Labs

The FZ50 has been available for over a year, but it's still the best superzoom. Its ergonomics are fantastic, with the large design fitting comfortably in the hand, a fold-out screen to help shooting at awkward angles, lens rings for zoom and focus and dials either side of the shutter button for exposure settings. Image quality is as good as we'd expect at this price, although some detail is lost to noise at ISO 400 and above. The FZ18 has more clever features and bigger zoom, but the FZ50's superior ergonomics are well worth the extra £30 if you want more hands-on control.