Panasonic's Lumix FZ1000 is the camera I recommend the most to those considering a digital SLR for photography, but who aren't in love with the idea of buying and lugging around lenses. The new $1,200 Lumix FZ2500 arriving in December goes beyond that, eliminating the need for a high-performance camcorder, too.

According to Panasonic, the FZ2500 is essentially the company's GH4 interchangeable lens camera -- a model popular with moviemakers -- but with a fixed zoom lens. In this case, a 20x f2.8-4.5 24-480 lens with an inner zoom structure for reducing image shift when zooming. Ever noticed a little jump in your video when zooming in and out with another camera? That's what this system is suppressing.

Panasonic

The camera does not have a Micro Four Third sensor like the GH4 either, but the FZ2500's 1-inch 20-megapixel sensor is still big. If the performance is anything like the FZ1000's 1-inch sensor, you can expect better color, detailed dynamic range and low-light performance for photos and video than a typical camcorder or point-and-shoot.

So, how exactly is it like the GH4 then? Well, it's all in capabilities:

Record in 4K (4,096x2,160) or Quad HD (3,840x2,160) resolutions at 24fps or 30fps, respectively, in MOV or MP4

Record in full HD (1,920x1,080) at 200Mbps or 100 Mbps in MOV, MP4, AVCHD progressive and AVCHD

User selectable system frequency between 59.94Hz (23.98Hz), 50.00Hz or 24.00Hz

Live output via micro-HDMI in 4:2:2/8-bit while recording to a SDXC card at 4:2:0/8-bit

Live output via micro-HDMI in 4:2:2/10-bit for saving HDMI output to external storage

V-Log/V-Log L support (paid software upgrade required)

Full HD variable frame rate control for speeding up and slowing down the look of your video on the fly

No limit on continuous recording (US only)

Design features like its 3.5mm mic and headphone jacks, a hot shoe, zoom and focus rings on the lens barrel, an SD card slot on the side for quick swaps when it's on a tripod, front and rear control dials and a high-res 3-inch flip-out rear touchscreen that tilts up and down by 270 degrees only add to its flexibility as a movie-making machine.

The design is great for photography, too, including a large, high-magnification OLED viewfinder; built-in ND filters -- -2EV(1/4), -4EV(1/16), -6EV(1/64) and AUTO - selectable with a switch on the lens barrel; built-in Wi-Fi for remote control and a nine-blade aperture for smooth-looking out-of-focus areas.

The camera has fast performance in general, with a full-resolution burst mode of 12fps with fixed focus or 7fps with continuous autofocus for up to 100 JPEGs or 30 raw images at a time.

Like Panasonic's other high-end compacts, the FZ2500 can use its 4K video capabilities to fire off 8-megapixel pictures at a blazing fast rate of 30 per second, grabbing moments you might otherwise miss. Another mode takes a burst of photos with different focus points and lets you select the area you want in focus after you shoot. Fans of close-up macro shots will appreciate the Focus Stacking mode, so you can decide how much of the shot is in focus.

If you were looking for a (slightly) less expensive competitor to Sony's Cyber-shot RX10 III, this is it.