And the GX7 price just dropped once more down to $829 at Amazon US (Click here). Maybe the camera doesn’t sell as expected by Panasonic? The GX7 is great, but probably it has been announced to late and there is already great competition in that segment (read Sony NEX-6 and Fuji X-E2).
By the way, the price also dropped in Europe. It sell for 829 Euro new in germany or even 749 Euro for the [shoplink 43516 ebay]Open Box version at Fotomundus (Click here)[/shoplink].
P.S.: The E-M1 still is extremely popular at Amazon mirrorless ranking (here to see the list).
65 Responses
No surprise, since the GX7 was overpriced (and is still) compared to e.g. the NEX-6
It’s much better than the NEX-6. The GX7 is an excellent idea, but execution is not perfect. The biggest problem is the mediocre IBIS. And to some extent the EVF quality. It Panasonic can improve those 2 issues, the GX7 will sell well even at $999. You have to be the best to sell in a weak market.
The GX7’s LVF is excellent… once you add the auxiliary eyecup.
The IBIS? Whatever.
I use it sometimes, but don’t see any dramatic impact.
Apparently my superlative camera handling skills trump trendy gadgetry… 😉
Matthew – You do not own the GX7, I do. The IBIS is NOT mediocre. Stop saying that crap every time there is a discussion about it. You don’t know what you are talking about.
@ Matthew… “The biggest problem is the mediocre IBIS.” You sure??
GX7’s ibis dethroning EM5’s 5-axis: http://tysonrobichaudphotography.wordpress.com/2013/10/17/the-gx7-vs-the-om-d-e-m5-battle-for-my-affection-round-1-ibis-evfs-lcds/
My personal experience is different. The antique E-620’s IBIS easily out-does GX7’s. My rate of keepers at 50mm and 150mm is greater with E-620 than with the GX7. But that of course heavily depends on lenses and on the shooter. E-620 is definitely easier to hold with longer lenses and that I think contributes. The GX7’s shutter shock doesn’t help either.
Reading more into the article, I think this is precisely the case where Oly’s more aggressive IBIS overcompensates. There were already laughable accounts where Oly’s IBIS (before 5-axes) to some people performed better when camera was held with one hand, not two.
Sony NEX-6 with kit lens costs in Europe around 720 euros, currently there is a Sony cashback of 50 euros. GX7 with kit lens costs around 980 euros. Still a big difference.
“……No surprise, since the GX7 was overpriced……”
So true…same as E-M1
Typical Panasonic pricing strategy, which hurts the earlier buyers a lot. Remember GX1… I spent $899, and it dropped to $400 in half a year.
I understand what you write about price drops devaluing the resale value of your already purchased item…however, what can any company do to elevate sales in this type of situation?
I am sure Panny doesn’t relish dropping prices…but if that’s what it takes to compete, again, what can they do? Just keep prices higher and sell less, all the way to oblivion? Just to keep prior customers happy that their investment has been protected?
People shouldn’t buy cameras thinking of them as investments anyway…you buy them to use them. Camera manufacturers have no obligation to their customers to protect resale value…if that was the case, they may as well produce only in very limited quantities, price high to begin with, and then update only every 5 years or so.
Anything digital product usually has a steep depreciation curve…that’s just the way the world works.
Exactly. Lenses make the system.
In some respects, cameras are less important than lenses.
The prices of ALL electronics drop over time. It’s just the way things work these days.
Cameras used to be a thing you bought and planned to use for 10 years. Today’s cameras are little computers with a lens mount. As the technology improves, so do the guts of the cameras and you WANT to get a newer model to take advantage of those advances… faster AF, improved ISO performance, less noise, whatever.
I paid full price for my GH2 and 14-140mm… about $1500… back in 2011 and used it for nearly 3 years, almost daily. I don’t regret spending a penny of that. I paid full price for my GX7 and 20mm … about $1200, including shipping from Canada. I’m thrilled to be able to take advantage of the image quality improvements it brings over the GH2.
For some, getting a bargain is more important, which is cool, too.
That is the pricing model in use by the Japanese makers. It does not have to be that way, they could just offer the camera at a fair price and simply introduce new models at about the same price with each new release. Like Leica does.
But instead they “race to the bottom” and make no money in the process. And for the prices involved create a lot of bad feelings … I personally had the misfortune to believe Fuji might behave differently with their X cameras, I was a little too naive, so I don’t want to spend that kind of money again on a camera from any maker that does not price fairly and consistently. I will just save a little longer and get a Leica.
Lenses are more important anyway ….
+1000
they should start at 799 body only and they will be ok
the slight price drop should be only after 6months on market … not earlier and then sale couple of months before new model and then firesale after new model is out … but not like this droping and droping
You don’t like the price drops so you’re going to buy the most consistently and egregiously overpriced camera body?
Good luck buddy…
Agreed, skim pricing strategy is a decision, not a law of nature.
It works against the consumer, since they are punished for their loyalty and early adoption.
It works against the manufacturer, because they lose their early adopters and brand loyal consumers, unless they can somehow justify this strategy through targeted marketing shill postings in popular photo blogs.
It works against the consumer because he is quickly tapped out. It works against the manufacturer because their follow on model, and the follow on model after that, will enjoy less and less early sales… as we are seeing now with new flagship models that are in ready supply even a couple weeks after launch. Something we did not see as recently as a couple years ago.
It works against the industry, and we are starting to see the effects of that artificial pricing model now, the one we try to justify to ourselves by telling us ‘all electronics drop in price over time,’ as though the cliche to justify us spending money on new toys is somehow a law handed down from on high.
Consumers buy low end to moderate priced Nikon DSLRs and a couple lenses by the millions. They keep them for some time and are happy with the results. They don’t buy a new “S” model every 18 months. They are starting to look like the wise consumers.
Manufacturers have convinced us that the models the interwebs gushed over last year are no longer adequate because they lack a shutter speed or one alleged stablization axis or one gasket to make them ‘weather sealed.’ We justify spending a large chunk of money all over again, because they have us convinced that this is a law of nature.
This pricing model is not sustainable, and is now slowly yet increasingly working against manufacturers.
Don’t buy early, problem solved.
You have a choice you know, noone is pointing a gun at your head forcing you to buy the next upgrade as soon as it appears.
Unless you have money to burn, it seems like the smart thing to do is simply wait until the year after release and then look for holiday sales and refurb deals. I picked up an E-PL5 with lens from Olympus’s refurb sale for $350.
“which hurts the earlier buyers a lot.”
There is no electronic item where early buyers do not wind up paying more than people who wait awhile.
Every single person who bought this camera up until now KNEW that they were paying more than those who waited a few months. And if they didn’t, they’re not very smart or observant. It’s how the world has worked for decades.
I’ll add also: The who buy it at current prices KNOW that it will be still cheaper in a few more months. This is nothing to whine about.
+1000000
Exactly!
That sums it up.
What is my capacity of paying? How much do I value having it now? How much do I value waiting several months so save a few hundreds? If (I think) I will use it for years to come, will it really matter in then end that I paid so much?
Weigh those few questions, decide and move on.
For those overly sensible about price drops, I suggest to stick to end of the line or refurbished models. Many bargains on perfectly usable cameras.
I bought me a pair of jeans and guess what, a few months later they were om sale…
1. that is the risk of being an early adaptor
2. cameras are not an investment, buy gold or diamonds instead
> early adaptor
Took me five minutes to untangle my brain, and now I’m sure you wanted to write “early adopter”. 😉
+1
Thanks for the correction
Well, I’m waiting to see if Panasonic implements a firmware update that makes the IBIS work on video. And I have high hopes that GX7 successor, a year or two from now, will have an even better IBIS implementation.
How come it’s still at £800 isn in the UK? Booo!
£699 more like it:
http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/Panasonic/Panasonic-G-System-Cameras/Panasonic-Lumix-DMC-GX7-Body
This is not a new price drop. It’s been at this price on AMZN since before U.S. Thanksgiving. And actually the combo kit with the lens went for $852 USD then.
That’s correct..it’s been $828 since Nov 25:
http://camelcamelcamel.com/Panasonic-LUMIX-Camera-Tilt-Live-Viewfinder/product/B00E87OK84?active=price_new&context=home_alerts
No surprise here….
From a business point of view it’s good news: most likely Panasonic already reached the return of investment, and now start to make profits. then you can lower the price slowly and interest new customers for your product. In the best case the new customers buy lenses as well… the tricky part is how long you lower the price, and at what time you stop selling the product. To protect the follow up product.
Pany is very clever with their G series- keeping the old models in the shops as lower models.
I think they will stop the pricedrop when the gx7 price is a lil bit above the g6 price…
Admin, it seems you forgot that the camera initially dropped at the price of $899.90 then afer a couple of weeks, rose to $999.90. Also, the body only version wasn’t even available until mid – November.
So maybe your title should read, “drops, raises, and drops again”.
The hate for Panasonic cameras continues…
WHO THE HELL DESIGNS THESE CAPTCHA’S I AM SCREEMING BECAUSE THIS IS THE THIRD TIME I TRIED TO SUBMIT A TEXT AND FAILED AND GOT A EMPTY TEXT FIELD 🙁 🙁
Okey back to the article.
Camera’s (body’s) are never a good investment.They devaluate quick (and grow old quick)
For early adapters a pricedrop is sad news, a large amount of the money they spend has vaporized.
For late adaptors this is great news, now thay can buy a camera for a lage discount, and it maybe even become a option for people who didnt had the budget.
But that’s just how it works, Deal with it.
If you don’t like money that goes up in smoke, then dont buy a car. It runs on money,still cost money if u dont use it (insurance) and above all that,car prices drops mostly to 50% after the first year!
Nope, it’s not “just the way it works.” It’s a specific product management marketing decision, not a law of nature.
In the long run, the model is not sustainable. Two years ago we would not have been able to get a NEX-7 or a D800E or an X100 or an OMD-EM5 for months after launch. Now it’s just a week or two.
Your early adopters are fading, and fake fanboy postings on the interweb can’t hide it. Your early adopters are increasingly sitting it out. They are tired of being suckers.
This artificial pricing model- accelerated depreciation- is coming back to bite manufacturers. And our convincing ourselves that this is a law of nature works to our own detriment.
The model is not sustainable. One day, in the not too distant future, they will issue the super new flagship model with yet more miniscule changed features, and nobody will come.
This model is already causing the manufacturer to lose sales. Once a groundswell hits, things will change. Because no consumer, and I mean no consumer, can afford to constantly throw away money, especially when neither they nor their audience can distinguish the photo shot with the camera that cost them $1500 today or the one that cost them $1500 eighteen months ago but is now going for $600. Because that’s $900 that could have gone to: fix your house, your kids’ education, that trip to Tahiti, etc etc.
Yes, we’ll believe your dream over observable reality in pretty much every technology driven market.
Dream on.
Cameras were always high tech for their day. They used latest electronic techniques for metering and for timing, as well as materials and optics. Yet somehow product planning was for a long lifecycle, with profits to be recouped over time.
Now, planned obsolescence in built in. They have you convinced that this is the way it must be. It is hard to face the reality of what the makers of the luxury toys we are so loyal to have conditioned us to, therefore we prefer to dream and pretend it’s just some accidental law of nature.
The rate at which that technology developed in those years is totally not comparable to the rate with which mobile digital electronics has been developing over the last few decades.
Also, there is more then a bit of evidence for the rate of technological progress increasing over time.
Beyond that, the overall impact of improvements in metering technology in say the 1960-1970 timeframe is much smaller then the development in sensor technology in the 2008-2013 timeframe.
Sings in tune with the Beatles:
YESTERDAY ALL MY TROUBLES SEEMED SO FAR AWAY….
The problem is these type cameras are seen as “compacts”, and we know where that market is heading
To me the 1050 for body only in canada is a bit steep. Not if you compare it to ep5 but ep5 is in a stratosphere price wise.
I can stomach 600-700 range and thats shen im going to bite. Until then my money is in the bank.
With impending announcements – GH4 and a possible EM-5 replacement – I’m waiting.
If the GX7 had a mic input, headphone jack and image stabilisation in video mode I would have bought it when it first came out.
I bought my camera on release date.
I was able to get the retailer to price match under the first discount…
The GX1, I bought heavily discounted, even knowing that, I bought the GX7, will the price go down a lot? … probably, but in the time being, I’m truly enjoying this camera, love the handling, image rendering, menu structure, speed, etc etc… so … no regrets!
I understand people that might be upset because of investing in a camera just to see the price go down soon after, but is just the nature of technology this days…
No, Ladybug, it is not the nature of technology, it is the nature of camera product marketing departments to convince us it is the nature of technology. Believe me the pricing curves to skim increasingly lower plateaus are planned before the product is ever even first launched.
Lol dude go learn something about economics and running a large scale company in a technologically driven market.
Actually, I am in that space, and so I get it. This is planned out. The companies you are so loyal to are less loyal to you. You are a dollar sign to them.
The lifecycle is planned in advance as part of the whole product rollout. This includes the pricing plan: initial, mid-life, late-life pricing, always ready to adjust for this market fluctuation or that promotion or dealer spiff. They likely even already have the follow-on product, with semi-faux ‘advances’ on the horizon.
They have us so blindsided that despite 2000 years of technology we today are somehow different, and so we are conditioned that even with last year’s product we are somehow inadequate, and must discard in favor of today’s shiney new luxury toy. We are in denial that the obsolescence is planned, and instead ascribe it to some cosmic ‘necessity.’
Planned obsolesence, we the sheep. Baah. Baaaaah. Baaah.
> Actually, I am in that space, and so I get it.
Those 2 things are not the same thing obviously.
> This is planned out.
It certainly is.
> The companies you are so loyal to are less loyal to you. You are a dollar sign to them.
No shit Sherlock, companies are there to make money?
And eh, why would you expect an emotionless entity like a corporation to show loyalty to anyone or anything? That is just beyond silly.
What you do Ronin is make totally inane assumptions about what drives people, and then act as if those assumptions are the truth, are actually what people are saying, and then make an argument against that. I’ve pointed out that silly behavior to you before, when you made the totally absurd assumption that someone pointing out the law of diminishing returns was in fact proclaiming m4/3 to be the best ever! Stop making totally absurd assumptions, learn to listen and read.
That there are SOME people here who are blind fans of certain companies, sure, but your assumption that that applies to everyone here is already totally ridiculous, let alone applying it to the market as a whole.
Instead of making such ridiculous assumptions, you may sometime want to look into things like Moore’s law, and how that simply causes todays electronics to be worth a lot less about 18 months from now because capacity will have approx doubled for the same production price at that point.
That my silly Ronin is the driving power after the refreshes. It means that any camera released a year after yours will be able to do the same for a lower price. It means any camera released 2 years after yours will be able to do the same for about half the price. If you want to stay competitive in a market where there is actually competition that doesn’t sync its releases to yours, you’ll have to keep up with that.
Not to ‘force’ people to buy an updated product every year (as if someone is putting a gun to your head forcing you to buy the latest greatest) but to ensure they are actually competitive in their market segment for NEW customers and for genuine replacements (after a few years due to reliability dropping, due to damaged or stolen camera or whatever). Yes, to keep that up regular refreshes are indeed needed.
Planned obsolescence? Your camera will stop working after a year when the new one is introduced…. yeah right.
A bit of topic but this is a steal.
http://www.rajalacamera.fi/olympus-zuiko-digital-14-35-2-0.html
You’ll likely have to focus it manually on a micro Four-Thirds camera. Mine hunts a bit, even on my E-5, but I lose patience with it on my GH3, and it was only satisfactory on an E-M1.
WEX in the UK have 10 of them as Mail Order Return Items, a lot of people don’t seem to like them after they’ve bought them for some reason ?
I bought and returned a GX-7 recently. The viewfinder, although high resolution, was small and hard to see through clearly because of the eyepiece optics. I even preferred the EVF on my GX1. Went with the EM1 in the end because it is nearly the same size, has better construction, a larger selection of lenses (4/3 teles) and better C-AF. And the EVF is awesome. I feel like the GX-7 was too little too late from Panny, essentially an EM5 competitor years after the fact. The new OM coming out could further eat up GX7 sales if it is any good.
That said, the user interface and features like focus peaking were much better on the GX7 than the EM1. S-AF was better in low light on Panny lenses too. Is it just me, or is there an AF penalty for Panny lenses on Oly bodies, whereas Panny bodies work equally well with Oly lenses?
“Is it just me, or is there an AF penalty for Panny lenses on Oly bodies, whereas Panny bodies work equally well with Oly lenses?”
I use a mix of Panasonic and Olympus bodies and lenses, and I have never ever noticed such a thing.
I bought a GX1 at near full price when getting into the m43 system; I needed a camera and have since used it very often. Watching the price of the GX1 plummet stung a little, but I bought when I did for a reason.
When the GX7 came out, it made for a tempting upgrade – but I’m now putting my money in lenses. When the GX8 is someday available for sale, I’ll be able to see if some of the GX7’s detractions (IBIS that isn’t as good as the E-M5, EVF that some dislike) have been fixed … or whether I want to pick up a bargain basement GX7.
The advantage to an interchangeable lens system is that great glass keeps getting better with new bodies – and you can pay to be on the cutting edge of body technology (or not).
“IBIS that isn’t as good as the E-M5” not so sure…. http://goo.gl/fTLUT0
Thanks for the link – somehow I missed that article when it came out.
Dudes,
The GX7’s price is $828 everywhere for over a month now.
-eyalg
Really, do you think “people” don’t “adopt the system” because of perceived idea of yours that a few Olympus extreme enthusiasts want to discount Panasonic ? What a skewed view of the world you have. If Panasonic are selling less cameras than Olympus (are they ? I’ve no idea) it would be because they offer a less attractive product or are less good at marketing. They do have a starting disadvantage in that Olympus has better brand recognition as a camera manufacturer. But otherwise ? You think that Joe Sixpack is going to say to himself “I’m not gonna buy me of of they micro four thirds because Oly-lovin commies over at 43Rumors are dissin’ Panasonic” ? Don’t be so silly.
Frankly, if the GX7 is not selling, it’s bad news for THE SYSTEM, as it, along with the OM-Ds (both of them) are going to be difficult to surpass for either manufacturer.
Wife helped me narrow down choice for her next camera – compact rangefinder style and must have a viewfinder, which effectively narrowed it down to NEX-6 and GX7 (eliminated Fuji for other reasons). Price wise, NEX-6 hands down even with the current ‘reduction’ but it is getting a little aged. While price isn’t really an object, holding off for to see what the new NEX-7 offers and if the premium is worth it.
The problem with Panasonic, while everyone focused on “over priced” it goes deeper than that. Let’s start with the lack of a dealer network…and Panasonic proactively declining it. About the only way you can hold a GX7 and most other Panasonic cameras in your hands is mailorder and use a 30 day return policy. High end Panasonics are not in the major chains like Best Buy – which has the NEX-6. Our local camera store which has high end cameras including Leica, plus darkroom supplies was turned down by Panasonic when they request the line. Granted the do also carry Olympus – but the smaller competing store couldn’t carry them either. The larger store even landed the entire Sony line despite a Sony company store in the Mall. Their website is difficult to search as I tried a dealer search for the entire State so any store that sold Panasonic TV’s returned, and none were obvious independent camera stores.
Panasonic, while the make great products and I own one of their plasma TV’s, has problems…and pricing is only the tip of the iceberg.
i think larry g is onto something. by not having panasonic m43 cameras in big chain stores in the usa, they’ll never be able to compete against the other brands. i once went with a co-worker on our lunch break to buy a camera at best buy. he randomly picked one up, looked at it and said “this looks good.” dropped $1000 right there. no research, no nothing. he liked and bought it because he physically touched it and thought it looked professional. i suspect a lot of people show like that.
i wonder how the sales are doing in japan, where you can go into a bic camera or yodabashi and handle just about any camera currently on the market.
M43 camera’s should not be more than 500 euro. Above that price every APSC is better. Look for an example at the NEX3/6.
It’s several days before Christmas, and the e-m1 is in stock at B&H.
And it has pretty much been in stock, in and out, mostly in, for more than a month now.
This portends well for price drops in the near future…