1 offering a new ruggedly designed entry level
long-zoom compact camera. Other features include 14.1-megapixel resolution,
Leica 4x optical zoom with up an extension to 6x (starting at 28mm) in
Intelligent Zoom and Intelligent Resolution mode, Power OIS, full suite of iA
features, 2.7-inch LCD viewscreen, and AVCHD Lite 720p video capture.
The TS2 is
waterproof to 33 feet (10m), shockproof to 6.6 feet (2m), freeze-proof to 14°
F (-10° C) and dustproof.
Panasonic said pricing on the ZS7, ZS5, ZR3 and TS2 will be
announced 30 days prior to shipping in mid March.
In standard retractable lens compacts, Panasonic will offer
starting in mid-February the Lumix DMC-FH1 ($159), FH3
($179) and the previously announced FH20 ($199).
All have slim, pocket-size bodies
with long zoom ranges starting at 28mms. All record 720p HD video and feature a suite of automatic settings in iA mode.
As previously announced, this year Panasonic will also introduce
the new FP series of cameras, presenting the brand with its first leader series
of “stylishly designed” compact models.
All FP models will feature super-slim designs, and folded optics.
The Lumix FP1 ($149.95) and the Lumix FP3 ($229.95) have 4x optical zoom lenses,
and a new lens cover that also serves as the camera’s power switch. The FP3
features 14MP resolution, a 3-inch touchscreen LCD and 720p Motion JPEG HD
video recording. It will also include Sonic Speed AF, optical image
stabilization and iA mode with a full suite of automatic settings.
The FP1 will have many of the same features except but will
substitute a 2.7-inch non-touchscreen LCD, 12MP resolution and will have a
slight cosmetic difference on the faceplate.
Also shipping in mid-February
will be the Lumix F-series models – F3 ($130) and F2 ($110) leader models. The F3 will
record HD video and is equipped with a 28mm wide-angle zoom lenses and an extra
optical zoom function to extend the zoom power from 4x to 7.8x.
Both models also feature Intelligent ISO Control, which prevents
the blurring of a moving subject; Face Detection, which helps to clearly
capture registered faces; and Intelligent Scene Selector, which automatically
selects one of six scene modes that best fits the shooting situation.
