I have the FZ8 and if the FZ18 is as good but with the extra zoom length then Panasonic are onto another winner. I find the images are excellent from the FZ8 with noise no worse than from other similar bridge type cameras.

What I don't understand from your test however, is that you can rate the FZ18 at 90%, when in your view it falls down on image quality. Surely that is the purpose of a camera. To record and produce images. No matter how impressive the rest of the camera may be, if they are not up to scratch then how can you mark it so highly?