Panasonic GX1 gets already “unboxed” on video. Coming in Japan on 25th of November.

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The guys from MLZphoto sent me the GX1 unboxing video on top. Japanese folk will not have to wait a lot before the camera gets shipped. According to DC.watch Panasonic will ship the GX1 to the domestic market on November 25. All the rest of the world will have to wait weeks if not months (read the usual USA delays).

Preorder ar now available on Amazon Uk and Japan too. That is the new preorder link list:
Black GX1 body at Amazon (Click here), Amazon UK (Click here), Amazon Japan (Click here) and Digitalrev (Click here).
Silver GX1 body at Amazon (Click here), Amazon UK (Click here) and Amazon Japan (Click here).
Black GX1 with 14-42mm X lens at Amazon (Click here), Amazon UK (Click here), Amazon Japan (Click here) and Digitalrev (Click here).
Silver GX1 with 14-42mm X lens at Amazon (Click here), Amazon UK (Click here), Amazon Japan (Click here).
Black GX1 with 14-42mm at Amazon (Click here), Amazon UK (Click here), Amazon Japan (Click here).
Silver GX1 with 14-42mm at Amazon (Click here), Amazon Japan (Click here) and Jessops (Click here).

 

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POLL: Do we really need a compact GX model with built-in viewfinder?

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[shoplink 23692 ebay][/shoplink] The picture on top shows the back of the [shoplink 23692 ebay]Panasonic L1 Four Thirds camera[/shoplink]

Now let’s face the big question. Who of you believes a GX model with built-in viewfinder would have been a better product than the newly announced [shoplink 26836]Panasonic GX1[/shoplink]? As you know the chiefs of Pana said that a GX model with built-in viewfinder “may price it out of the range of the people we’re trying to reach. And not everybody wants a viewfinder, so at least this gives the consumer the option of having it or not. Personally I do not use them…“. (Source: Photographyblog).

Let’s make some calculations about the possible price of the GX model with built-in viewfinder:
1) The GX1 body costs $700 at Amazon. The external viewfinder has been priced at around $250. Total price: $950
2) The [shoplink 25396]NEX-7[/shoplink] costs $1200 (but price will go up because of the flood)
3) The [shoplink 19929]Fuji X100[/shoplink] (which comes with fixed lens) also costs $1200.
4) The current Panasonic L1 Four Thirds camera with built-in viewfinder sells for $1900 at Amazon and for $1000 used on [shoplink 23692 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink].

So let’s assume the price of the GX model with built-in viewfinder would be $1000-$1100. The question is:

Would you buy a GX camera with built-in viewfinder (and priced at $1100) or would you still prefer the GX1?

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And an even more complicated question is:

Whay's the reason why you need a built-in viewfinder?

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New Panasonic 14-42mm X lens in Stock in Europe and Asia.

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[shoplink 25104][/shoplink] In my modest opinion this is a tiny little jewel of a lens. And as you know I am not often prising Panasonic products (See the not so exciting GX1 camera). The real advantage of the m43 system over other systems is the quality-size aspect. And that zoom (yes zoom!) lens actually rises the bar on a level neither Sony nor Nikon couldn’t reach yet. And in these days the lens is getting in Stock in most European and Japanese stores. it’s worth a news here on 43rumors. The stores having it in Stock are Amazon DE, Amazon UK, Amazon FR, Amazon JP and [shoplink 25104]eBay[/shoplink] (Click on the shop names). Anyway, no matter where you buy it, the important thing is that Panasonic learns that these are the kind of products we want to see coming from them!

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New Panasonic GX1 image samples (and preorders at Jessops and Digitalrev)

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The video on top shows the extremely fast new GX1 autofocus.

And Panasonic Japan posted a set of new image samples (Click here). And Trustedreview (Click here) performed a new ISO test: “The GX1 is able to match the more than impressive results obtained with the G3 earlier in the year. Shooting a couple of subjects outdoors in fading light and also indoors under dim artificial lights, we found the GX1 delivered excellent, virtually noise-free results up to ISO 800 with ISO 1600. Above this, ISO 3200 is actually still quite useable, despite noise becoming more noticeable“.

More GX1 news I didn’t post yesterday at Dpnow, The OnlinePhotographer and Letsgodigital. Popco posted a couple of GX1 videos on vimeo: X lens test, 20fps test, level gauge, FN control, touch&shooting.

Preorder ar now available on Digitalrev and Jessops too. That is the new preorder link list:
Black GX1 body at Amazon (Click here) and Digitalrev (Click here).
Silver GX1 body at Amazon (Click here).
Black GX1 with 14-42mm X lens at Amazon (Click here) and Digitalrev (Click here).
Silver GX1 with 14-42mm X lens at Amazon (Click here).
Black GX1 with 14-42mm at Amazon (Click here)
Silver GX1 with 14-42mm at Amazon (Click here) and Jessops (Click here).

 

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HOT UPDATE: Olympus admits mistakes. Woodford prepared to return?

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Olympus Japan itself released an extraordinary statement issued Tuesday (Click here to download the japanese pdf) saying that “the panel found that the money for mergers had in fact been used to mask heavy losses on investments racked up since about 1990.”

And the New York Times (Click here) really gives us a terrible news: “That revelation alone could make this one of the biggest accounting fraud cases in corporate history. It is also a spectacular turn of events amid a boardroom battle that has pitted Olympus’s former British chief executive turned whistle-blower, Michael C. Woodford, against an otherwise all-Japanese company board.”.

The first consequences of that news is that Hisashi Mori (executive vice president) had been fired and Hideo Yamada offered his resignation. According to Bloomberg the company may take legal action against the three (including ex Ceo Kikukawa).

And the second-biggest overseas investor “Harris” says that “Woodford should return to run the company and conduct the house cleaning“.

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Panasonic talks about the future: OLED, tilting LCD and NEX-7 alike camera.

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Here are all direct GX1 links with price info:
Black GX1 body at Amazon (Click here)
Silver GX1 body at Amazon (Click here).
Black GX1 with 14-42mm X lens at Amazon (Click here)
Silver GX1 with 14-42mm X lens at Amazon (Click here).
Black GX1 with 14-42mm at Amazon (Click here)
Silver GX1 with 14-42mm at Amazon (Click here).

Panasonic talks about the future:
The guys from Photographyblog (Click here) do have a sort of “special” relation with Panasonic and posted a three page long Interview with Mr. Uematsu and Sykes from Panasonic. There are quite a lot of interesting info. Those of you that were wondering why the GX1 has no built-in viewfinder like the [shoplink 8454]Sony NEX-7[/shoplink] here is the answer: “That may price it out of the range of the people we’re trying to reach. And not everybody wants a viewfinder, so at least this gives the consumer the option of having it or not. Personally I do not use them…“.

And it’s not the best kind of communication and marketing when Sykes says: “If you’re lucky you might get it (the GX1) under your tree for Christmas. It’s that type of launch. So that campaign may move into next year. Obviously the G3 we see as a mass product. The GX we don’t think will be a mass product“. So Panasonic isn’t interested to sell the GX1 at the Christmas High Shopping Season?

Uematsu explains the m43 advantages over APS-C sensors: “Concerning low light function over high sensitivity. Of course a bigger sensor is better, however we have to be concerned not just [about] low light or high sensitivity. Picture quality should be considered in tandem with optical quality. Of course Sony’s APS-C sensor is bigger, but a big sensor with a small flange-back makes not such a good situation for the corners of an image. Sometimes the resolution there is much lower than at the centre of an image. But we believe our Micro Four Thirds is a very good balance between optical and also sensor performance.”

But in general Panasonic says a built-in viewfinder NEX-7 model is “under consideration”, and so a tilting LCD screen and OLED technology.

And of course there will be new lenses next year: “We have 14 lenses and have announced the development of a further two: the 12-35mm and 35-100mm for next year, but we feel we are missing a couple of key lenses in the line up. There are discussions and video conferences on going.”

And Sykes also talked to Amateur Photographer (Click here) where he said that: “We want to be number one in interchangeable lens cameras“.

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