Despite the new model number, changes are minimal and look to be mostly related to the camera's firmware. The 2.11 megapixel image sensor, 12x optical zoom lens, 1.5" LCD, color electronic viewfinder, pop-up flash and SD / MMC storage media are all the same as the FZ1.

The most significant change in the new model is the addition of both Aperture and Shutter-priority exposure modes, giving the photographer a greater degree of control over their photos. A new white-balance fine-tuning function allows the white balance to be manually adjusted +/- 1500 Kelvin in 300 Kelvin steps.

The new camera also replaces the intermediate 1024 x 768 pixel resolution of its predecessor with a 1280 x 960 pixel mode, and the bundled 8MB Secure Digital card has been dropped from the package altogether. (This might sound odd, but we actually think it is a better idea to let end-users buy their own memory cards - tiny bundled cards that can store only a handful of photos are pretty-much useless for most purposes, but add to the cost of the camera itself).

These handful of items appear to be the only things changed in the Lumix DMC-FZ2. Plans are for 30,000 units to ship each month at an unannounced price, with the new model going on sale in Japan from August 23rd Sample photos can be seen here, and specs / product photos follow.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ2
Lens	Leica DC Vario-Elmarit Lens 13 elements in 8 groups (4 aspherical lenses)
Camera Effective Pixels	2.0 Effective Megapixels
CCD (Image Sensor)	1/3.2", 2.11 Total Megapixel CCD, Primary Color Filter
Resolution	1600 x 1200 pixels 1280 x 960 pixels 640 x 480 pixels 320 x 240 pixels (Motion Image Recording)
Aperture (Iris)	F2.8 (wide to telephoto)
Optical Zoom	12x
Digital Zoom	3x (Single Shot) 2x Variable (Consecutive Shots)
Focus Distance	f=4.6-55.2mm (35mm equiv: 35-420mm)
Focusing Area	Normal: Wide: 11.8" (30cm) / Tele: 47.3" (120cm) - infinity Macro/Simple: Wide: 1.9" (4.9 cm) / Tele: 47.3" (120cm) - infinity
Focus	Auto Focus System, Normal/Macro (Dial), Spot AF On/Off (Spot Mode), Continuous AF On/Off
ISO Sensitivity	Auto / 50 / 100 / 200 / 400
White Balance	Auto / Daylight / Cloudy / Halogen / White Set
Exposure	Program AE, Aperture-priority AE, Shutter-priority AE
Exposure Compensation	1/3 EV Step, ± 2 EV
Auto (AE) Bracketing	1/3 EV-1 EV Step, 3 Frames
Light Metering	Intelligent Multiple / Spot (Spot Mode)
Shooting Modes	Simple, Normal (P / A / S), Picture, Macro, Portrait, Sports, Panning, Night Portrait, Moving Image
Shutter Speed	8 - 1/2,000 sec
Self Timer	10 seconds / 2 seconds
Image Quality Adjustment	Natural, Standard, Vivid
Color Effect Mode	Cool, Warm, Black & White
Image Modes	Fine / Standard
Image Formats	Still Image: JPEG (design rule for camera file system) Still Image w/ Audio: JPEG (design rule for camera file system) & QuickTime (Still Image w/ Audio) Motion Image: QuickTime (Motion Image with Audio)
Motion Image Recording with Audio	Approximately 10 frames/second @ 320 x 240 pixels (maximum recording time deponds upon memory card capacity)
Mega Burst Imaging	About 4 frames/second with full-resolution image Max. of 4 frames (Fine Mode) / 7 frames (Standard Mode)
Still Image Recording with Audio	5 seconds
Audio Dubbing	Maximum of 10 Seconds
Flash	Pop-up
Built-in Flash Mode	Auto, Auto/Red Eye Redux, Slow Synchro/Red Eye Redux, Forced On/Off
Interface for Optional External Flash	No
LCD Monitor	1.5" Diagonal Polycrystalline TFT Color LCD with 114,000 pixels & Adjustable Brightness (± 3 steps)
Viewfinder	Color EVF (Adjustable)
Built-in SD Card Slot	Yes
Memory Types	SD Memory Card (No Card Included) MultiMediaCard (No Card Included)
Microphone	Built-in
Speaker	Built-in
Interface	DC Input, A/V Output, USB
USB Port	Yes
Power Supply	Li-Ion Battery (680 mAh, 7.2V) Battery Charger/AC Adaptor (Input: 100 - 240V AC) (Included)
SD Viewer for DSC	Yes
Included Accessories	Li-Ion Battery Pack, AC Adaptor/Battery Charger, Lens Hood, Lens Cap, Lens Hood Adaptor, A/V Cable, USB Cable, Strap, Software CD-ROM
Conversion Lens Compatibility	No
Delete	Single Page Delete / Multi Page Delete / All Delete
LSI Type	Venus Engine LSI
Low Pass Filter	Yes
MEGA Optical Image Stabilizer	Yes
Multi-Task Image Processing	Yes
Model Color	Silver / Black
Dimensions (H x W x D)	2 3/4'' x 4 1/2'' x 3 1/4''
Weight	0.75 lbs
More Photos
.