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Have you noticed that 12 megapixels is the new 10 megapixels? The latest digital compact to reach this new magic number, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX100, is also the first 12MP compact with a zoom that goes as wide as 28mm equivalent—which, to the wide-angle shooters at Pop, is a more significant number than sheer megapixel mass.

The Leica DC 28–100mm equivalent f/2.8–5.6 has Panasonic’s Mega Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), which we’ve found in our tests to be very effective at reducing shaky blur. The FX100 bears a strong resemblance to the current 7.2MP FX50 (a camera we like a lot) and in fact uses the same lens, although the LCD on the new camera goes down a notch to 2.5-inch, rather that the 3-incher of the FX50.

You can shoot at ISO 3200 at full resolution, and, with a bump down in resolution to 2.5MP, to ISO 6400. (We expect noisy images at those settings.) And yes, it has wide screen (16:9 format) capture, for both video and stills. No price announced as of yet. Look for the camera in July.
—Dan Richards