14 DAY TRIAL // One thing that almost all electronic devices have in common is their vulnerability to water and dust, but some of them are specifically engineered to withstand those issues better than others. Panasonic has just unveiled two cameras that qualify as “rugged.”
Ruggedness comes in several levels, since not all “tough” devices are as tough as other tough devices. Some are better equipped to deal with dust, others can withstand water better, some have a balance between the two.
Then there are those items that do well in both cases, and provide a good measure of shock/drop protection and longer lifespan on top of that.
It was Panasonic's plan to turn the Lumix TS6 and the Lumix TS30 into devices that definitely shine in terms of toughness, and the plan appears to have worked.
The Panasonic Lumix TS6
The photo and video capture device can be submerged up to a depth of 43 feet / 13 meters and should be able to shrug off any dust, sand or gravel.
It can survive shocks of 6.6 feet / 2 meters as well, which means that even the tallest of you people out there can breathe easy knowing that clumsy hands (due to drunkenness or whatever other cause) won't ruin your means of immortalizing an experience.
For a camera with a 16.1 megapixel sensor, 4.6x optical zoom and a 3-inch LCD, those are all a big deal.
Speaking of which, the TS6 also possesses NFC, a GPS chip, and some advanced shooting functions like intelligent Auto mode, Panorama, creative control, creative retouch, time lapse mode and, of course, an underwater mode.
The Lumix TS30 camera
This one isn't as tough as the TS6, being rated at just 8 meters underwater (26 feet) and 1.5 meters / 3.2 feet shock/drop absorption.
Its specs are still pretty good though, more or less on par with those of the TS6, although the zoom is of only 4x and the lens is of 25mm ultra wide angle. The LCD is of 2.7 inches in diagonal.
The feature set reads much like that of the TS6 otherwise, down to the underwater mode. All in all, the Lumix TS30 is like a smaller version of the TS6.
Availability and pricing
Since both Samsung Lumix rugged photo cameras are on show at CES 2015, they will probably start shipping soon. Unfortunately, it's also possible that the sales will start in late 2015. Either way, prices are unknown as well.
