Panasonic unveils tiny Lumix DMC-GM1 ILC and compact 12-32mm lens

One of the original promises of the Micro Four Thirds system was to permit the design of small mirrorless cameras. Today Panasonic released its Lumix DMC-GM1, a tiny camera which can literally fit in the palm of your hand. Don’t be fooled, though: it shares the same 16 megapixel sensor as the GX7 and also offers silent shooting at shutter speeds as high as 1/16000 sec, Wi-Fi, and 1080/60i video recording. The DMC-GM1 ships with the 12-32mm lens described below for $749.99. If you want a little more to hold on to, Panasonic will sell a metal grip for $99.

The GM1 is joined by a new 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Lumix G Vario lens, which is equivalent to 24-64mm when attached to a Micro Four Thirds camera. The lens can ‘collapse’ down to nearly the size of a pancake lens when the camera is not in use. It will be available separately for $349.99.

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Press Release:

Stay in Style with an Ultra Compact DSLM (Digital Single Lens Mirrorless) Camera

New Stylish LUMIX GM Series Performance Upgrades its Cool Factor

Panasonic is proud to announce the new fashionable compact line GM series to its LUMIX Digital Single Lens Mirrorless (DSLM) cameras. The new DMC-GM1 boasts not just its iconic and stylish compact profile; it boasts high functional performance with large Digital Live MOS Sensor based on the Micro Four Thirds system standard. The Lumix GM1 provides the perfect balance of style and photographic hybrid performance on-the-go with outstanding image quality.

True-to-life detail
Whether you’re searching for that artistic shot that encapsulates your city or looking to express your own personality and style, you demand a camera that captures your vision with absolute clarity and precision. The LUMIX GM1’s 16 megapixel sensor delivers with a modern hybrid approach to image capture with both high quality HD movies and dynamic photos, and all with the simple press of a button.

A fashionable compact for your lifestyle
The LUMIX GM1 represents the most compact and fashion forward looking LUMIX G camera to date. Ground-breaking micro technology design has enabled Panasonic to pack the very latest imaging technology into the camera’s compact metallic alloy frame. Not only does this give the LUMIX GM1 an elegant look and feel, but the camera easily fits into your pocket and can be incorporated into day-to-day activities of any style-conscious enthusiast. Plus with many interchangeable micro lenses to choose from, creative options are nearly limitless.

Reflecting the sophisticated engineering beneath the surface, the LUMIX GM1’s exterior offers a refined, classic style with aluminum dials and brushed metal, so you can be sure that the LUMIX GM1 will complement your style, whatever the occasion. 

Share your creations
WiFi connectivity enables the LUMIX GM1 to easily connect with smartphones and tablets. Whether you’re sharing a shot of your friend’s outfit before a night out, or updating your photography portfolio with your new favorite landscape, the LUMIX GM1 allows you to post images and video online as soon as they’ve been taken.

Coupled with the Panasonic Image App, which is available free of charge for Android and iOS operating systems from their respective app stores, wireless connectivity also enables Remote Shooting, allowing you to use your smartphone or tablet to act as a remote control for the LUMIX GM1 – ideal for taking group shots, or in situations where it isn’t practical to shoot directly from your camera.

Total control and limitless creativity
The ideal camera for perfectionists and enthusiast photographers alike, the LUMIX GM1 offers a choice of full manual control, intelligent assistance for easy shooting, and a host of creative features. 

A three-inch touch screen makes it easy to frame the perfect shot, set the focus and even trigger the shutter with a single touch. The LUMIX GM1 also features intelligent auto modes, providing point-and-shoot ease-of-use that doesn’t compromise on image quality. 

A range of 22 creative filters also allow you to add a personal touch to any image, transforming your favorite pictures into stylistic works of art. You can even create your own Time Lapse Shot or Stop-motion Animation to display your creativity.

When discretion is demanded, the silent shutter feature enables you to make the camera nearly silent and capture images in places such as during concerts or exhibitions where photographs are not allowed to be taken due to distracting ‘clicks’.

Ready when you are
You never want to miss that fleeting moment of inspiration. That’s why the LUMIX GM1 is built for speed and mobility. With the camera’s Light Speed autofocus, it will be ready and waiting to capture that perfect photo opportunity with stunning accuracy. Low-light autofocus will also provide outstanding speed in extreme low-light conditions, so you can continue to express your creativity when you only have the stars and streetlights to rely on. 

You can explore the full range of LUMIX G lenses with the new LUMIX G App for iPad, available via the iTunes App Store. The app lets you discover and explore the world of Panasonic LUMIX G Micro System Cameras.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM1 specifications

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM1

Comments

Any info on when it will be released?

can anyone explain how dpreview has missed announcement of 15mm f/1.7 lens?

Very, very nice but WAY too expensive. And is this goodbye to the GF series?

Wow, 1/16000 silent shuter!!!

Isn’t awkward that Sony and Panasonic, two companies w/o a “photographic history”, try (and succeed) to innovate more than Canon, Nikon and Pentax?

Nikon has been offering a 1/16000 electronic speed on the 1 series for a couple of years now. The real issue is if it avoids the motion artifacts with current panasonic electronic shutter implementations.

Hey! Look at it! Is Nikon going to sue them too?

I’m sure that Appetizing food and cute dessert are a dream for food porn lovers, but i prefer HDR and panorama modes.

This is amazing. I love miniaturization.

If I’m reading correctly, it’s smaller than the Pentax Q7 in all dimensions even though the sensor is much larger. And it appears to have the same very good new sensor as the latest Olympus micro 4/3 bodies like the OM-D and EP-5.

If it turns out to be all it looks like it should be, it really spanks Pentax (as a longtime and current Pentax user I believe I’m allowed to say that when warranted).

I’d love to see a side-by-side picture of this GM1 and the Q7.

It is probably not the same sensor, GX7 seems to have new Panasonic sensor which is better than their old ones but still a tiny little bit worse than the Sony one in OM-D etc (but imperceptibly so without instrumentation).

It’s the same sensor as in the GX7. Good one, yet slightly behind the Sony-made sensor in current Oly cameras.

Nice, but too expensive compared to EPM2. This should have been a fixed lens before we can compare it to an Rx100.

Just because the RX100 is $749 doesn’t mean this should be. The collapsible design of the RX100 is still better, as is the lens brightness.

But a Leica Summilux 15mm f1.7 is coming in 2014. This lens and body would make an interesting combination for those not interested in a zoom.

The RX100 and RX100 II use the Sony 1″ sensor. The 4/3 sensor in the GM1 is significantly larger, and is identical to that in the new GX7. IQ and DR are better. That alone justifies competitive pricing against the Sony. A compact ILC? Yep, such a camera is superior to a “collapsible” single zoom lens as in the Sony.

Shouldn’t that be minimum shutter speed 1/16000, not maximum shutter speed which is 60s. Actually you have them interchanged in the specs.

No!

No.

Strictly speaking,
1/16000 should be minimum exposure time, and 60s maximum exposure time.
A speed is normally measured in m/s or km/h (and resolution in dpi), but we all understood what was meant 😉

maybe, but photographers are not very aware of reality 🙂

Nope :). 1/16000 is the exposure time at which the shutter moves the fastest, so when ‘speed’ comes into language I would say it is properly characterized in the above presentation.

Maximum speed = fastest, and 1/16000 is faster than 60s for instance.

If you run 10km in 1/16000s you have “higher speed” than someone who runs the same distance in 60s.

Shutter does not “move fastest: at 1/16000 because shutter does not move at all – it is electronic. 😉
Moreover, where shutter actually moves, it moves at the same speed – the time value shown is the DIFFERENCE between opening and closing shutters.
It is exposure time, plain and simple. All those archaic terms – “shutter speed” (actual speed makes sense for flash sync but it is not what is meant), “fast lens” – which should mean a lens with fast autofocus nowadays but it is not what is meant – are just misleading.