Leica D-Lux 7 vs Panasonic Lumix LX100 II — Which Is Better?

The Panasonic Lumix LX100 II arrived first, announced in August 2018, while the Leica D-Lux 7 followed that November. Both are 2018 compact cameras built around a fixed lens and a Micro Four Thirds sensor, so the choice comes down to finer details. The Panasonic is slightly smaller and lighter, at 115 mm wide and 392 g against the Leica's 118 mm and 403 g.

Cropping room is identical here, because both cameras pair a 17 MP Micro Four Thirds CMOS sensor with a fixed lens. A distant subject can be tightened in editing with the same pixel budget on either body. Burst and shutter settings match too, with up to 11 fps shooting and a fastest shutter setting of 1/4000 second, so neither camera gains an advantage for fast action.

Each camera offers in-body stabilisation, which helps keep handheld frames steady in dim interiors or at slow shutter settings. Both compose through a 2,760,000-dot electronic viewfinder, so framing detail at eye level is the same. The remaining optics difference is the processor name, with the LX100 II specifying a Venus Engine and the D-Lux 7 leaving its processor unnamed.

Built-in timelapse makes the Leica D-Lux 7 the easy pick for interval work, since the LX100 II offers no such mode. A sunset or a busy street corner becomes a moving sequence with no add-ons on the Leica. The rest of their video specifications match. Both record MPEG-4 or MOV files, with a 4K maximum resolution and a 60 fps maximum frame rate.

Wireless workflow is the same on both cameras, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for transferring images to a phone and placing shots online quickly after a shoot. Each has a fixed 3-inch touch LCD with 1,240,000 dots for reviewing focus and detail after capture. Neither screen tilts or flips, so waist-level and selfie framing are out on both.

Evening interiors call for a carried flash on either camera, because neither includes a built-in unit while both support an external one. Location tagging also needs a phone on both, since neither camera has GPS. Neither body is weather sealed, which points both at fair-weather and city use.

Storage and power work the same way on either camera. Each uses a single SD, SDHC or SDXC card slot with UHS-I support, with no second slot for overflow or backup on long trips. Both carry a 340-shot battery rating, and both support USB charging, so a power bank can top up either camera while travelling. The battery models differ, DP-DC15 in the Leica and DMW-BLE9 in the Panasonic, so spares are not interchangeable.