: Oops! You are correct; I was mistaken.
: Because the lens is fixed under the waterproof enclosure, this
: model has only the digital zoom, which is 4.6x.
: Sorry about that. -Wes

It's not just digital. It has an optical zoom. The lens is 4.9-22.8, but I'm not sure what x zoom that makes it. I do believe it's equivalent to a 24-135mm in 35mm format, which I'm still used to gauging lenses by. True, you still do sacrifice some over a land camera, but man I love the ability to take the camera out and about either kayaking, snorkeling, or just hanging out on the boat, without worry. I came darned close to getting a land camera with a WP case, and may actually get a WP case for this one for diving beyond the normal limit, but I wanted a camera I could mount to the surfboard and kayak that would not be too cumbersome. I decided on the Lumix for optical clarity, 14 MP sensor, 33 foot waterpoofness, and HD video. It's also a great close-up camera.

I am definately not knocking other options. I should note that had I not already owned a Nikon D80 and the most amazing lens ever- the 18-200 VR, I would have gone a different route, but in this case I wanted a compact camera that was WP beyond 15 feet, had HD video, and 12MP or better. Lumix beat all categories!