Sturdy, simple to use camera that takes excellent pictures

I purchased a Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2 camera in November 2007 after my Canon S100X IS camera died after one month of use.  It was my first purchase of a non-Canon camera and I absolutely love it.  It's strong metal body stood up to weeks backpacking through mountains, deserts, and rice paddies with no sign of wear.  In all climates, my pictures were crisp and I had no issues with fogged lenses or glare. 

I've been most impressed by the simplicity of phototaking and the resulting photos.  I've never taken a photography class and generally rely on the various "scene modes" available on the camera.  When I printed my photos, another customer offered to buy some of my prints commenting on the way the light was captured, the vivid colors, and crispness of the photos. 

The zoom lens and image stabilization are also impressive.  I've taken pictures of newsprint from across the room and was able to clearly read the articles using the zoom.  At several points, I've taken photos from moving objects (buses, ox carts, etc.) and used the zoom to capture distant objects as I whizzed by.  I assumed these photos would not turn out, but later was able to blow them up to 8 x 10 or larger prints due to the clarity of the details.  I've shown these pictures to friends and family and none of them were able to tell these were photos taken from a large distance or while moving.  The same goes for the airplane mode which somehow takes clear and beautiful shots through dirty plane windows.

Another feature I've enjoyed are the JPEG videos.  The videos are short, but have excellent audio and come in handy when I just want to capture some small moment in a different format.

It's a smaller size camera and I can fit it into my pocket, but the lens does jut out more than I would like.  It doesn't fit in my hand as well as other cameras.  I had a difficult time purchasing a camera case due to the odd shape, but since it's the camera is so well-made it was not a huge concern. 

The main feature I dislike about this camera is the lack of a viewfinder window.  I've now gotten used to having to hold the camera farther away to take my photos, but I think it increases my hand shaking.  I've compensated by using a gorilla tripod more often or setting the camera on a flat surface to keep it better stabilized.  However, the camera does produce excellent clear shots the majority of the time even when my hand is shaking.

I also dislike that the lens cap must be removed every time.  The lens cap is made of a thinner material and is starting to break slightly on the edge.  This causes it to snag when I remove the camera from its case and is relatively annoying.

The battery life is decent, but I would think most camera batteries do not last as long as I would like.   I found myself needing to recharge the battery every 2 days.  I ended up having to purchase a second battery because occasionally I would take so many pictures it wouldn't last an entire day (I needed to recharge about every 300 photos).