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Panasonic G80 / G85 / G8 4K 5-axis stab magnesium monster
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  • Another review

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    Despite the fact that the DMC-G80 has four fewer megapixels than the range-topping GX8, the removal of the optical low pass filter and the improvement to the optical image stabilization system makes it difficult to judge between the two cameras as to which in fact has the better image quality - it’s pretty much too close to call.

    http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/panasonic_lumix_dmc_g80_review/

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  • How 16Mp sensor compares to latest 20Mp one by Sony?

  • Does it (Japan) have English menu?

  • @o2warp

    Panasonic always had separate version for Japan, it is not Asian version.

  • @yskunto No. Japan is NTSC Area. There is no limit recording and No PAL/NTSC Option like G85.

  • I think the G8 Asia version will offer all PAL/NTSC video fps options. I hope Panasonic will be very generous by allowing unlimited video time recording of this model. Would they?

  • NTSC models dont have time limit but you cannot switch to PAL.

  • From the menu walk through in the posted video, it's seems that G85 have all PAL/NTSC video fps option! It is a buy for me. I wonder if non Europe model retains unlimited video time recording. Anyone have this info?

  • @geddyt You will hear a lot about how the 16mp sensor is just as good as the 20mp sensor and so on; obviously, I like Panasonics and there are eight of them in the house, but although I consider the stills part of the camera workable, and it's gotten better with each model, the Olympus is better. For the last four years, its Olympus for stills, Panny for video. The Olly has this amazing feature where you get the equivalent of a 42mp sensor--that's awesome.
    In low light, these cameras just aren't like the ones with larger sensors, but the gap has narrowed. The Sony's, particularly the A7* type, are just amazing. And make no mistake, they take amazing video, and in any kind of light.
    So why do I use Panasonics for video? well, we also use Sony, but the Panasonics are cheap and the don't overheat on long events where we film for eight hours in a row. Otherwise, we would be using all Sony at this point.

    Is the old story about Olly being better than Panasonic for stills? I think so, but the Elephant in the room is the new Olly camera. They are promising better everything.
    Lastly, there's no point in getting a GH4, the G7 has better video, the GX85 has better video and better stills. The new G85 looks like the best of the two of these.

  • Thanks for the reply, DrDave. I agree that the stills are getting better across the board. My wife is already doing amazing work with the small sensor cam. Where she suffers, though, is in her inability to do nearly any indoor work, so I'm looking for a little help at higher ISO from a new body.

    The new Olympus is intriguing, but comparative specs suggest that there would be no reason to pay twice as much to pick it up over a G85. Seems to be the exact same LSI, sensor, IBIS system?

    We're pretty invested in MFT at this point. In spite of this, I went to Kenmore Camera and tried the A7RII after it came out. After 15 minutes I swore off Sony cameras, finding myself unable to figure out how to do pretty much anything with it. Controls are terrible, and menu system is a maze. Seemed like we'd miss half our shots just getting the damned thing setup to shoot. Large sensor DSLRs would present a similar problem: We're both live view, WYSIWYG shooters, and I feel like the handling of the Panny GH series is too intuitive and ingrained to depart from. Give me A6300 internals crammed into a Panasonic body and with an EF mount, and we'd both be in heaven. Alas...

    In the meantime, just feeling out for advice on whether any of the new MFT bodies are worth the cost to upgrade from GH4, and if any differentiate themselves enough to be the one to go to. Difficult without official GH5 specs, but thought I'd ask anyway in light of what a bargain this G85 seems to be.

  • @DrDave @Vitality_Kiselev

    So does that mean with the US G85, it was will have unlimited recording like the personal-view NTSC G7's 4K MP4? That's one feature I love on my mine :)

  • @geddyt Well, first of all the stills are getting better on all cams. Panasonic fixed the shutter, which was a problem, and added IS. It makes a difference. You can take decent photos with the Panasonics, but for photos the Olympus is a bit better, and the a6300 even better. If you want low light, great photos and the occasional movie, well, I just happen to like a lot of those Sony cams for photos, or the Fuji....low light is OK, it just isn't the m4/3 strong suit. Olympus is claiming that their new high end cam is better, so we will see.

  • I'm seeing G80, G85, G81. Are we talking about one camera with an unsettled name, or are there variations?

    Seems to me this is basically a GH4 with a Sony sensor and IBIS. Am I wrong? Are there any GH4 features missing from this that would make the GH5 worth the wait (assuming I'm happy with the GH4)?

    I'm not a professional, but my wife shoots natural light portraits professionally with a GH4. I shoot the occasional video of the kids with it. So video capability is great, but definitely less important than stills quality. Being thrilled with GH4's video capabilities as-is, all I care about is if somebody releases an M43 body that offers substantially better low light performance in photo mode. If this G85/81/80/whatever has dual image stabilization, and the GH5 doesn't, seems like it's possible that this much cheaper camera may actually work better for our needs. Am I right?

  • I shoulda bought the PAL G7. But they will all be obsolete soon.

  • @DrDave

    I always loved Panasonic. From one side you have time limited switchable camera, from other side it is unlimited buy 60/30p only. :-) Sounds strange.

  • From Imaging Resource:

    "According to Panasonic's specs, the NTSC region G85 only has NTSC-specific framerates, whereas European model, dubbed the Panasonic G80 or G81, will support in-camera frequency switching between 25p and 30p/24p. For Full HD video recording, the G85/G80/G81 offers up to 60p (PAL models also have a 50p frame rate option). For the US-bound model, there will not be a continuous video recording time limit, so you can setup the camera and record video continuous until the card fills, the battery dies, or, of course, unless the camera's heat warning kicks in."

  • not sure about time limit, but its 60fps max. at 1080 for sure.

  • Does the G80/85 have unlimited time video recording and provide full PAL/NTSC fps options: 24p, 25p, 30p, 50p, 60p, 100p, 120p?

  • @Grimor, the GH5 is not yet out, so G80 is your best option atm. cine allows to shoot flat(ish) in 4k. Anamorphic you have the options for 4k photo mode burst @ 30fps i believe in 4:3, i believe GH series had full anamorphic support inc. desqueeze on screen, so for anamorphic you might want to go GH unless you can live off the photo burst mode and/or 16:9 video

    for all its worth, the G80 is a way better deal than the GH5 will be for most enthousiasts, but a G7 at soon to be plummeting prices an even better deal for the money if you're not needing the stabilizing feature.

  • How much will the GH5 cost over G80?

    I think around 1.7-2x.

  • @kritzresn Thanks. I've sold my G6 and now looking for an updated body. Anamorphic 4:3 & 3:2 4k and flat profile is a must for my needs. Do you think G80 can do the job? Does 4k photo mode record audio? How much will the GH5 cost over G80?

  • @Grimor / @DrDave check the menu video @ 0:09 it shows "Photostyles" with the last 2 options being "CNED" & CNEV" as to be expected this was to be included otherwise it would not be a G7 upgrade ofcourse.

    Crop factor seems to be same to G7 GX85 as sensor is too, so good news there. Another neat thing to point out is the optional grip, since that will allow to hot swap the grip battery while you can keep on shooting with the internal battery. now if only there was a PAL version without 29 min limit ;)

    Looks we got ourselves a new champ untill the GH5 comes out.

    btw, did anybody look into if the v2 stabilizing has any edge over v1 for non supported lenses (legacy / manual) ?