Panasonic DMC-FZ7 or Sony H2?

[smass]

Please help me make a decision. I am looking for a long zoom camera for my family. I use the camera for both indoor and outdoor photos - mostly of the kids and a good amount of sports shots (soccer and horseback riding - hence the need for long zoom). I have considered several models including the Fuji 5200(no image stabilization), S6000fd (nice - but large and expensive), and Kodak z612. I think I have it narrowed down to the Panasonic DMC-FZ7 or Sony H2:

*Budget
- $300 Both come in under this. The sony memory sticks are more expensive than SD so the Sony would be $20-30 more - but no big deal.

*Size
- I want a super zoom and the Panasonic is definitely smaller - this will be used on vacations and travelling so I give the Panasonic an edge here..

*How many megapixels will suffice for you?
- 6 should be fine. I rarely print larger than 8x10

* What optical zoom will you need?
- 12x - I am looking for a long zoom to catch the kids at sports events and at play.

* How important is “image quality” to you? (Rate using a scale of 1-10)
- 8. I am not looking for a pulitzer prize but I want good quality

* Do you care for manual controls?
- Not an issue - 95% of use will be in auto or scene mode (sports)

* What will you generally use the camera for?
- Picture of the kids - vacation photos, sports photos (soccer, horseback riding) and some indoor photo (holidays and such)

* Will you be making big prints of your photos or not?
- Mostly 5x7 or smaller for scrapbooking with some 8x10 maximum

*Will you be shooting a lot of indoor photos or low light photos?
- Some indoor - pictures of the kids.

*Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos?
- Yes - kids at sporting events

[Telecorder]

The FZ7 is the replacement for the FZ5 which was considered to be the best bang for the buck super zoom...

Keep in mind that indoors/low light will require the use of flash to obtain good images. Outdoors, in good light and long reach circumstances, the FZ is the better option...