The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX500  is a 10.1-megapixel point-and-shoot camera that has plenty of features in its arsenal.  When we saw the Leica 5x zoom lens with a 25mm wide angle focal length and the large  3” touch sensitive screen, we were happy to investigate further.

As shown in Figure 1, this Lumix ships with everything you need for basic operations including the battery,  battery charger, AV cable, USB cable, strap, software CD, manual, and mini-stylus.  Good to note is that the USB connector is a MicroUSB rather than a MiniUSB. While more and more cameras are shipping with this interface, it is not yet terribly common. So be sure you don’t misplace the cables.

Like most other cameras of this type, there is no memory card included. However, you can get going by storing your first pictures on the 27 MB of built-in memory. The camera takes SD (Secure Digital), SDHC (High Speed Secure Digital), or MMC (Multi Media Card) memory cards. Panasonic recommends, and we concur, that using a newer SDHC card will give the best results. Movies cannot be recorded to the MMC cards.

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Figure 1: What’s in the box.

Measuring 2.25'' x 3.74'' x 0.90'' (57x95x23 mm) and weighing in at 0.3417 lbs (155 grams) this Lumix is not the slimmest camera on the market. Nor is it the lightest. Yet it fits easily in a shirt pocket and its weight gives it stability in your hand. It comes your choice of black or silver. The silver brushed metal model that we reviewed has a nice look, an excellent build quality, and a good solid feel. As shown in Figure 2, the front of the camera sports a small  vertical bar that is used as a hand grip. Although diminutive in size, this gives you an adequate area to position your index finger to take the picture.

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Figure 2: Front of the Lumix FX-500.