Who's planning to get the GH1?

[raymondluo]

I'll prolly get a local PAL one anyways, although if i can get from HK- I definitely won't mind since it's going for HK$11600 (about US$1496) there.

Anyone getting from HK, help me out yah? Lol

 

[gallery]

I'm considering getting a GH1 - possibly importing it from US/UK/JP/HK if I can't get it locally. But can I check with the experienced guys what issues I might run into, as I'm really new to DSLRs?

- Warranty
Is there any chance that Panasonic Singapore would honor the warranty for a model bought in US/UK/JP/HK?

- NTSC vs PAL
I suppose this should not be an issue if video is always hooked up to a multi-system TV, or to a computer, right?

- 50Hz vs 60Hz electrical systems
However, Singapore's electricity is 50Hz. I read somewhere that if the video camera isn't recording at a multiple of this frequency, some recordings (eg. with fluourescent lighting) will have flickering lights. Is this true, and likely to be a problem for imports from US? Wouldn't this also be true for other video-capable cameras (like 5DM2, D90 and K-7) and camcorders imported from US?

- UK model's 29min59s video recording limit
to be aware that this limit affects all EU models

- JP model in japanese language only.
to be aware of language difference. and perhaps flickering lights problem. I wonder, if a firmware upgrade is issued for non-JP models in future, is it likely to be applicable to the JP model, and give english interface on the JP model?

Thanks in advance!

 

[raymondluo]

Hi gallery, you already know about UK's limit so it's a definite no go for their models, but i'll also take a step further and say that the PAL version is definitely the one i would want to get- Being that shooting at 25p/50p (24p/60p for NTSC) video allows me to save the hassle from doing a pulldown. Which makes for an easier time in shooting usable footage.

the difference between one frame doesn't detriment the quality at all. In my opinion, shooting in 25p allows me to convert the file into 24p better than i would the other way round.

HK is in english, and is pal- Alternatively you could wait for the singapore version but it might be more expensive during launch than the HK pricing i stated above your post.

 

[gallery]

Thanks raymond.

I'd certainly prefer a local version, or a PAL version if the local is not available. However, Panasonic SG seems to be telling me it will be released in Q3, which may be too late for me

That link doesn't actually list any HK merchants selling the camera, nor can I find any with some casual googling. Do you know of any web retailers selling the HK version?

 

[raymondluo]

Thanks raymond.

I'd certainly prefer a local version, or a PAL version if the local is not available. However, Panasonic SG seems to be telling me it will be released in Q3, which may be too late for me

That link doesn't actually list any HK merchants selling the camera, nor can I find any with some casual googling. Do you know of any web retailers selling the HK version?

I don't, it's ridiculous how the Pentax K7 is coming out so fast (and priceiliously good) but the GH1- Which has been out already for quite a whiles still have yet to land in singapore.

 

[gallery]

I find myself considering getting an NTSC version again since I still can't find a non-UK PAL version... From the US manual:

–Color or brightness of the image may change, or you may see horizontal bars on the sides of 
the image when the subject is recorded in an extremely bright place or under fluorescent 
light, mercury light, sodium light, etc. In this case, record in another recording mode or 
manually adjust the shutter speed to 1/60 or 1/100.

So we should be able to work around flickering fluorescent lights by setting shutter speed to 1/100.

Then there's only the difference of having a sensor that outputs 24fps vs 25fps, and the need to do reverse pulldown. Are there any other downsides to using an NTSC model?

 

[YSLee]

I've talked to a guy from Panasonic. No later than 3rd July, and could well be earlier, depending on how on the ball our shops are.

 

[adorable]

I also saw this camera. I think it is very nice size if dSLR is too bulky for me. But I also want to get Fujifilm EXR compact leh.

 

[gallery]

I've talked to a guy from Panasonic. No later than 3rd July, and could well be earlier, depending on how on the ball our shops are.

That would be good. Heard that the other camera I'm considering (Olympus E-P1) should also be around this time.

 

[CYRN]

I've talked to a guy from Panasonic. No later than 3rd July, and could well be earlier, depending on how on the ball our shops are.

That would be good. Heard that the other camera I'm considering (Olympus E-P1) should also be around this time.

now with EP1 out and looking sexy... it's gonna be a hard choice between GH1 and EP1. :sweat:

 

[YSLee]

Oh I forgot one more detail. RRP is $2499. Kit with 14-140 only, no body only sales. Limited quantities in the first shipment.

 

[raymondluo]

now with EP1 out and looking sexy... it's gonna be a hard choice between GH1 and EP1. :sweat:

Depends on what you're looking for, the E-P1 has absolutely external microphone input and does not shoot 60p, which is great for doing slow-mo video. But if it's purely a still camera and with the option for some good looking bad sounding video, E-P1's way worth the GH1.

Oh I forgot one more detail. RRP is $2499. Kit with 14-140 only, no body only sales. Limited quantities in the first shipment.

Wow.... I might be tempted to jump to Pentax K7 now.

 

[A.T.]

Oh I forgot one more detail. RRP is $2499. Kit with 14-140 only, no body only sales. Limited quantities in the first shipment.

Guess my guess is pretty accurate. Any idea when?

now with EP1 out and looking sexy... it's gonna be a hard choice between GH1 and EP1. :sweat:

If I can't afford to blast 2.5K on the GH1, I will go for the EP1 (around 1.6K rite?). Just no swivel LCD screen. Ouch. Bad sounding video is okay, I just need good looking video. Can strip the audio track and put in a processed one later.

 

[YSLee]

I already said when; latest 3rd July. Could be up to a week earlier. Really depends on the shops.

The GH1 has potentially better looking video.

 

[gallery]

If I can't afford to blast 2.5K on the GH1, I will go for the EP1 (around 1.6K rite?).

I think the E-P1 is estimated to sell around $1300 to 1600 depending on which kit lens combination you need.

Bad sounding video is okay, I just need good looking video

If I'm not mistaken, the only HD video option for the E-P1 is 720p @ 30fps using MJPEG compression (ie, maximum of 7mins in 2GB). At SD, you can get 14mins in the same 2GB.

Oh I forgot one more detail. RRP is $2499. Kit with 14-140 only, no body only sales. Limited quantities in the first shipment.

Hmm, so that's S$2500 for the PAL version with local warranty, or ~ $1860 for a Japanese NTSC version... That means a 33% premium paid for the local version. Or half the price of the PAL GH1 gets the basic E-P1 package. Decisions, decisions.

 

[gallery]

Wow.... I might be tempted to jump to Pentax K7 now.

i think S$2499 for the GH1 isn't bad if considering the US retail price.. US$1500 * 1.07 (GST) * 1.4549 (exhange rate) = S$2335. So they're just making $164 or another 7%. Would certainly be preferable to buy locally than import from US or HK.

But the JP price is so much lower, and I'd expect that the SG price will also drop after the buy-at-any-price early adopters have been skimmed. Heck, the K-7 costs significantly more than the GH1 in JP.

Err, does the $2499 RRP include GST already?

YSLee, any word on which colour options will be available?

 

[A.T.]

I already said when; latest 3rd July. Could be up to a week earlier. Really depends on the shops.

Kinda missed out on the date while reading the forum. Or ghost-cover-eye. Hee, hee.

Decisions, decisions.

Considering to purchase a few electronic items in July. Wonder which one gets priority.


Olympus only one micro 4/3 camera after one year. Kinda disappointing.

 

[YSLee]

$2499 is RRP. I'm sure your favourite store will have some kind of discount.

I can't remember the colour options, but the guy did say there'll be more than black.

 

[kababoom]

$2499 is RRP. I'm sure your favourite store will have some kind of discount.

I can't remember the colour options, but the guy did say there'll be more than black.

Hopefully we will see it by this friday

 

[sibeiblur]

looks like the GH1 firmware arrived earlier than the camera in Singapore.

June 22, 2009: A new firmware is released for Panasonic LUMIX G Micro System cameras and a lens. The firmware Version 1.1 for DMC-GH1 allows faster burst shooting and improves control of shutter speed and stability of AF in movie recording. It also enhances performance and compatibility of the camera in other points.