Well if leave the FZ40/FZ35 home more often than you would the ZS7, comparative quality will be irrelevant. ;) Keep in mind that the ZS7 and FZ35 have the same sensor and thus extremely similar IQ. The primary differences come in the reach (18x vs 12x), the stronger flash (FZ cams), etc.

I think walking around campus, you will be unlikely to pull the FZ35/40 out of your backpack, but if you think otherwise, then go for it. :)

Rightly said!Thanks very much for your cooperation. I have now made my mind on the ZS7 :D Thanks to you and all dedicated members of this forum

oh sorry bear me once again. I had come across SD4000. How does it compares with ZS7. are sd4000 and SD4500 same except zoom in terms of IQ?

Well the SD4000 doesn't quite fit in with the group. The SD4000 has a brighter lens than the other 2 and it does make a noticeable difference in low light. You lose the zoom of course. Now comparing the ZS7 to the SD4500, I find the ZS7 to be the better camera overall - better focus (faster, better in low light, less problems w/ losing focus in video), better build quality, better lens, sharper images ... However, I am a big fan of Canon color - more accurate, very vivid, etc. Also, Canon's sensors tend to be less noisy than Panasonic's which becomes a noticeable issue at higher ISOs.

So the first decision is whether you want to give up the zoom for a bit of an improvement in low light. :)

Is that pinch cap,,standard or did you add that??

I dont wanna loose zoom but want little more powerful flash :(

If I could add my two cents worth...I bought a ZS7 back in January. I had it for about a week before I returned it. Outdoor pictures in the sun were very good. Indoor pictures and outdoor pictures on a cloudy day were not good at all. My 6 year old canon p & s took better all-around pictures, in my opinion. I ended up buying a dslr in order to get the best of all worlds. I think that the ZS7 would be the perfect camera for someone who was going to use it primarily outside...and by "primarily" I mean 99% of the time. The zoom was very nice to have, and if you're taking landscape and travel photos, I think this camera would suit you perfectly.

Standard.

SX130 comes to mind. Slightly bigger but much better flash.

The same can be said for all of these pinhead sensor cameras. It's difficult to explain sensor size, pixel density, aperture, etc. to every single person who posts in the forum though. Based on your surprise that your old Canon was better in low light, I'm guessing you weren't aware of the importance of these things in low light either. Look at the differences in sensor size and pixel density on the old cameras vs the current models and it becomes apparent that the old models will fare much better in low light.

The ZS7 should be set to a max ISO of 400 imho. Some of the pinhead sensor Canons can go to ISO 800 and still be usable for small prints. It's not like any of this is news. People want that amazing perfect camera that fits in their pocket and it simply does not and cannot exist. You have to sacrifice somewhere. There's no arguing DSLR quality but how many casual shooters really want to haul one around?

When I had my ZS7, I did set the max ISO to 400. It was still lousy indoors...even with flash. I don't think you can have a good, small, pocketable camera with a large zoom that will perform adequately indoors. Admittedly, I do not have a lot of experience with a variety of cameras. However, from what I've read and from the limited experience I do have, I think you either get a large zoom OR you get decent indoor image quality. I've borrowed a friend's canon sx120, and it did the job pretty well. Still, it wasn't great, by any means. I think that, if I was looking for a p & s camera, I would get a canon s95. I would sacrifice the zoom in order to get good indoor image quality.

With the flash, I find the ZS7 to be quite adequate indoors - with the flash. The flash only covers about 10 feet but that is plenty for me. However, I don't particularly like using flash and outdoors, you can't use a flash like that. In other words, I agree on that point; a chocie must be made between the long zoom and low light ability. I actually own the S95 also and it has become my primary camera, as I shoot outdoors a lot more than I shoot indoors, and I am often still out when dusk hits. :)