Smarter Than I Am

As a ditigal photo beginner, the Panasonic LX5's artifical intelligence is smarter than I am. So, maybe, one day, I will know enough to use the manual and raw to create works of art. However, my photography is more for informational content than works of art, so manual and raw are there just so if I ever get around to it.

My buying decision was to purchase a camera with a high probability of a good photos by "point and shoot" in potentially low light situations at short range.

The LX5 had very good reviews with sophisticated analysis of technical data and sample photos and comparisions to other cameras. My likelihood of being able to take the photo is much higher because I will have this compact camera with me. My experience with the bulky and heavy film SLR and gear is that I was always wishing that I had the camera with me.

The Panasonic OEM battery is expensive ($50) and required for full functionality.

Very Nice Camera

I would probably rate this as excellent after I have had it a little longer, but from what I have seen so far this camera delivers very nice jpg. and video images. I selected it as a blend between simple point and shoot and full DSLR (which is what I owned prior to buying this camera) I am very satisfied with my choice as quality of images seems very good and the customization thats available to get closer to a full DSLR is there, including the ability to shoot RAW images which was important to me for post processing controls....I would definitely recommend this to a friend.

Great camera for a P&S

First of all my dealing with the seller was excellent. The camera came as it was advertised. No problem there. I am using this camera as a smaller and lighter alternative to my DSLR and it is excellent for that purpose. The picture quality is very good for a P&S. It shoots raw files, which is what I need. I still have not had a chance to read the manual yet. But there seems to be many advanced features. So overall this is a very good camera.

Best package for the money - I think

Well, I upgraded my Leica D-lux 3 with this one. First I wanted Leica D-lux 5, but since it's almost double in price I got this Panasonic(equivalent).
It is better than D-lux 3 by features and all technncal part.
Though there is something good about owning a Leica. I guess it's the name and German quality.

If you want compact and excellent quality, there's no better camera.

This is an absolutely fantastic camera in all ways. Compact, lightweight, but with an embarrassingly broad range of features and capabilities. It takes excellent photos, the camera controls and software are easy to use, and the battery lasts so long it's downright supernatural. If you care about the quality of your pictures and the control you need to take them, but you want a camera you can take everywhere and not notice its weight, this is your camera.

The only gripes I have are that the audio pickup for shooting movies isn't great quality, and I always forget to put the macro mode switch back to normal auto-focus. But those are minor compared to this excellent camera.