One of the trends we are going to see this year is increased zoom capacity in slimmer point and shoot camera bodies. This will challenge the traditional superzoom look and feel which has largely copied that of the DSLR but with a slightly thinner body.

Panasonic revealed a series of new cameras recently and one of the more interesting models is the Zs20 which they say is the slimmest 20x optical zoom model in the market today. At 1.1 inches deep, it is thinner than all of the 20x zoom cameras in its class.

The Panasonic ZS20 couples a 1/2.33-inch type, 14.1 effective megapixel, RGB-filtered MOS image sensor, and a Leica DC Vario-Elmar branded 20x optical zoom lens. In 35mm equivalents, the ZS20's lens provides everything from a generous 24mm wide angle, to a whopping 480mm telephoto. When recording movies, a stronger focal length crop results in a 35mm-equivalent range of 28 - 560mm, still a fair wide angle, and an extremely powerful telephoto.

As you'd expect with this much telephoto reach, there's a Power O.I.S. optical image stabilization system included, and when shooting movies, an Active mode allows a greater degree of correction. Continuous shooting is possible at a rate of around ten full-resolution frames per second for as many as ten frames.

Power comes from a proprietary lithium-ion battery with ID-Security feature that prevents use of counterfeit or third-party batteries, and is rated as good for 260 shots on a charge to CIPA testing standards. The software bundle includes PHOTOfunSTUDIO 8.0 Premium Edition and Lumix Map Tool.

Pricing for the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20 is set at approximately US$350 with availability from March 2012. Four body colors will be available: black, red, white, and silver.