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List price as of Nov 3, 2008:
S$1199
S$1199
Product Summary
Very good
The good: Compact size; easy operation; 3-inch swiveling LCD; innovative Live View Finder; good image quality. 7.6
out of 10View score
The bad: dSLR-like styling hard to differentiate from other shooters; displays are laggy under dim lighting.
The bottom line: Panasonic has set the benchmark for the Micro Four Thirds Standard with the G1, a very capable shooter for those who want to upgrade to a slightly more advanced camera from a point-and-shoot.
Read full review of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 »
Average User Rating
from 3 users
Excellent
8.3
out of 10CNET Asia Review
Ever since the Micro Four Thirds Standard was announced in August, we've been extremely anxious to find out if this new system delivers as promised--smaller camera body and lenses and more intuitive operations. The first shooter to utilize this standard, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 was showcased at Photokina in September and now we finally got our mitts on a review unit.
After all the talk about the Micro Four Thirds Standard shrinking down the size of shooters, we didn't really find the G1 much smaller than the Olympus E-420, which is currently the world's smallest dSLR. However, the Panasonic's profile is slimmer. What we really like about the G1 would be its displays. The 3-inch swiveling LCD gave good representation of the scene and the high-resolution electronic viewfinder redefined what EVFs are capable of. Although the screens were slightly laggy under dim lighting, they performed exceptionally well in daylight situations.
Utilizing the Four Thirds sensor means the chip is slightly larger than what is found in most point-and-shoots, but still smaller than the conventional APS-C-sized sensor found in a majority of dSLRs. For the G1, the image quality exceeded our expectations and that was what impressed us most.
As the Micro Four Thirds Standard does not require any mirror mechanisms, the optics to sensor distance is reduced by 50 percent. This sounds like it could probably slim down the camera a lot, but in reality it is just a tad more petite than the Olympus E-420, which is currently the world smallest and lightest dSLR.
The handgrip measures approximately 6cm in height, and while it is grooved to provide a nice catch for our middle finger to latch onto, we found our pinkie dangling off the shooter most of the time. Built into the handgrip also is the front dial, used for changing exposure settings or zooming in/out in playback mode.
The top deck is furnished with switches and dials typical of what you may find on a dSLR. A dedicated knob on the left end lets you toggle between different autofocus or manual modes, while the larger dial on the right allows for changing shooting modes. When turned, they provided satisfying physical feedback. The power and drive mode levers are situated below the mode dial, and this anables the user to change settings on the fly.
The rear is taken up mostly by the 3-inch LCD, leaving little space for the four-way navigation pad. The buttons are smaller to space them out evenly and not look too congested, but we found them to be situated a little too low for easy access.
For the first time in a dSLR-like shooter, more color options are available. The G1 is offered in black, blue and red. Personally, we liked the crimson version better as it deviates from a boring and serious look.
What really surprised us most was how small the kit lens is. As the lens diameter is now 6mm tinier than other Four Thirds optics, the 14-45mm F3.5-5.6 VARIO G lens is much smaller than conventional dSLR kit lenses.
Tags: DSLR, Camera, LCD, optics, Panasonic
After all the talk about the Micro Four Thirds Standard shrinking down the size of shooters, we didn't really find the G1 much smaller than the Olympus E-420, which is currently the world's smallest dSLR. However, the Panasonic's profile is slimmer. What we really like about the G1 would be its displays. The 3-inch swiveling LCD gave good representation of the scene and the high-resolution electronic viewfinder redefined what EVFs are capable of. Although the screens were slightly laggy under dim lighting, they performed exceptionally well in daylight situations.
Utilizing the Four Thirds sensor means the chip is slightly larger than what is found in most point-and-shoots, but still smaller than the conventional APS-C-sized sensor found in a majority of dSLRs. For the G1, the image quality exceeded our expectations and that was what impressed us most.
Design
The Lumix DMC-G1 is almost indistinguishable from other dSLRs despite Panasonic's attempts to differentiate it from that class. Its rationale for this design is that the company's survey found that consumers still preferred traditional designs. Hence the G1 was styled like a dSLR, right down to the handgrip and the faux prism hump which now houses the Live View Finder.As the Micro Four Thirds Standard does not require any mirror mechanisms, the optics to sensor distance is reduced by 50 percent. This sounds like it could probably slim down the camera a lot, but in reality it is just a tad more petite than the Olympus E-420, which is currently the world smallest and lightest dSLR.
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The handgrip measures approximately 6cm in height, and while it is grooved to provide a nice catch for our middle finger to latch onto, we found our pinkie dangling off the shooter most of the time. Built into the handgrip also is the front dial, used for changing exposure settings or zooming in/out in playback mode.
The top deck is furnished with switches and dials typical of what you may find on a dSLR. A dedicated knob on the left end lets you toggle between different autofocus or manual modes, while the larger dial on the right allows for changing shooting modes. When turned, they provided satisfying physical feedback. The power and drive mode levers are situated below the mode dial, and this anables the user to change settings on the fly.
)
The rear is taken up mostly by the 3-inch LCD, leaving little space for the four-way navigation pad. The buttons are smaller to space them out evenly and not look too congested, but we found them to be situated a little too low for easy access.
For the first time in a dSLR-like shooter, more color options are available. The G1 is offered in black, blue and red. Personally, we liked the crimson version better as it deviates from a boring and serious look.
What really surprised us most was how small the kit lens is. As the lens diameter is now 6mm tinier than other Four Thirds optics, the 14-45mm F3.5-5.6 VARIO G lens is much smaller than conventional dSLR kit lenses.
Tags: DSLR, Camera, LCD, optics, Panasonic
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User Reviews
you can go to manufacturer's site to make good comparison just like buying a car.
Jan 8, 2009Rating: 9 out of 10 (Spectacular)
Pros: excellent in this catergory
Cons: nil
Opinion:
I have a SLR look the same as the above panasonic lumic dmc g1. And what is more that it is a dSLR. smaller to grip and work better than most other makers in same.
Why rate this when you haven't used it?
Oct 28, 2008Rating: 9 out of 10 (Spectacular)
Pros: Small and Light
Cons: It's not out yet so it's hard to tell
Opinion:
The only reason I gave this review is to question the fellow who left the first one and gave the camera a rating. How can one rate this when it hasn't even been released yet.
I would have simply left a comment to this effect if there were a comment section under this review, but there is not.
Oh, and Leonard Goh writes the most sexist e-mails. They are insulting to women. He always writes things like -- "ladies like the small dainty cameras and guys like the big and brawny ones." Mr. Goh, get with it. It's not the Dark Ages anymore.
delicious ..
Sep 12, 2008Rating: 7 out of 10 (Very good)
Pros: interchangeable lens
Cons: the price ??
Opinion:
wow .. first look at this cam picture and it reminds me of decepticons from trasnformers, the color is so devilish delicious, the maroon red is so so so nice.. hope to see the real thing soon
User Discussion
edghami:
I take back what i said about this cam's performance, i just saw sample images of this camera at ...
thamrinm:
easy to use it, but still rather costly its price
einnorx:
I looked at some of the comments posted about the G1, of which a number of people said that, ...
edghami:
Nice review, though as you said image quality does no match up with an dslr, with that price, i ...
gohleonard:
Hi! We are very excited about the G1 as well and we assure you we will put up the ...
