An interesting thought. If we are talking about pixel count as such then physics tells us that resolution improves as it increases. However the differences are really marginal and for the vast majority of us irrelevant. It is the pixel popper nerds who go for this sort of thing. Another issue with high megapixels is the size of the files. My chum has a new full frame monstrosity of a camera and the file size of each image alone can reach 80 megabytes! Transferring, processing etc files of that size takes an enormous amount of oomph. However if you are making street billboards then its the way to go.
I know very little about digicams and videography but the issue of light level is an interesting one. Generally the larger the sensor the more light it can gather, so pocket camera often don't perform well in low light (and micro four third cameras like mine similarly). what we don't know though with digicams, pocket cameras etc is the ISO setting ie the sensitivity to light. In the good old days of film we used to call it grain, and use it to artistic effect. Now we call it noise and try and get rid of it. Image quality degrades as ISO increases and as light intensity decreases due to noise. Hence a small sensor, high ISO setting and low light is a perfect storm for reduced image quality.
Similarly the other number that is bandied about is the zoom. My TZ80 is 30x. Getting enough light onto the sensor means a wide aperture and slower shutter speed which all work against image quality. Combine that with a good but not excellent lens and shaky hands and it makes high image quality more difficult in the circumstances as well.
Whatever, we are discussing hairs on a cats back here. The vast majority of users won't notice this at all, and it will be much more down to the photographers ability than anything else. You won't be disappointed with the TZ70, the differences between that and the TZ80 are minimal although I would miss the touchscreen. So much easier than that fiddley little wheel. Just google TZ70 v TZ80 and you can be as nerdish as me. I bought my TZ80 on the Ebay Panasonic outlet shop, just taken a quick peek and they have them there for £180 with a 12 month guarantee.
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