I’m a huge fan of Panasonic’s previous underwater camera which was the Lumix DMC-TS10 but it’s 10 feet maximum depth just won’t cut it for me even though if it takes good photos aboveground and underwater. Well we just saw their Lumix DMC-TS3 (FT3 in Europe) which was announced earlier this year. It’s now built for extremely rugged conditions while keeping its tough but compact frame.
The new Panasonic DMC-TS3 is waterproof all the way down to 12 m. or roughly about 39 ft. Shock proof to about 6.6 ft which is makes it a bit more unbreakable than the TS10 (5 ft). It’s still freeze proof and dust proof and looking at the way it’s constructed, you would know that it’s made for some heavy duty activities.
This camera is also loaded with features which travelers especially mountaineers would love. It has GPS that provides geographical names of more than 1 million locations worldwide and is equipped with functions that display shooting direction, altitude and barometric pressure. Yep, it has a built-in compass, altimeter and barometer. Another feature that you probably won’t use is the 3D photo mode (well not unless you have a 3D display).
The DMC-TS3 can also do full HD 1080p video recording and its LED flash can be used as illumination for capturing videos in dark places like deep underwater. Nice! Its Power OIS (Optical Image Stabilization) can also be used in Active Mode so it also works when you’re recording videos. Something that the TS10 can’t do.
Although the TS3 can only do 12.1 megapixel count compared to the TS1’s 14.1, Panasonic used a Leica lens on this one with a wider angle at 28mm. The TS10 is only 35mm at its widest angle. Optical zoom was also bumped slightly from 4x to 4.6x.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3 is available in Silver, Orange, Red and Blue and will retail for Php26,990. Yeah, the price you pay for a camera suitable to a rugged lifestyle. I hope they would release something without those fancy GPS and barometer stuff.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3 Specs:
- 28mm Wide-angle 4.6x Optical Zoom
- LEICA DC Lens with Folded Optics Technology
- 2.7-inch, 230,000-dot LCD
- 12.1-megapixel High-resolution CCD
- Venus Engine FHD
- Shockproof, Waterproof, Freezeproof and Dustproof Protections
- Altimeter / Depth Indicator / Compass / Barometer / GPS
- 1920 x 1080 Full HD Movie in AVCHD Format
- POWER O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) ““ Shake Detection
- Intelligent ISO Control ““ Motion Detection
- Face Detection AF/AE with Face Recognition
- 3D Photo Mode
- Sonic Speed AF
- Built-in Memory 20MB
- Approx. 310 Shots on a Single Battery Charge
- Colors: Silver, Orange, Red and Blue
- SRP: Php26,990
