Panasonic Lumix TS7: The First Rugged Compact Camera with a Built-In EVF

Panasonic has announced the new Lumix TS7 (called the FT7 in other parts of the world), a rugged compact camera that’s designed to withstand anything you can in the great outdoors.

DPReview reports that the camera is the first rugged compact to offer a built-in electronic viewfinder (EVF) to give photographers an alternative means of framing shots — a particularly useful one when direct sunlight can make using an LCD screen difficult.

Toughness-wise, the airtight TS7 is waterproof down to 102 feet (~31m), dustproof, shockproof from drops of up to 6.6 feet (~2m), freezeproof down to 14°F (-10°C), and pressure resistant to 220lbs (~100kg).

Inside the TS7 is a 1/2.3-inch, 20.4-megapixel sensor with a native ISO range of 80-3200 and a continuous shooting speed of 10fps. For video recording, the TS7 can shoot 4K video at 30fps and 24fps in MP4 with full-time AF. A 4K PHOTO mode can also shoot 8-megapixel photos at 30fps.

On the front of the camera is a 4.6x optical zoom lens with a 35mm equivalent focal range of 28-128mm. Power O.I.S. helps cut down on hand shake for smoother video recording.

Light Speed autofocus in the camera uses a 49-point contrast-detect AF system to track moving subjects at 5 frames per second using the mechanical shutter.

Turn the camera around and you’ll find a 3-inch rear LCD monitor behind tempered glass with 1.04-million-dots under the groundbreaking 0.2-inch Live View Finder (LVF) with 1.17 million dots. Image output can be switched between the LVF and LCD with a dedicated button.

Other features and specs of the TS7 include Wi-Fi connectivity, a compass and altimeter, special effects (Creative Control with 22 filters, Creative Panorama, Timelapse, High Speed Video), Intelligent Auto (iA) mode for beginners, a built-in LED photo light, SDXC UHS-I memory card compatibility, and AC/USB charging.