Previous Story Can’t wait to get a Nikon D600? You could have one in your hands tomorrow.
Back To News
Next Story Stop wasting light! Leica V-LUX 4 megazoom has constant f/2.8 aperture

Leica D-LUX 6 announced: It’s all about the aperture

camera d-lux d-lux 6 leica lx7 panasonic

by

posted Thursday, September 20, 2012 at 12:48 AM EST


 
 

Earlier this year, we previewed the Panasonic LX7, one of a number of products vying for the title of top pocket digital camera. Although we've yet to complete a full review we're rather optimistic about its prospects. Our initial testing suggested a fairly significant step forward from the earlier LX5 model, and a reasonably strong showing even when compared to cameras with larger sensors.

That's good news for Leica fans, because the LX7 forms the foundation of the German manufacturer's own Leica D-LUX 6, which itself follows in the footsteps of the LX5-based D-LUX 5. Given that the Panasonic and Leica cameras correspond so closely, it suggests there will have been a similar step forward between the D-LUX 5 and D-LUX 6, offering Leicaphiles better images in a pocket-friendly package.

 
The Leica D-LUX 6 offers a bright f/1.4-2.3 zoom lens with 3.8x range.

For those of you familiar with the LX7, there are several differences in its new Leica sibling. Many of these are cosmetic, but Leica bundles Adobe's Photoshop Lightroom 4 software, and likely tweaks image processing to provide the look it believes its customers prefer.

Leica will ship the D-LUX 6 in the US market from November 2012. Pricing hadn't been disclosed at press time. Want to know more about Leica's latest pocket digicam? Read our Leica D-LUX 6 preview!

Leica D-LUX 6
General
Camera Type Compact
Manufacturer North America: D-LUX 6
Dimensions 4.4 x 2.6 x 1.8 in.
(111 x 67 x 47 mm)
Weight 10.4 oz (296 g)
Planned Availability November 2012
Image Capture
Sensor Type CMOS
1/1.7" (approx. 0.59 in. diagonal)
12.70 megapixels (total)
10.10 megapixels (effective)
Filter Type RGBG
Aspect Ratio 4:3
Image Dimensions 3648 x 2736 (10.0 megapixels)
3072 x 2304 (7.1 megapixels)
2560 x 1920 (4.9 megapixels)
2048 x 1536 (3.1 megapixels)
1600 x 1200 (1.9 megapixels)
640 x 480 (0.3 megapixels)
3776 x 2520 (9.5 megapixels)
3168 x 2112 (6.7 megapixels)
2656 x 1768 (4.7 megapixels)
2112 x 1408 (3.0 megapixels)
2048 x 1360 (2.8 megapixels)
640 x 424 (0.3 megapixels)
3968 x 2232 (8.9 megapixels)
3328 x 1872 (6.2 megapixels)
2784 x 1568 (4.4 megapixels)
2208 x 1248 (2.8 megapixels)
Image Quality 2 levels
Image Preview / Review
LCD 3.0 in. diagonal, 920,000 dots
Lens
Image Stabilization Yes
Focal Length 4.7 - 17.7mm (actual)
24 - 90mm (35mm equivalent)
Aperture Range f/1.4 (wide) / f/2.3 (tele) - f/8 using multistage diaphragm with 3 step ND filter
Focusing System Contrast Detect: Face / AF Tracking / Multi (23pt) / 1pt (flexible / scalable)
Has AF assist lamp
Manual focus possible
Focusing Range Normal: 20" - infinity (50 cm - infinity)
Macro: 0.4" - 4,082" (1 cm - 10,000 cm)
Exposure
ISO Sensitivity Auto, iISO, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800* (* by pixel mixed readout), 1/3 EV steps
Shutter Speed 250 - 1/4000 second
Exposure Modes Program, Aperture, Shutter, Manual
Metering Modes Intelligent Multiple, Center-Weighted, Spot
Exposure Compensation +/- 3.0EV in 1/3EV increments
White Balance Image Sensor - Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Flash, Incandescent, Color Temperature (2-axis adjustable), White Set 1, White Set 2
Internal Flash Modes: Auto, Auto/Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Slow Sync./Red-eye Reduction, Forced Off, Flash Synchro; 1st/2nd Slow Sync
Range: 0.8 - 8.5m (Wide/ISO Auto), 0.3 - 5.2m (Tele/ISO Auto)
Flash Exposure Compensation +/- EV
Creative
Scene Modes Scene: Portrait, Soft Skin, Scenery, Panorama shot, Sports, Night Portrait, Night Scenery, Handheld Night Shot, HDR, Food, Baby1, Baby2, Pet, Sunset, Glass Through, 3D Photo; Creative Control: Expressive, Retro, High Key, Low Key, Sepia, Dynamic Monochrome, Impressive Art, High Dynamic, Cross Process, Toy Effect, Miniature Effect, Soft Focus, Star Filter, One Point Color, Radial Defocus, Smooth Defocus
Digital Zoom Standard up to 4x, Intelligent Zoom up to 2x
Self Timer Yes, 2, 10, 3 in 10 seconds
Movie Format AVCHD or MP4, with stereo sound with audio
Movie Resolution / Frame Rate 1920x1080 @ 60p/60i/30p, 1280x720 @ 60p/30p, 640x480 @ 30p, 1280x720 @ 120p
Storage
Recording Medium SD/MMC including SDHC, SDXC, Built-in
File System Complies with Design Rule for Camera File System (DCF)
File Format RAW, RAW+JPEG, JPEG (EXIF 2.3), MPO
Connectivity
Other DC Input, Mini HDMI
Power
Battery Type 3.6V 1250mAh Lithium Ion rechargeable
Battery Form Factor Proprietary
Product Bundle
Software Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4
Battery / Charger 1 x Proprietary Lithium-ion rechargeable battery and charger
Flash Memory 70.0MB Internal
Other
Digital Print Order Format (DPOF) compliant Yes
PictBridge Compliant Yes
Internal Microphone Yes
Internal Speaker Yes
Tripod Mount Yes
Remote Control No
Waterproof No
Notes Leica-branded Panasonic LX7.
 
Previous Story Can’t wait to get a Nikon D600? You could have one in your hands tomorrow.
Back To News
Next Story Stop wasting light! Leica V-LUX 4 megazoom has constant f/2.8 aperture