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There are some changes in the original Panasonic roadmap. I have been told by two sources that Panasonic had the plan to announce a new “GS” camera in Spring 2011. That plan has changed and the GS camera will not be announced. It is unclear yet if we will ever see the GS 🙁
The sources could not (or didn’t want) to tell me more about the camera. I really hope this wasn’t the Micro Four Thirds version of the [shoplink 19791 ebay]DMC-L1[/shoplink] model. That would be pity!
Panasonic also made a major change regarding the lens roadmap. The 12-50mm f/2.5-3.3 lens release has been postponed at least until the last quarter of the year. Also in that case I didn’t receive any reliable info about the cause of the delay although I do speculate that the reason is they have not enough production capability to release many new lenses. As you know the 25mm f/1.4 lens and probably a few reworked lenses (like the 7-14mm OIS) are scheduled to be announced in April.
I have quite a few new rumors I am working on and I will post them soon. So stay tuned on 43rumors!
Links:
– DMC-L1 at Amazon and [shoplink 19791 ebay]eBay[/shoplink].
P.S.: Hidden message for one of my sources: Dark K. drop me a line if you read that 😉
VERY IMPORTANT: Always keep in mind that those are rumors. Some of them could turn out to be true some of them could NOT!
Reminder: Rumors classification explained (FT= FourThirds):
FT1=1-20% chance the rumor is correct
FT2=21-40% chance the rumor is correct
FT3=41-60% chance the rumor is correct
FT4=61-80% chance the rumor is correct
FT5=81-99% chance the rumor is correct
56 Responses
Bye bye Panasonic. With no reasonable zoom lens in near sight, I guess I’ll move back to my LX5 (which has wider zoom range and comparable low-light performance and shallow DOF at max aperture as my GH2 with included standard zoom, plus fabulous macro capability in a much smaller package!). I guess I’ll buy a camcorder from the money I get for the GH2. Then I’ll re-evaluate the situation come spring 2012 (when the 12-50 might indeed be available), comparing Panasonic’s offerings to those of Olympus, Sony, and potentially Canon and Nikon’s new mirror-less offerings.
So you’ll sell your GH2 because a rumored lens now is rumored to be delayed?
That would be stupid. Never take your choice based on rumors! please!
Or you can be a man (or woman) about it, spend 1/5 the money of that lens in legacy and get a DOF that’s twice as shallow.
So what’s it gonna be?
GH2 to a LX5 is pretty drastic, don’t you think?
What a shame 🙁
“The 12-50mm f/2.5-3.3 lens release has been postponed at least until the last quarter of the year.”
So regarding Panasonics Timing of releasing lenses and actually get them into the shops there will be no fast Panasonic-Zoom for 2011.
What a pitty.
What disappointment!!!!!
Been looking forward to that lens as a replacement for my 14-140mm, now maybe I should look somewhere else for my high quality photography in a relatively small package………..
“Also in that case I didn’t receive any reliable info about the cause of the delay although I do speculate that the reason is they have not enough production capability to release many new lenses.”
It could be also that they have found that they have saturated market too much and any release now would have “negative” impact on prices: many just have bought new gear and can’t afford anything new right now; promotional campaigns would be ineffective and prices would have to be lowered to get any sales. (E.g.: E-PL2 was just released and it diverted quite a lot of attention away from GH2 and GF2.)
Manufacturers often delay release to simply let the market settle and price levels to go up again. Of course, to pull that, they have to be first sure that competitors can’t take advantage of the opportunity.
Has anybody seen stats about how camera sales are distributed over different seasons?
Pana is following footsteps of Oly for becoming a huge joke. Almost 6 months passed,GH2 still not in stocks now lenses postponed. gj pana
Well, at least Olympus hasn’t released anything they aren’t delivering.
Why don’t they save themselves a lot of trouble and just give all their serious users a nice discount voucher for say, £100? Off a Sony Nex. It would be much less work than all this tedious product development and expensive marketing, and they’d get exactly the same result.
No!!!!! I was dying for that 12-50mm lens! That would be the perfect general purpose high-quality zoom lens. I have the 14-42 and it’s range and sharpness aren’t really doing much for me. I want something to match that beautiful 7-14!
If they announce it Fall of 2011, expect it to be readily available in Summer of 2012.
As I’ve said before, the only thing that will kill M43 will be Panasonic and Olympus not answering the demand.
If somebody need GH2
http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?ff3=4&pub=5574825908&toolid=10001&campid=5336351024&customid=&mpre=http%3A%2F%2Fcgi.ebay.com%2FPANASONIC-DMC-GH2K-14-140-%2F120682921604%3Fpt%3DDigital_Cameras%26amp%3Bhash%3Ditem1c19433e84
Admin,
good to know,
and what about the new primes from Olympus?
do you have something about it?
working on it 😉
as soon as you have more rumors about the 50mm’s speed let us please know, my life is depending now on that upcoming prime lol!
Do you know what diverted attention away from the GH2? Its piss poor availability for over five months. Panasonic has no idea how to actually produce the cameras it markets. I went Oly’ because I was tired of waiting.
Panny postponed the release of the lens because they realized their supply would not be able to fulfill the demand~ LOL
“It is unclear yet if we will ever see the GS”. Why would Panasonic name some new MFT camera “GS” when they used to sell the Mini-DV camcorders with the same name?
The sad rumor about the 12-50mm f/2.5-3.3 lens. Can it be related to the recent introductions of third-party lens-makers? However, I am more interested in the 25mm f/1.4 lens.
it could mean 2 things:
1.Nikon have some bad-ass camera up their sleeve and panasonic don’t belive that their GS can compete
2.Panasonic is so dumb to believe that we actually are not interested in GS1 and we prefer cheap&small&low quality compacts like GF1 or LX5
Conclusion:
This sux!
At least we know that Panasonic have been working on a design for a higher end mFT compact. The fast HD 12-50 delay is disconcerting, but the void may be filled by someone else, even if it means MF. It will be a shame if the rumored Nikon mirrorless developments also fizzle, as this spring was shaping up to be really interesting. The GH2 supply limitations remain a puzzle needing a plausible explanation – I don’t believe that it is manufacturing capacity – but in any event being unable to meet the initial surge in demand will be costly in the longer run, as this camera has no present equal.
GF1 is anything but low quality. Actually it has better built quality than the GH2 has.
This is not good news… Really looking forward to the bright zoom.. hmm.. not many alternatives.. either buy an 4/3 Oly 14-54 Mk II or sell all my m4/3 gear and go canikon…
Maybe they postpone it to the date when they can actually deliver it. In contrast to their practice in the recent past.
I don’t know what to make of this latest news or 43rumor? I thought that 43rumors already had predicted that the pro m4/3 GS1 would not come until the third quarter in 2011 just in time for the Xmas sales? Pity for the delays in delivering the fast zoom many want but maybe they are holding that back to make the GS1 even more attractive. If Pany announced the GS1 now far in advance of delivery that would only detract from their GH2 sales.
On the other hand we have no idea yet what the projected G3 will look like and if in an all new body could very well look very much like the L1 only with raised EVF in the middle? Looks like the 25mm/f1.4 will be released at the same time as that model.
If the G3 on the other hand turns out to be very similar to G2 only new sensor and redesigned smaller grip and the GS1 is delayed then Pany needs to produce either the GF1 with G3 new sensor and possible higher resolution optional EVF or the GF3 with inbody EVF. Why no news of this GF3?
My worst fears are that this is the result of upper management bungling which decided to divert resources and development money towards developing 3D to boost sales of their TV sets. However at least one Pany representative has hinted this was at the expense of faster development of the projected m4/3 models most have been waiting for? Why waste lens production space on a low volume low profit slow 3D lens while delaying delivery of fast 12-50mm/f2.5-3.3 zoom which no competitor has and most have been clamoring for? I only hope this is not the case.
Too bad about the 12-50 – this was the lens that would finally convince me to buy a m43 body. 14mm is just not wide enough for me for a walk-around zoom. The 24-100 equivalent FF focal length is perfect. I guess I’ll be waiting for another while or be buying from Nikon if they manage to pull something interesting together.
I was also looking forward to the 12-55, but come on, the 20/1.7 is worth going in to m4/3 on its own and with the rumoured 12mm Olympus, you might not even need the zoom. I might end up with 3 primes, 12, 20 and 50 instead of the 20 and the 12-55 zoom.
I’d like to have the 12-50mm for portrait work so I can change field of view quickly, but I agree for walk around use I’d rather just use a few primes. Really, all I need for a photo walk is a 12mm, 50mm, and maybe a 70mm (although that one is optional). I guess everyone is different, but I don’t need some giant zoom when walking around a city taking photos.
Well, there is no 12mm wide angle prime, which is the magic focal length for me on m43. All of my cameras have a 24mm FF effective focal length walk around zoom (LX-3, D300 + 16-85, & D700 + 24-85 AFS), plus the DSLRs have a wider angle prime (like 20mm on FX).
For what I want – a small body with a large sensor – I would like to have a 12-xx walk-around zoom (fast is fine), a wide angle prime (like a 10mm) and telephoto (100mm) prime.
Although the 20/1.7 is a fine lens, it’s not so useful for me because I prefer wide angle more than normal or telephoto.
The 7-14 is not really attractive to me because 7mm is just too wide.
This is HUGE disappointment! I’m starting to think if I should sell my m43 gear and just move back to LX5 or XZ1…
This is all Nikon’s fault – others are all waiting for their mirrorless release :).
Panasonic has made more than enough bodies recently – it’s sensor and lenses they need to work on. So, the bad news is the delay of 12-50 only. But if they don’t act, other lens makers will certainly fill the gaps.
Olympus bodies and new Panasonic sensor are is needed right now in m4/3.
I think that it was caused by Nikon too. Panasonic wants to wrap Nikon mirrorless. If GS1 is first announced, Nikon could choose another from its prototypes to show. Anyway time doesn’t favor Nikon because, there are new lenses form Pan/Oly, and more market awareness.
I wonder if they are having issue with the new sensor. This could delay future Oly products as well.
PLEASE STOP the GH2 availability weeping son! I can’t hear it anymore!!!
There’s plenty of GH2 stock to buy in Europe, so while you’re crying with your miserable $ on your pockets, we are being milked for € as usual… 🙁
“I can’t hear it anymore!!!”
Me too.
Do not forget, we are living in a globalized world…
Yes globalized world, but NOT globalized warranty/repair!
An educated guess: with the prospect of Nikon and Olympus jumping at the mirrorless high end, Panasonic decides to concentrate on low end products for the time being.
That 12-50 is probably large, heavy and VERY expensive to make. While it will be interesting to professional videographers, most humans will pass it if it costs more than 1000$. The “GS1” would most probably lack IBIS, which is a serious drawback at its user level. No chance to sell it to Leica either. Too similar to Pana’s 4/3 fiasco and way too scary for its management.
Well, if you prefer never ending, incremental PEN releases, with nothing substantially new (oh yes, a 460K LCD) …
The new Olympus star, the EPL-2 has measles – producing red dots, when you shoot to much towards the sun – nice.
For everyone looking to sell their micro 43rds, go ahead. I as well as many others will be more than happy to buy them on eBay. So far, I’m very happy with the GH2. I’m just waiting to buy a EPL1 again.
Darnell.. I have an EP2 I’ll sell ya. Glad you’re happy to buy it.
GS = Global Shutter????????
This is the camera I want. I wont be tempted away from the GH1 by anything else.
Hm.. 7-14 OIS ..cant imagine why OIS. Except that it will be bigger than already is. :/ They should fix that crazy CA, not add OIS.
while this mythical fast lens is not something I was personally waiting for this is indeed sad news and a repeat of PanPoorDelivery against it’s apparent future launches. the low US availability of the GH2 has hurt this company … perhaps they are back tracking. but they seriously need to sort their manufacturing sites out if the delay is production?
the fast 12-50 could replace my 14-54 II that sits on my E-30 … so I’m a potential customer but I still see the PEN as the ideal form factor for mFT and to me pancakes are the way ahead
it is certainly possible that the sigma news has caused this release date to slip … is Sigma making the lens perhaps?
or is it the ever quiet canon that are making this lens for pan? did canon decide to joint the party under their own label?
nikon and pentax going to super small sensors cannot really be the cause if this delay
hi, what do you mean by “They should fix that crazy CA” . i have one 7-14mm and i can say about any issue. thx
When using the lens on a Panasonic camera, some CA artifacts are corrected automatically by software. So using the lens on an Olympus camera will yield CA’s.
Here is an examination of the CA’s produced by the lens (before correction) with the umix 14mm, 20mm and 8mm fisheye:
http://m43photo.blogspot.com/2011/02/chromatic-aberration-and-lens.html
BrianP, I didn’t care much for the EP2. I can currenty get the EPL1 on EBay. I figure this summer, it should be even cheaper.
I think they abandoning the more advanced shooters. If so, I’ll abandon Panasonic.
i can’t say … sorry for double post but i can’t edit the first one
How can it be considered postponed when it was never announced?
I you want to chase a good rumor find out why the GH2 is still only available in limited numbers in many countries. I remember the GH1 fiasco but this is much worse and causes one to suspect something is wrong. My Panasonic Direct order has gone unfilled for well over 2 months – twice as long as the GH1 took to deliver!
I can sell you mine if you want.
What is with the talk about Nikon and small sensor? Afaik, that was Pentax. There was an interview where Nikon considered m43 to be interesting.
check out this interview http://www.eoshd.com/content/519-Nikon-Sony-make-our-APS-C-sensors-we-design-the-high-end-ones-and-Nikon-to-join-Micro-4-3rds
@admin:
Sorry, but I am afraid you are just dreaming about a LC-1 / L-1 design for a Panasonic camera by
2011. First, it was Leica-branded and appeared concomitantly with a red badge Leica version at times where the two companies had mutual advantages of a tight collaboration ; I am everything but sure that this is still the case. Second, have a look at the the designs of the Lumix cameras for the past five years. Then you have the answer.
Btw, things are looking really promising for the NEX system, with several new lenses to be announced within the next 2-3 months, see sonyalpharumors.com. If they manage to also build a decent camera, that would be awesome.
PS: I was mentioning this in part because I hope Sony’s moves will make Panasonic and Olympus realize that they need to work harder in order for m43 to have a future.