Panasonic Offers Smallest Mirrorless Again

2014.09.16

The race to bring high image-quality to smaller and smaller cameras continuous with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5. Now the smallest mirrorless digital camera on the market, it manages to squeeze-in a 1.2 megapixels EVF with Eye-Start sensor. It offers a 16 megapixels Four-Thirds CMOS sensor along with a Micro Four-Thirds lens-mount. This sensor is capable of shooting continuously at 5.8 FPS and filming full 1080p HD video at 60 FPS.

The high-speed CMOS sensor is extremely sensitive and has a very quick read-out speed. It can capture images at shutter-speeds up to 1/16,000s and offers a sensitivity range of ISO 200 to 25,600, expandable down to ISO 100. Most impressively, its Contrast-Detect AF system is the most sensitive autofocus system in the world! It can autofocus down to -4 EV, something which not even a DSLR can do.

As all mirrorless cameras, the GM5 has full manual-controls, including Manual-Focus, Custom White-Balance and Spot Metering. It can also perform AEB of up to 7 exposures. Its physical controls are minimal, which is understandable for its size, yet Panasonic hopes a touchscreen can compensate for. Speaking of the display, it measures 3" diagonally and has 920K pixels.

The exact availability has not been announced yet. The Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5 is expected to arrive by the end of the year for around $899 USD. B&H Photo and Adorama are accepting pre-orders already. Follow these links to be among the first to receive the GM5.

• Digital Camera
• Photokina