Panasonic GX7 Review -- First Impressions

by Mike Tomkins
Posted 08/01/2013

The Panasonic GX7 compact system camera follows in the footsteps of 2011's DMC-GX1 mirrorless, and like that camera, its mission is to provide a worthy street shooter for the enthusiast photographer. Thanks to a mirror-free design, the GX7 pares off most of the bulk of an SLR -- but it's still big enough to include a comfortable handgrip and the array of controls experienced photographers expect. And unlike many CSCs, which retain a DSLR-like design aesthetic, the GX7 cuts a more unassuming profile not unlike that of a rangefinder camera.

We were fortunate to have some hands-on time with a pre-production GX7 before launch, and came away impressed with Panasonic's commitment to the GX-series. This is no mere level-up with a few more megapixels: Many of the most important features are brand-new. Largely due to a more comfortable handgrip and a built-in electronic viewfinder, the Panasonic GX7 has grown in size a little. So, too, did its predecessor, but on paper at least the GX7 has seen much greater changes on the inside.

Key among the new features of the Lumix GX7 are the pairing of both a tilting LCD monitor, and an electronic viewfinder. The latter in particular will likely prove popular with the GX7's target demographic. Framing through a viewfinder -- even an electronic one -- gives you a much greater sense of attachment to your subject than does the arm's-length framing used for smartphones and entry-level cameras. And by building the viewfinder into the design, rather than making it an optional accessory, Panasonic ensures that you'll always have it with you when you need it. Better still -- and unlike almost all built-in viewfinders -- the Panasonic GX7's finder tilts, too. That means you needn't lose the connection with your subject when shooting from a lower angle.

The Panasonic GX7 also features a brand-new image sensor that will, according to its maker, provide a great leap forwards in image quality. Resolution is unchanged at 16 megapixels, but the new chip features a redesigned structure for both photodiodes and microlenses. And in a first for the Lumix mirrorless line, that sensor is mounted on a movable platter, allowing it to offer in-body image stabilization as well.

Throw in modern features such as both Wi-Fi connectivity to help get your photos off the camera and onto the web, plus handy Near Field Communications connectivity that makes the process of pairing camera and smartphone painless, and you've got a very compelling offering indeed.

Place your pre-order with one of Imaging Resource's trusted affiliates now:

• Adorama: Panasonic GX7 w/ 14-42mm kit (US$1099); Panasonic GX7 body-only (US$999)
• B&H: Panasonic GX7 w/ 14-42mm kit (US$1099); Panasonic GX7 body-only (US$999)

Let's take a closer look at the Panasonic GX7.

The Panasonic Lumix GX7 sports a handsome new design that -- in the US market, at least -- will be available only in a two-tone finish. Silver-colored plates top and bottom bookend a black-finished mid section that's largely wrapped in textured rubber. Beneath, the GX7's body is crafted from die-cast magnesium alloy.

Compared to its predecessor, the Panasonic GX7 sports a much more prominent, wider handgrip that's nicely contoured for your fingers to wrap around. The GX7 has grown in both size and weight, but not unduly so given that it must fit in quite a few features which were absent from its predecessor, including an electronic viewfinder, articulation mechanisms for both the viewfinder and LCD, and the sensor shift mechanism used to provide in-camera shake reduction.

At 4.8 x 2.8 x 2.1 inches, the GX7 is about 0.2 inches wider, 0.1 inches taller, and 0.5 inches deeper than was the GX1. It's still a handy half-inch less tall and 0.7 inch less thick than a full-sized mirrorless like the Lumix G6, although the width is identical. Compared to the smallest digital SLR on the market -- the Canon SL1 -- the Panasonic is about 0.2 inches wider, but 0.8 inches shorter, and 0.6 inches less deep. The advantage in size, then, is significant even before you attach a lens.

Seen from the front, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX7 is an altogether more handsome camera than was the GX1. The lens mount has moved closer to the left-hand edge of the camera (as seen from the rear), making way for the new, larger hand grip. Indeed, the lens release button is now almost flush with the leftmost edge of the GX7's body. The move has left no room for the AF assist lamp on this side, either, and so it has jumped across the lens, and now rests in the top of the textured rubber handgrip.

Moving to the top, the Panasonic GX7 shows its enthusiast aspirations with a brand-new control on the top deck -- a second control dial encircling the Shutter button. This new Front dial answers a request we made in our review of the GX1, and we're thrilled that Panasonic listened!

Another nod to the GX7's credentials is that the dedicated -- and frankly, wasted, on an enthusiast camera -- Intelligent Auto button is gone. The iA mode is still there, should you want it, but now lives more sensibly on the Mode dial.

And there's been quite a bit more rearrangement of the top deck, besides. The new built-in, tilting viewfinder sits at the very leftmost end of the GX7's body, and that's dictated that the popup flash strobe jump across to the other side of the hot shoe. Making way for the relocated flash, the stacked Mode dial and Power lever have moved all the way to the right-hand end of the top deck. The Record button used to capture movies, meanwhile, now sits snug against the rear of the combined Shutter button and Front dial.

The changes don't stop there, either. The rear of the camera is also significantly different. Most visible are the new electronic viewfinder, and the tilting LCD monitor. Panasonic has also added two new controls, and relocated several others.

To the left of the Rear dial, the AF/AE Lock button is encircled by a new Focus mode switch. Directly beneath is the Function 1 button, which also serves as the Quick Menu button. These functions previously resided in the four-button group around the Four-way controller, and in their absence, the Play button has moved into this group.

The Function 2 button -- which previously shared a space with the AF/AE Lock button -- now has its own spot, and alongside it is a new Function 3 button. (Fn2 also serves as a Delete button in Playback mode, and backs out of menus; Fn3 acts as a Wi-Fi button in Playback mode.)

And believe it or not, there's also a new Function 4 button, which also serves double duty as a viewfinder control. (The viewfinder also includes a proximity sensor, allowing it to be switched automatically.)

The remaining rear-panel controls are largely unchanged, although the Flash Release control is now a mechanical slider, rather than a button. One very nice touch, by the way, is that the Power lever beneath the Mode dial now wraps around to the rear of the camera, within easy reach of a flick of the thumb.

And finally, we come to the Panasonic GX7's side panels. The right side is now featureless, and the cover over the camera's connectivity now sits on the left-hand end, instead. (A little hard to see in the picture below, we know -- we'll try and replace this with a better shot shortly.)

The move is, again, quite sensible. Previously, you couldn't plug a cable into the camera and then hold the handgrip, but with the cables sprouting from the left side of the GX7's body, the handgrip remains available.

And that, in a nutshell, is the exterior of the Panasonic GX7. Now, let's take a look at the technical details.

The new, movable sensor. At the heart of the GX7 is a brand-new 16 megapixel Live MOS image sensor, which can provide for images at a sensitivity of up to ISO 25,600 max.

We've mentioned previously that it's now mounted on a movable platter, and so provides for sensor-shift image stabilization. According to Panasonic, it should be "nearly as effective" as the company's lens-based MEGA O.I.S system. If you mount a stabilized lens, though, the in-lens stabilization will take over, and the sensor shift system will be locked in place. The big advantage of the in-body system is that it will work with all of your otherwise-unstabilized lenses. There's no price premium for stabilization with each lens purchase, because you bought stabilization along with the camera. At longer focal lengths where optical stabilization typically works better, however, you can still choose to buy a stabilized lens. You get the best of both worlds, and that's great news!

The system will, incidentally, work with third-party lenses, or lenses mounted via an adapter, but you'll need to manually enter the focal length in this case. It's also important to note that the body-based stabilization system is not used for video capture.

Significantly improved image quality. Although we've not yet had a chance to run the Panasonic GX7 through our lab, we're led to understand that there have been significant improvements in image quality. These come thanks to changes in both the image sensor, and in the way images are processed as compared to the earlier Panasonic GX1.

The new sensor is key, however. Although size and resolution are unchanged, the GX7 sports larger photodiodes that can collect more photons before becoming saturated. According to Panasonic, this change has increased the saturation level by 10%. There's also a new, higher microlens structure, and this is said to have increased sensitivity by 10%, as well as improving light collection towards the edges of the array. (And that should mean less vignetting.)

The readout circuitry -- both in the pixel itself and in the readout amplifiers -- has also been improved, and we understand there's been around a 25% improvement in signal to noise ratio, along with a 10% improvement in detail reproduction.

Noise reduction, too, has been improved, courtesy of the same Venus Engine image processor used in the Lumix G6. A new algorithm removes low and high-frequency noise separately, working on the raw image data. For JPEG images, there is another round of noise reduction performed after the JPEG conversion process. Also of note is that the detection area used by the noise reduction algorithm has grown from just 13 x 13 pixels to a much more generous 128 x 128 pixels, giving better information for it to work from.

We're also told to expect improved gradation in dark areas due to improved signal processing, as well as the greater dynamic range you'd expect given the improved well depth.

The processor also improves performance. Along with the claimed improvements in image quality, Panasonic also promises greater performance from the latest-generation Venus Engine. Burst shooting is now possible at five frames per second, and with an electronic shutter can apparently reach as high as 40 fps. Even with autofocus tracking enabled, you should be able to shoot images at 4.3 frames per second, a slight improvement over the 4.2 fps claimed for the GX1 with focus locked. And startup time is said to be just 0.5 seconds.

Focusing. The Panasonic GX7's Micro Four Thirds lens mount might be unchanged, but there are a fair few tweaks to its focusing capabilities. As in the Panasonic G6 before it, the GX7's new image sensor and Venus Engine processor allow sensor data read out at a whopping 240 frames per second, and the lens drive mechanism can respond at the same rate, for faster contrast detection autofocusing.

You can still use the touch screen to indicate a subject for autofocus, and thanks to the proximity sensor in the new electronic viewfinder, the GX7 also offers Eye-Start AF that starts focusing as soon as you put your eye to the viewfinder.

The low-light limit for autofocus is said to have been improved from -3 EV to -4 EV, which is less than the light available from a full moon at an altitude above 40°.

There's also a new picture-in-picture display available in pinpoint autofocus mode, which helps you retain your framing while confirming the precision of your focus lock, with a magnification from 3x to 6x possible.

When focusing manually, you can magnify from 3x to 10x in 0.1x increments, and the focus peaking function has been improved beyond that in the Lumix G6. You now have a choice of blue, yellow, or green peaking indications, and the peaking level can be set to standard, high, or off using the touch-screen.

Exposure. There's been an important improvement here, too. Where the GX1 was limited to a fastest shutter speed of 1/4,000 second, the GX7 offers a wide range from 1/8,000 to 60 seconds, plus bulb to a maximum of two minutes.

Better display options. As we've mentioned previously, two of the most important changes in the Panasonic GX7 can be found in its built-in tilting electronic viewfinder, and articulated LCD panel.

The EVF tilts upwards some 90 degrees, and has a high resolution of 1,280 x 720 pixels. It's a field sequential (or time-multiplexed) display, as we've seen in the company's EVF units in the past, and so at any given time, all pixels are showing just one color -- red, green, or blue. The colors alternate, providing full color at every pixel location. Panasonic says that the display has approximately 100% Adobe RGB gamut coverage, for better color rendition.

Magnification is 0.7x, and there's a 100% claimed field of view. The EVF has an eye proximity sensor used to enable the display, and optionally, to start autofocus when you raise the camera to your eye. Another option is a viewfinder eyecup, part number DMW-EC1GU. This has an elastic material for enhanced comfort, whether you're viewing with your naked eye or with eyeglasses.

The LCD panel, meanwhile, is the same unit used in the Lumix G6. It has a high resolution of 720 x 480 pixels (1,036,800 RGB dots), and uses in-cell touch sensing for a slimmer overall package and reduced glare. (In-cell touch screens don't add an additional layer to the LCD panel.) Compared to the unit in the GX1, Panasonic says the newer display has 25% lower power consumption at any given brightness level, as well as a 20% wider field of view.

More creative options. Panasonic has also expanded the creative options on offer in the GX7. You can now choose from Monochrome, Gritty Mono, and Silky Mono modes, and add color filters applied during monochrome conversion -- either yellow, orange, or red. It's also possible to adjust highlights and shadows independently, and you can apply more filter effects to panoramas than ever before, with both silky and gritty mono now available for panoramic pictures.

Another interesting feature is the new Silent mode, which enables the electronic shutter, turns off AF operation sounds, and disables both the AF assist lamp and flash strobe, all in a single setting. Handy!

Movie mode has been updated, too. It's not just still imaging that has gotten the love from Panasonic. Movie shooting has also been improved. Resolution still tops out at 1,920 x 1,080 pixels, or Full HD, but with a higher maximum frame rate of 60p, or 60 progressive-scan frames per second. (The GX1 was limited to 60i capture, or 60 interlaced fields per second.) There's also a choice of 30p or a movie-like 24p at full resolution. These rates are for US cameras; in Europe, 60i/p are replaced by 50i/p, and 30p by 25p rates, and the 24p rate is retained.

Perhaps more intriguingly, Panasonic says that the better image sensor means that it need only bin four pixels to create each pixel in the final movie, rather than six pixels as in the G6. The mixing is performed in 1 x 4 pixel lines, rather than 2x2 blocks, and the image processor performs low-pass filtering on the resulting data as it comes off-chip.

The maximum sensitivity for videos is now limited to ISO 3,200, rather than the earlier ISO 1,600 limit of the GX1, and full PASM exposure modes are now supported.

Maximum continuous recording time for AVCHD format is approximately 140 minutes with 14-42mm lens, and approximately 130 minutes with the 20mm lens. Actual total recording time will be less at about 70 and 65 minutes respectively, with operations such as power cycling, starting/stopping recording, and zooming included. Maximum continuous recording time is limited to 29 minutes 59 seconds in Europe and some Asian areas to satisfy tariff restrictions, though, while continuous recording in MP4 format is limited 29 minutes 59 seconds or up to 4GB.

Wireless that's simple to use. Panasonic has also revisited its connectivity options in the Lumix GX7, adding both 2.4GHz 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi and Near Field Communications wireless connectivity. The NFC tech is there to make it easier to get your photos onto a smart device for instant sharing. Simply hold your NFC-compatible phone or tablet to the camera briefly, and the NFC connection is established automatically, then used to pair the devices via Wi-Fi without user intervention. It couldn't be simpler, but it's a shame that iOS users will miss out, because Apple so far has resisted adopting the technology. If you own an iOS device, you'll pair the Wi-Fi manually, and then use a free app to transfer data, just as Android users will do.

With Panasonic's free "Image App", you can also remotely shot both photos and video from a smartphone or tablet, with a smooth 30 fps live preview. You can not only adjust exposure settings, but focusing peaking and even zooming is supported (when a Power Zoom lens is mounted).

And wired connectivity too. As you'd expect, the wireless connectivity is supplemented with a selection of wired ports. You can choose from USB 2.0 High Speed data, Type-C Mini HDMI high-def video output compatible with VIERA Link remote control, an NTSC standard-def audio/video output, and a 2.5mm wired remote jack. There's no external microphone connectivity, though -- audio comes from an onboard stereo mic located in front of the flash strobe.

Storage and power. The Panasonic GX7 stores images and movies on Secure Digital cards, including SDHC, SDXC, and UHS-I types. (So you're well-covered for both high-capacity and high-speed cards.) Power comes from a 7.2V, 1,025 mAh lithium ion battery pack, rated as good for 350 shots on a charge using the H-FS1442A lens, and 320 shots with the H-HS020A optic.

Pricing and availability. The Panasonic Lumix GX7 ships in the US market from around the beginning of September, 2013. Two bundles will be available: a kit with 14-42mm lens for around US$1,100, and a body-only variant for around US$1,000. As noted previously, only a two-tone silver and black color scheme will be available in the US market. Overseas, black-bodied cameras will also be available, and some markets will also offer a kit with 20mm prime lens, instead of the 14-42mm zoom optic.

Place your pre-order with one of Imaging Resource's trusted affiliates now:

• Adorama: Panasonic GX7 w/ 14-42mm kit (US$1099); Panasonic GX7 body-only (US$999)
• B&H: Panasonic GX7 w/ 14-42mm kit (US$1099); Panasonic GX7 body-only (US$999)

 

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