I have just purchased the Orange DMC TS4. It is a vast improvement over the TS3 in many respects. I appreciate the full manual mode in particular. I like to take shots of the night sky, the stars in particular... the option to set the shutter speed up to 60 seconds is amazing.

The time lapse is also a marked bonus as well. I am a bit worried leaving the camera in one spot for so long as it may be stolen, but so far I have made some amazing short films.

The overall picture quality seems to have improved as well.

The only MAJOR PROBLEM is that the manufacturer suggests that the watertight seals be replaced to maintain the water-proof integrity of the camera. They have not established what I consider a reasonable pricing structure for this maintenance procedure. To replace the seal you need to unscrew two screws on the door and replace the seal. Yet the service department for Panasonic now charges $180 plus shipping costs (both ways) to do this... Read more

I just got this camera and after setting it up which was very easy i am impressed with the video and picture quality, as far as the previous review about water safety warnings, when i turn my camera off and on total time for the display to show up is 3 seconds and with NO water safety warnings, i dont know why the previous reader keeps getting the warning. i have not tried the camera in underwater setting yet and thats why i am giving it a 4 star, but will be using it in Tahiti next month and will leave a follow up comment. Nice job panasonic for now.

4/22/2012, this is followup for those who have doubts about this camera, after using it for 2 days in Moorea Tahiti, i could not be happier, it has done a great job on pictures and videos, the camera comes on within 1 second and ready for use, i have used it under water down to 12 meters (40 feet) not one leak into the door housing, the seal is great, i clean the camera under fresh water after every use, and when i open the... Read more

I bought this camera from another retailer, before it was available on Amazon, because we were leaving for the caribbean and i wanted to get it on time. I ordered it two days before we were leaving. I did get it on time and just got back from my trip where I used this for general pictures and for underwater pics.

At home, i have a nice Canon D5 - digital SLR - and have used many little point-n-shoot Lumix cameras in the past for my quick, outta the pocket uses on vacation. I like them for the overall quality, and i'm generally comfortable with the functions because i've used their cameras before.

iA (intelligent auto?): these automatic functions took great shots. The general travel pics came out well - even those where i quickly grabbed it to take a pic out the car window with no prep.

Underwater: we got pics of fish & turtles underwater with amazing detail. I followed the underwater instructions religiously to optimize my chances that it would... Read more