The DMC TZ101 was introduced by Panasonic in January 2016. It belongs to the Superzooms category.

Panasonic is well-known and shouldn't require further introduction, please see our manufacturer's page for more digital cameras by Panasonic.

The DMC TZ101 features a CMOS sensor in 1" size that has an area of approximately 13 x 9 mm² (0.52" x 0.35").

This infographic compares the DMC TZ101's sensor to other common formats:

(The 1-Euro coin used for scale has a diameter of 23.25mm, slightly smaller than a US quarter.)

The DMC TZ101's image sensor has an effective resolution of around 20 megapixel. The resolution is above average and will be sufficient for the foreseeable future. Photos with this resolution can easily be printed in A2 size or larger, even if unwanted parts of the photo have to be cropped.

The Panasonic supports taking images in RAW. RAW images are stored as they come from the sensor, without any in-camera processing or sharpening. Converting to JPEG or other formats takes place on the computer, using software like Adobe Lightroom or Panasonic's RAW converter. This involves one extra processing step but almost always results in superior image quality. Some filters, like converting to monochrome (black and white) will only yield decent results when used with RAW images.

The DMC TZ101 has a built-in lens that can not be changed.

The Panasonic's focal length goes from 25mm to 250mm, a zoom range of 10x. The aperture varies from F2.8 at the short or wide-angle end, to F5.9.

The DMC TZ101 uses an electronic viewfinder with a resolution of 1.16 megapixel, an above average value for a viewfinder like this.

The infographic illustrates the viewfinder magnification of the DMC TZ101. The black area represents a magnification of 1x, corresponding to natural size. The red frame indicates the largest viewfinder magnification in any digital camera on the market today (0.85x).

Tip: If the viewfinder image of the DMC TZ101 is fuzzy, us the little wheel next to the viewfinder to adjust the sharpness.

The DMC TZ101's shutter speeds range from 1/2000s to 60s.

The highest shutter speed of the Panasonic is just 1/2000s. That's no longer state of the art and may cause problems in challenging light conditions.

The DMC TZ101's sensitivity goes from 80 ISO und 25600 ISO, a very useful and practical range.

The DMC TZ101 supports all common metering modes.

The Panasonic will also allow spot metering, a must for challenging motives.

The DMC TZ101's auto focus processor uses 49 AF points (or sensors). A basic rule of thumb says that the more AF points you have, the better. More AF points mean a better chance to have a point at the location of interest in a scene, a big plus in challenging situations (e.g. in low light).

Manual focus is also possible with the Panasonic, a plus in tricky situations or for some creative freedom.

The DMC TZ101 features a built-in flash with a range of up to 6m (19 ft.). That range will work for most situations.

A hotshoe is missing from the Panasonic.

The DMC TZ101 features a monitor with a diagonal of 75.00mm (3.0 in.) and a resolution of c. 1.04 megapixel. That's about average.

Unfortunately, the DMC TZ101's monitor is not articulated. That can make it tricky to frame your subject in some situations, e.g. when taking selfies.

The DMC TZ101's monitor can work as a touch screen, just like a smartphone. That can be very useful, for example to pick AF points, but keep in mind that touch screens usually don't work when wearing gloves.

Display characteristics at a glance:

When recording videos with the DMC TZ101, the highest supported resolution is 3840 x 2160 pixel, in other words 4K Video.

A connector for an external microphone is missing from the Panasonic. A built-in mike will usually record everything in front and to the sides of the camera which is not always what the film maker wants. Internal microphones also tend to record camera sounds like focus beeps.

Videos with the Panasonic DMC TZ101 at a glance:

The DMC TZ101 has Wifi connectivity already built-in. Use Wifi to transfer images to a smartphone or computer and to remote control the camera.

The Panasonic connects to your PC over USB 2.0.

The Panasonic's connectivity at a glance:

What memory cards can be used with the Panasonic DMC TZ101?

The camera will accept all common SD HC and SD XC cards.

With an average image size of 8 megabytes (JPEG, fine) a 32 GByte memory card would hold up to 4000 images.

Supported memory cards at a glance:

Let's have a look at some other features of the Panasonic DMC TZ101:

The DMC TZ101 doesn't have a built-in GPS receiver. If you want to add coordinates to your photos, you'll have to do so in 3rd party software like Adobe Lightroom. However, with Wifi built-in, location data can also be added via a connected smartphone.

The DMC TZ101 features a built-in stabilizer. With a 10x zoom a must-have.

A nice addition is the Panasonic's electronic level. The camera displays an indicator on the monitor that makes it super-easy to level the camera horizontally, very useful when doing architectural photography.

The camera has a built-in function to facilitate creating panoramas: While panning the Panasonic over the scene, the camera takes a sequence of images which are then automatically assembled to form a panorama.

The camera can create HDRs automatically. That saves you from manually creating sequences of images with variying exposure values.

The DMC TZ101 is not environmentally sealed against dust and moisture; keep that in mind in the rain and on the beach.

The Panasonic's features in a handy table:

The Panasonic DMC TZ101 works with a BLG10E LiIon battery. The battery lifetime is a generous 320 shots. Usually enough for a full day or more.

The battery can be charged over USB while in camera. Very useful, especially on vacation when most people bring a USB charger for their smartphone anyway.

The DMC TZ101's battery at a glance:

The Panasonic DMC TZ101's dimensions are 111 x 65 x 44mm³. (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.7"). This includes the lens. The camera's weight is a reasonable 310 grams (10.0 oz.), lens included.

Front and top view of the DMC TZ101 with dimensions:

To put the size of the camera in context, here it is next to a typical ID card (c. 86mm x 55mm, about the size of a credit card).

The DMC TZ101 is not much bigger: