Panasonic has announced a brand new ‘travel zoom’ pocket-friendly, compact camera, the LUMIX DC-TZ90, which includes some killer Lumix features such as 4K Photo. The new camera is billed as an ideal travel companion and also includes a 30x optical zoom, [which is equivalent to 35mm camera: 24-720mm], and a new tilting screen

Contrary to popular belief, there are manufacturers out there still making compact cameras.

Those that are, and Panasonic are one, seem to have been quietly raising the bar; packing in incredible technology into tiny bodies and bringing stunning photo capabilities to a broad customer base. A customer that would have had to have reached beyond compacts, into the realms of DSLR and CSC cameras as recently as a handful of years ago.

The new LUMIX DC-TZ90 from Panasonic is a real case in point. The feature list is impressive, with an ultra-wide-angle 24mm lens extending to 720mm at the telephoto end. A LEICA DC VARIO-ELMAR lens, no less, and passes Leica’s stringent standards resulting in crisp clarity and minimum distortion and flare.

An all-new 20.3MP High Sensitivity MOS sensor boosts the camera’s resolution from the TZ90’s predecessor, the TZ80, [which weighed in at a mere 18.1-megapixels]. Combined with a powerful Venus processing engine, the camera promises to perform in a wide range of shooting scenarios, even low light.

4K Photo function

Panasonic’s 4K Photo function is included with the TZ90. With a dedicated button, you can access the various 4K PHOTO modes, shooting at 30fps, extracting stills at 8MP resolution, [that’s large enough to print at up to A3].

Super-fast autofocus & touchscreen

The autofocus [AF] in the new TZ90 incorporates Panasonic’s DFD [Depth From Defocus] technology and boasts an impressive 0.1 second AF speed. For those who are concerned with manual focusing, there’s help on board, including Focus Peaking and MF assist.

Panasonic has considered the all-important selfie too, which are now easier to capture, thanks to the 3 inch, 1,040k-dot touch-sensitive screen which now tilts to face forwards. Just flip the monitor around and the camera will enter into self-shot mode automatically. Another new ‘selfie’ feature is the Panorama-Selfie mode, putting you in the centre of a sweeping landscape.

Advanced features

Advanced users will be pleased to know that there’s an impressive range of manual and enthusiast-level controls, offering the ability to adjust settings to match your preferred way of shooting. This, along with a range of manual and semi-automatic modes [PASM], and the ability to shoot in RAW format. The control ring which sits around the TZ90’s lens adjusts camera the settings such as aperture, while the control dial on the rear of the camera is also on hand to change other settings.

Video mode

There’s a range of video tech on-hand within the TZ90 too – high-res QFHD 4K videos in 3840 x 2160 at frame rates up to 30p. This, along with tilt-correction and 5-axis image stabilisation and the ability to shoot high-speed videos at 120 fps/100 fps in full HD for a slow-mo effect.

Pricing and availability:

The Lumix DC-TZ90 will be available from June [RRP £399]. The Lumix DC-TZ93 kit will be available exclusively at John Lewis and will include a case and spare battery [RRP £499].