Buy the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ1K 5MP Compact Digital Camera

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ1K 5MP Compact Digital Camera can be taken underwater while scuba diving with the Panasonic DMW-MCTZ1E Underwater Housing. It has a 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom which features a refractive prism lens unit that allows zooming to occur horizontally within the camera. This camera is known by some as the World’s Smallest* 10x Optical Zoom Digital Camera and has built-in image stabilisation. * 5-megapixel CCD captures enough detail for photo-quality 13 x 17-inch prints * 2.5-inch high-angle LCD display with Power LCD function; 10x image-stabilized optical zoom * High-sensitivity mode (up to ISO 1600) reduces motion blur; Unlimited Consecutive Shooting at 3 frames per second * The Venus Engine III reduces release time lag to as little as 0.006 seconds * Powered by Lithium-ion battery pack (included); stores images on SD memory cards

Pentax Optio WP Review have some great feedback from both scuba divers and surfers..

Great underwater shots by Henry Johnson – 05/11/2005, 09:38 PM
Opinion: Took this camera with me to the reef, and went diving for 2 days with it. Had no problems even though I went down to 30m! Took some greats stills and video with audio!

Love this camera by George Francis – 13/10/2005, 04:06 PM
Opinion: I took this camera scuba diving, and dived to over 15 metres with no problems. I know it says it should only go down to 1.5 metres, but it seriously worked perfectly. I had it underwater with me for close to 8 hours a day for a week, and it still works perfectly. It can really take a pounding!

A SURFERS DREAM! by Redax – 15/07/2005, 03:31 PM
Opinion: For all you surfers out there: Get it! This is the one you’ve always wished you had. And Yes, it CAN take a pounding!
This camera takes great shots and the rapid mode is great for those hard-to-catch-tube-shots.
Check out www.kallsupen.com for samples in the near future.

Great waterproof function by James Henry – 05/07/2005, 10:39 AM
Opinion: This camera took great shots both in and out of water. It was a great camera to take to the snow and not have to worry about having any snow on it.

GlobeandMail.com review the Panasonic Lumix DMC TZ1 They say it’s not the world’s smallest camera…

In building its Lumix DMC-TZ1 (5 megapixels, $315), Panasonic eliminated that compromise with an ingenious design. Even at its full 10X zoom, the lens extends only about half an inch. It’s amplifying the effect of the additional zooming inside the camera.

You can really use all that zooming because Panasonic’s image stabilization is spectacular. If you really want a blurry zoomed-in shot, sit on a mechanical bull.

There are some downsides to the TZ1; it has no aperture and shutter-speed controls, the detached lens cap is a pain, there’s no eyepiece viewfinder and zooming is slow. But you can zoom while filming (as on the Canon), for example, and the photos look great.

THE BLUETOOTH CAM: Even the Panasonic isn’t the world’s smallest 10X camera; that honor goes to the handsome black slab called the Kodak EasyShare V610 ($400). This camera packs two internal zoom lenses: one that zooms up to 3X, another that takes you from there to 10X.

Unfortunately, the handoff between lenses isn’t seamless when you’re zooming in or out. Each time you hit the 3X point, zooming stops. You have to press the zoom button a second time to force a switch to the other lens. Moreover, the lenses’ ranges don’t quite overlap; there’s a small jump between their ranges.

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