Will Panasonic compete?

Obviously there is a lot of talk about the OM3 at the moment but what do we think Panasonic's next move will be? It looks to me that OMS are getting their product tiering in place with midrange / premium / flagship offerings, similar to most other manufacturers. Panasonic on the other hand have entry level and two flagships but nothing that can be considered a true midrange / premium offering.

Do we think Pana will compete in this segment or just let OMS have it to themselves? A more compact premium offering with G9II tech would surely be a compelling competitor to the OM3.

Matt3400 said:

Obviously there is a lot of talk about the OM3 at the moment but what do we think Panasonic's next move will be? It looks to me that OMS are getting their product tiering in place with midrange / premium / flagship offerings, similar to most other manufacturers. Panasonic on the other hand have entry level and two flagships but nothing that can be considered a true midrange / premium offering.

Do we think Pana will compete in this segment or just let OMS have it to themselves? A more compact premium offering with G9II tech would surely be a compelling competitor to the OM3.

Click to expand...

It took General Motors three years to market their Mustang.



Six years for Chrysler








Six years for American Motors



Sixty one years later only the Mustang remains.



There will only be the original OM3 no matter how many copy the design.

Business schools will use it as an example of flawless design forever.

--
Humansville is a town in the Missouri Ozarks

Matt3400 said:

Obviously there is a lot of talk about the OM3 at the moment but what do we think Panasonic's next move will be? It looks to me that OMS are getting their product tiering in place with midrange / premium / flagship offerings, similar to most other manufacturers. Panasonic on the other hand have entry level and two flagships but nothing that can be considered a true midrange / premium offering.

Do we think Pana will compete in this segment or just let OMS have it to themselves? A more compact premium offering with G9II tech would surely be a compelling competitor to the OM3.

Click to expand...

There have no retro camera design they can fall on.

But a 25MP GX10 would be really nice


So would a 25MP GM5 mark II

bluevellet said:

Matt3400 said:

Obviously there is a lot of talk about the OM3 at the moment but what do we think Panasonic's next move will be? It looks to me that OMS are getting their product tiering in place with midrange / premium / flagship offerings, similar to most other manufacturers. Panasonic on the other hand have entry level and two flagships but nothing that can be considered a true midrange / premium offering.

Do we think Pana will compete in this segment or just let OMS have it to themselves? A more compact premium offering with G9II tech would surely be a compelling competitor to the OM3.

Click to expand...

There have no retro camera design they can fall on.

But a 25MP GX10 would be really nice

So would a 25MP GM5 mark II

Click to expand...

I am sure they would not put a mic input in it. Pity.

> But a 25MP GX10 would be really nice
> So would a 25MP GM5 mark II

Or a GX8 mk2

Sadly I don't expect any of these to appear.

Mark

bluevellet said:

Matt3400 said:

Obviously there is a lot of talk about the OM3 at the moment but what do we think Panasonic's next move will be? It looks to me that OMS are getting their product tiering in place with midrange / premium / flagship offerings, similar to most other manufacturers. Panasonic on the other hand have entry level and two flagships but nothing that can be considered a true midrange / premium offering.

Do we think Pana will compete in this segment or just let OMS have it to themselves? A more compact premium offering with G9II tech would surely be a compelling competitor to the OM3.

Click to expand...

There have no retro camera design they can fall on.

Click to expand...

Panasonic markets good ergonomics (mostly) and functionality over simulacra nostalgic design.

bluevellet said:

But a 25MP GX10 would be really nice

So would a 25MP GM5 mark II

Click to expand...

GX8 Mark II. Probably not. But never say never, eh?

Not much to compete with, the G9II is strides ahead of the OM3. The OM3 is a step backwards for more money, less features and poor build quality (in reference to holding the camera with no grip). It also looks out of balance pretty ugly.

Searching said:

Not much to compete with, the G9II is strides ahead of the OM3. The OM3 is a step backwards for more money, less features and poor build quality (in reference to holding the camera with no grip). It also looks out of balance pretty ugly.

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G9II doesn't sell. OMDS will sell boatload of the OM-3 for more moneys, so it seems. Good for OMDS and bad for Panasonic, the bean counters things.

> in reference to holding the camera with no grip

Some reviews suggest that isn't the challenge you might expect. Perhaps the extra area offered by the wider body makes a difference.

Mark

> the G9II is strides ahead

Perhaps it is but is no use to me - too big.

Humansvillian said:

Sixty one years later only the Mustang remains.

Click to expand...

In name only surely.

Emerald Slick said:

Searching said:

Not much to compete with, the G9II is strides ahead of the OM3. The OM3 is a step backwards for more money, less features and poor build quality (in reference to holding the camera with no grip). It also looks out of balance pretty ugly.

Click to expand...

G9II doesn't sell. OMDS will sell boatload of the OM-3 for more moneys, so it seems. Good for OMDS and bad for Panasonic, the bean counters things.

Click to expand...

ILC body and lens sales are 67% down on 2012 figures. Generally less good for bean counters everywhere.

Emerald Slick said:

Searching said:

Not much to compete with, the G9II is strides ahead of the OM3. The OM3 is a step backwards for more money, less features and poor build quality (in reference to holding the camera with no grip). It also looks out of balance pretty ugly.

Click to expand...

G9II doesn't sell. OMDS will sell boatload of the OM-3 for more moneys, so it seems. Good for OMDS and bad for Panasonic, the bean counters things.

Click to expand...

I don't know what how well the Panasonic g9ii is doing but I do know it is not what I wanted in a new micro-fourthirds body. I was hoping for a little smaller body with all of the features of the old G9 but with some new updates. I don't see a point in using a FF body for m4/3rds. They did offer a very minor update in their G97 body. I am sure the bean counters influenced their decision. That is business.

Sorry I should have been more specific. I didn't mean a direct retro styled competitor to the OM3 but a competitor in the general mid range / premium segment. Currently Panasonic have a big gap in their line up between entry level and flagship. I wonder if they intend to fill that gap or avoid doing so to protect sales of their flagships.

Now that OMS have cascaded down their flagship tech, will this push Panasonic to do the same? Or will they just let OMS have that segment to themselves?

bluevellet said:

Matt3400 said:

Obviously there is a lot of talk about the OM3 at the moment but what do we think Panasonic's next move will be? It looks to me that OMS are getting their product tiering in place with midrange / premium / flagship offerings, similar to most other manufacturers. Panasonic on the other hand have entry level and two flagships but nothing that can be considered a true midrange / premium offering.

Do we think Pana will compete in this segment or just let OMS have it to themselves? A more compact premium offering with G9II tech would surely be a compelling competitor to the OM3.

Click to expand...

There have no retro camera design they can fall on.

But a 25MP GX10 would be really nice

So would a 25MP GM5 mark II

Click to expand...

The GM series in silver does look really good. Just please give me a threaded shutter release, the stock one on the GM1 didn't feel good for me. But I was really impressed with the body.

So the GM5 with the 25mp sensor would be nice. Sell it with the 14 f2.5 or make a new version of the 12-32 with a metal zoom ring that's stylized to match the camera and more secure so it doesn't just fall off like the current one can.

The big question is how small is the whole processing engine for the GM5 but Panasonic has the electronics engineering knowledge to work on that problem.

I'm not rooting for this but they could even do electronic shutter only like the S9 and the faster m43 readout speed would make that less of an issue for photography. If that's what it takes to get the smallest but well built m43 body at a price point people would buy it for it's not the worst compromise.

Mark P Thornton said:

> in reference to holding the camera with no grip

Some reviews suggest that isn't the challenge you might expect. Perhaps the extra area offered by the wider body makes a difference.

Mark

Click to expand...

I think the wider body on the OM-3 is to make room for the BLX battery, that turn sideway and avoid having the bulging for hand grip. Clever idea that powers the the OM-3 for 590 shots, versus 390, 200 less on G9II.

Emerald Slick said:

Searching said:

Not much to compete with, the G9II is strides ahead of the OM3. The OM3 is a step backwards for more money, less features and poor build quality (in reference to holding the camera with no grip). It also looks out of balance pretty ugly.

Click to expand...

G9II doesn't sell. OMDS will sell boatload of the OM-3 for more moneys, so it seems. Good for OMDS and bad for Panasonic, the bean counters things.

Click to expand...

I wouldn't bet on it , the same yay we've done it posts like with the OM-3 fill the forum every time a new OM/Olympus camera gets announced. Meanwhile back in reality m43 market share continues to decline , OM continues to lose money despite huge cost cutting and staff reductions , not as much as they were but still in the red :-(

The actual numbers are available not hidden behind an expensive paywall with no corroborating data ;-) . From a highly respected Japanese business source . Showing that Panasonic sells both more mirrorless cameras ( no breakdown of m43 or FF ) and more P&S cameras

Original source ( in Japanese )

https://dclife.jp/camera_news/article/etc/2024/0906_01.html



--
Jim Stirling:
"Cogito, ergo sum" Descartes
Feel free to tinker with any photos I post

bluevellet said:

Matt3400 said:

Obviously there is a lot of talk about the OM3 at the moment but what do we think Panasonic's next move will be? It looks to me that OMS are getting their product tiering in place with midrange / premium / flagship offerings, similar to most other manufacturers. Panasonic on the other hand have entry level and two flagships but nothing that can be considered a true midrange / premium offering.

Do we think Pana will compete in this segment or just let OMS have it to themselves? A more compact premium offering with G9II tech would surely be a compelling competitor to the OM3.

Click to expand...

There have no retro camera design they can fall on.

Click to expand...

Thank god we have more than enough faux slr designs already , the OM-3 is just another one sans grip :-( Great feature set , but I don't see it having any greater retro appeal than other OM/Olympus cameras going back years









Panasonic have has some nice designs over the years no need for faking retro even back into FT

bluevellet said:

But a 25MP GX10 would be really nice

Click to expand...

Yep a true GX8 update would be what I would want no breath holding though

bluevellet said:

So would a 25MP GM5 mark II

Click to expand...

I imagine the GM5 fans will not be holding their breath either



A mid range take on the G100D foundation would be possible , add IBIS and the 25mp sensor don't make it much larger and charge a bit more . Not hugely demanding on R&D for all I know at least

--
Jim Stirling:
"Cogito, ergo sum" Descartes
Feel free to tinker with any photos I post

Matt3400 said:

Obviously there is a lot of talk about the OM3 at the moment but what do we think Panasonic's next move will be? It looks to me that OMS are getting their product tiering in place with midrange / premium / flagship offerings, similar to most other manufacturers. Panasonic on the other hand have entry level and two flagships but nothing that can be considered a true midrange / premium offering.

Do we think Pana will compete in this segment or just let OMS have it to themselves? A more compact premium offering with G9II tech would surely be a compelling competitor to the OM3.

Click to expand...

Simply put....no. The camera market isn't too large and in this niche, even smaller. Is there immediate money to be made?

Just as in half frame now....no one will attempt to outdo Pentax and the 17. Mint got on board with a small 35m film.....

So with this jump by OM Systems, even though it is digital....the market just doesn't demand it.

Tyrbiter said:

Humansvillian said:

Sixty one years later only the Mustang remains.

Click to expand...

In name only surely.

Click to expand...

My great grandfather, flush with money from selling teams of Missouri mules to his government to build the Panama Canal, bought his beautiful daughter Eva a brand new 1908 Model T convertible. Her mother Paralee had the Brownie to record it all.

And Eva would go on to marry a man who was so wealthy he built her a mansion in sight of her father, and Lincolns, and her most beautiful daughter Wanda married wealthy banker and naval aviator Captain Chester “Chet” Wainscott, who each fall bought Wanda a brand new Lincoln Contental convertible with the suicide doors.

Wanda bought Chet the camera that looked like an OM3.

My first father in law, who drove a brand new Mercury Marquis Grand Brougham every year, bought the Polk County Bank that Chet and Wanda owned.

Don’t you think they didn’t kiss my dear old widowed mother’s behind after that.

(Their nieces and nephews were thick in the employ of the bank)

Mama by then was driving Thunderbirds.

I was driving a new Ford F-150 and my first wife Mercury Cougars.

But if you’d like to buy a brand new American rear wheel drive V-8 automobile, the only choice, is the 2025 Mustang.

It’s an Ozark American tradition to buy good looking Ford cars.