Panasonic Lumix LX100 Review – Performance

Panasonic Lumix LX100 controls

One of the hallmarks of Panasonic’s Lumix range is the impressive AF speed, and on the whole the LX100 continues this proud tradition.

Focusing is accurate, with focus tracking particularly impressive. It’s also noticeably fast and silent, spending little or no time at all latching on to a subject.

Although there’s no touch screen on hand to aid focus point selection, the d-pad is more than adequate enough to facilitate this process.

One of the highlights of the camera’s specification is its 4K video capture, and avid video makers will be glad to hear that the video quality is excellent with an exceptional level of detail captured.

While the LX100 does offer full HD capture, to get the best video image quality its sensible to shoot at 4K video and then downsample to 1920 x 1080. The 4K Photo mode, however, works exceptionally well and is a welcome addition.

Panasonic Lumix LX100 product shot 2

As the LX100 is a speedy operator in terms of AF performance, the same is true in general operation. The only time it lingers at all is on start-up, and this is a situation not aided by a slightly awkward positioning of the camera’s power button.

On the whole the impressive lens generally performs well. There is evidence of a little softness towards the edges of the frame, although this is somewhat unsurprising when you consider the compact proportions of the optic. This can be countered by stopping down a step or two when sharpness is particularly important.

The combination of fast lens and excellent image stabilisation means that its possible to either shoot handheld at a slow shutter speed or at a low ISO sensitivity, opening up possibilities for excellent image quality that other compacts might miss out on.