Panasonic GX7 review: A dream camera for savvy shooters that hits the sweet spot of size, features and performance

posted Thursday, November 14, 2013 at 10:05 AM EDT

We've been long waiting for a Micro Four Thirds model with advanced features that does just about everything well at a reasonable price, and the Panasonic GX7 was worth the wait. Other enthusiast-oriented mirrorless cameras we've reviewed lately have generally been excellent, but most have made calculated sacrifices in one area or another (size, price, video, etc.). Not so with the GX7.

The GX7 boasts a sharp, retro design with a two-tone, silver-and-black finish and rubberized textured grip, and a solid overall magnesium alloy construction. It's packed with well-made physical controls that include a tiltable -- yes, tiltable (up to 90 degrees) -- electronic viewfinder with exceptional resolution and color reproduction, as well as a 3-inch tiltable LCD touchscreen that's more useful than most. The camera features a ton of programmable buttons and Mode dial slots that provide immense customizability and flexibility for savvy shooters. What's more, the GX7's user interface is refreshingly clear and intuitive, unlike other models' systems where you can drown in confusion once you dive into the menus.

The compact system camera hosts a new 16-megapixel Live MOS sensor that produces very good still image quality that bests that of its predecessor -- the excellent Panasonic GX1 -- in terms of detail, dynamic range and high ISO performance, while also providing in-body sensor shift image stabilization. In addition, the GX7 steps up with Full HD 1080p video recording capabilities with frame rates up to 60p and stereo audio for shooting sharp, smooth movies.

In short, the Panasonic GX7 handles virtually everything an advanced photographer would it expect it to, and handles it rather well. It's a great value, too, offering most of the features of the top-end Micro Four Thirds models, but without any overkill.

Check out our in-depth Panasonic GX7 review to read our full shooter's report and performance results, as well as see side-by-side image comparisons and pixel peep our real-world gallery images.

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