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How long do I wait?

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Chris Noble

Chris Noble

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The G85 will be my next camera. But I don't need to be first in line. The engineer in me knows that, despite the best quality-control systems, there are lots of defects that only show up when a few hundred or thousand units get into the clumsy rough hands of real customers, and that fixes are then done at every hardware production and firmware stage. And the G85 has a new shutter and IBIS added to its G7 predecessor. And the price will drop.

How long do I wait? 3 months is OK, but then I'll be getting impatient... And if I wait a year, I may be close to the "minor revision" G90 -- which is bound to come in 18 months or so as the G85 will be a very popular camera.

Any thoughts?
 
Unless it's a super-popular model with long waiting lists I think it's hard to reliably game the system, as distribution around the globe isn't necessarily chronological. Different markets get differing priority and who knows how long a particular containerload takes to work its way though customs then a given country's distribution system and out to retailers. Have read dozens of "my camera X has firmware 1.0 even though it's been for sale two years" stories to believe there's a reliable pipeline from factory to my front door.

With that said, perhaps watch for the first firmware update and then buy. Have had a couple cameras completely transformed by FW updates--both bug fixes and feature additions.

Good luck!

Rick
 
Cheezr said:
I would wait until the revision is announced, that way you get fully tested product at the best price.
Click to expand...
That seems like the most logical/patient approach!
 
3 months or FW 1.1 -- whichever is the SOONER!!!

Bearing in mind that the engineer in you should be noting that whle the shutter and IBIS in the G80/85 are new to the G line, they are developed/translated from the GX80/85 line so they are pretty well tested. :)
 
Chris Noble said:
The G85 will be my next camera. But I don't need to be first in line. The engineer in me knows that, despite the best quality-control systems, there are lots of defects that only show up when a few hundred or thousand units get into the clumsy rough hands of real customers, and that fixes are then done at every hardware production and firmware stage. And the G85 has a new shutter and IBIS added to its G7 predecessor. And the price will drop.

How long do I wait? 3 months is OK, but then I'll be getting impatient... And if I wait a year, I may be close to the "minor revision" G90 -- which is bound to come in 18 months or so as the G85 will be a very popular camera.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
Starting to see more documentation on the jerky video with IBIS on, so I would for sure wait until that gets fixed.
 
Chris Noble said:
The G85 will be my next camera. But I don't need to be first in line. The engineer in me knows that, despite the best quality-control systems, there are lots of defects that only show up when a few hundred or thousand units get into the clumsy rough hands of real customers, and that fixes are then done at every hardware production and firmware stage. And the G85 has a new shutter and IBIS added to its G7 predecessor. And the price will drop.

How long do I wait? 3 months is OK, but then I'll be getting impatient... And if I wait a year, I may be close to the "minor revision" G90 -- which is bound to come in 18 months or so as the G85 will be a very popular camera.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
What does the engineer in you say?
 
need for speed said:
Chris Noble said:
The G85 will be my next camera. But I don't need to be first in line. The engineer in me knows that, despite the best quality-control systems, there are lots of defects that only show up when a few hundred or thousand units get into the clumsy rough hands of real customers, and that fixes are then done at every hardware production and firmware stage. And the G85 has a new shutter and IBIS added to its G7 predecessor. And the price will drop.

How long do I wait? 3 months is OK, but then I'll be getting impatient... And if I wait a year, I may be close to the "minor revision" G90 -- which is bound to come in 18 months or so as the G85 will be a very popular camera.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
What does the engineer in you say?
Click to expand...
No other m43 camera comes close to the G7 ergonomically. I'd keep it until it broke except for the shutter-shock. That's my only compelling reason to upgrade before then. The 12-bit Raw output in E-shutter mode and the AA filter removal are the second but not must-have reason (I like wide-DR landscapes). The other features like body seals are nice enhancements but not must-haves for me.

The G85 shutter has already been in production in the GX so that should be OK. The IBIS has been enhanced from the GX, so I'll wait until the video-panning shaking has been fixed -- firmware presumably, but their IBIS actuator vendor may tweak the component. IBIS is tricky -- Panasonic is still catching up with Olympus on that. I'll see what people are saying in 3 months. Patience... patience...
 
Hopefully not as long as this guy.....

Pekka

 
you might not want to let that slip buy. that actually could go away. Offer appears good until 3/31/17. Also I just looked at the website and you may be able to get 20% of adobe creative cloud for a year. thats worth about $20
 
loafer said:
you might not want to let that slip buy. that actually could go away. Offer appears good until 3/31/17. Also I just looked at the website and you may be able to get 20% of adobe creative cloud for a year. thats worth about $20
Click to expand...
That was part of there reason I decided to buy now. I am sure there will be a resolution to the video issue in short order. Also now when the black Friday/holiday sales roll around I can spend my money on lenses and accessories.
 
Chris Noble said:
The G85 will be my next camera. But I don't need to be first in line. The engineer in me knows that, despite the best quality-control systems, there are lots of defects that only show up when a few hundred or thousand units get into the clumsy rough hands of real customers, and that fixes are then done at every hardware production and firmware stage. And the G85 has a new shutter and IBIS added to its G7 predecessor. And the price will drop.

How long do I wait? 3 months is OK, but then I'll be getting impatient... And if I wait a year, I may be close to the "minor revision" G90 -- which is bound to come in 18 months or so as the G85 will be a very popular camera.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
It'll be $150 cheaper and all the bugs worked out and all the software will support it.

I've always regretted being an early adopter.
 
Current status seems to be:

1. Video panning jerkiness: seems like a firmware update should fix.

2. IBIS noise: this seems like a hardware issue. We'll see if Panasonic's component vendor fixes that in later production.

3. 3-year warranty available until March 3, 2017: could be a factor.

4. Post-Christmas price drop?

5. Other issues in early production that have not surfaced yet?

Apart from DPReview, where else do camera users chat about their cameras?

Will review in January.
 
Last edited:
Chris Noble said:
Current status seems to be:

1. Video panning jerkiness: seems like a firmware update should fix.

2. IBIS noise: this seems like a hardware issue. We'll see if Panasonic's component vendor fixes that in later production.

3. 3-year warranty available until March 3, 2017: could be a factor.

4. Post-Christmas price drop?

5. Other issues in early production that have not surfaced yet?

Apart from DPReview, where else do camera users chat about their cameras?

Will review in January.
Click to expand...
I have read some post that the camera will "freeze" up.
 
Chris Noble said:
The G85 will be my next camera. But I don't need to be first in line. The engineer in me knows that, despite the best quality-control systems, there are lots of defects that only show up when a few hundred or thousand units get into the clumsy rough hands of real customers, and that fixes are then done at every hardware production and firmware stage. And the G85 has a new shutter and IBIS added to its G7 predecessor. And the price will drop.

How long do I wait? 3 months is OK, but then I'll be getting impatient... And if I wait a year, I may be close to the "minor revision" G90 -- which is bound to come in 18 months or so as the G85 will be a very popular camera.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
Do I wait for the 12-bit Raw next version of the G85?
 
loafer said:
you might not want to let that slip buy. that actually could go away. Offer appears good until 3/31/17. Also I just looked at the website and you may be able to get 20% of adobe creative cloud for a year. thats worth about $20
Click to expand...
At least in the USA, the 3 year warranty deal did not cover the G85. It only covered the cameras that were announced at the time when the original plan went out.

I looked into it because I just bought a G85.
 
When it comes to cameras and computers, I usually wait until about 32 days before a big price reduction.
 
I have been using Panasonic for many years (since the G1 which I still own) and not had any failures. Perhaps I should consider myself lucky, but I tend to think that the QC is pretty good. If Panasonic were not vigilant, I doubt that Leitz would want to allow the Leica name to be used on lenses....or co-opt Panasonic bodies to put the Leica brand and red dot on. If Panasonic is good enough for Leitz/Leica, it is good enough for me.
 
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