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What lenses do you already own? It sounds like this is daytime use, so I guess low-light isn't really an issue (and you want in-focus background, so you don't need a large aperture lens)? The standard Panasonic 'kit' zooms (the 12-32mm 'pancake', the 12-60mm and various 14-42mm versions) are all fairly 'wide-angle' capable - these are cheap to buy used as they are very common. If 12 mm isn't wide enough then you are getting into more serious wide-angle lenses - some possibilities have already been mentioned. Even then, 7-8 mm as about as wide as you can go without it becoming a high distortion 'fish-eye' lens.

Since you obviously know exactly what's inside a typical Canon camera of this class, could you please explain what extra hardware is associated specifically with providing 24 fps frame rate video capture and encoding (that wouldn't also be used for 25p and 30p)? P.S. I'm a very experienced electronics design engineer, so I can probably understand the technical detail you might provide...

Doesn't [Image Area of Video] (page 238) do the same as [Ex.Tele Conv] for video? - note the [Pixel/Pixel] setting which it implies takes a 1:1 crop from the sensor equal to the selected video resolution, see the picture on page 239. This sounds very like how the Pana micro-4/3 camera [Ex.Tele Conv] works for video. (I don't own the camera, I'm just reading the manual)

I don't think MPEG LA (the licensing company) have ever seriously 'gone after' open-source/freeware codec producers - what's the point in trying to extract money from people who (as they are giving away just a specific *implementation* of the technology) basically don't have any? Also open-source encourages the take-up of the technology, which will ultimately benefit the patent holders that MPEG LA represent - quite a lot of those FFMPEG encoded files will be played on devices and software that are licensed. It's the sellers of products including that technology who need the license i.e. if I used FFMPEG H264 in a product I was selling, it's me that needs a license from MPEG LA and would have to pay a per-product shipped license fee. In any event, the license fees are not very high, there are some MPEG and HEVC costs here - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MPEG_LA (for MPEG-2 it's $2 per unit, for HEVC it's $0.20 per unit). Also there are sometimes 'royalty caps' for big users, so you don't pay more than a fixed amount per year irrespective of volume. (Incidentally, the biggest single contributor of patents to the MPEG-4/H.264 portfolio is Panasonic...)

It only does LPCM audio with 4k50p & 4k60p (MP4) - all other modes are AAC (for MP4) or AC3 (for AVCHD). Apart from product differentiation (especially now that the G9 is significantly cheaper than the GH5), I suspect Panasonic wanted to keep the video choices simple on what is supposed to be a stills-oriented camera, hence no LPCM versus AAC choices, or high-bitrate (50/100 Mbps) FHD. For what I do, I normally use either FHD 50p or 4k50p, so 50 Mbps FHD with LPCM is probably the most attractive extra/hidden option.

That works ? (it seems to need a couple of cycles of handshake and connect button pressing though). Once it's connected, the camera LCD will occasionally say it's not connected to the app, but it carries on working OK i.e. accepting commands from the app. Basically, on the G9 it looks like the 'mov' equivalents of the 'mp4' settings work, so you can have LPCM audio instead of AAC in the files. Also some high bitrate .mov versions of 1080p work e.g. 50 Mbps and 100 Mbps (but 72 Mbps locked up the camera - had to remove the battery...). Tried various 10bit, cinema 4k and anamorphic 4k settings - mostly they are ignored when you send them (or they select an AVCHD mode). In one case it did record a file (and Mediainfo said it was 10 bit 4:2:2 AVC1) but the video was just black. So conclusion so far is that the G9 won't do 10 bit, c4k or a4k.

Yes - that didn't appear to work either - but I haven't 'sanity checked' that with the GX80, so that might be finger-trouble on my part. I'll try it again tonight and post the messages from the browser test.

All that works fine with my GX80 (as a sanity check), and the app works OK after the connection is established. But with the G9 it doesn't... One thing I have seen a couple of times (while the app is attempting to connect with the G9) is a message on the LCD screen something like 'The Lumix app needs to be updated' (implying that it's an old Lumix/Panasonic Image app that is trying to connect to it). I wonder if the G9 has some protocol/URL changes compared to the earlier cameras? (the Panasonic Image app seems to get frequent updates - see https://av.jpn.support.panasonic.com/support/global/cs/soft/image_app/ )

I gave the 'LumixVideoFormats' app a try on my G9, but so far it's been very unreliable at communicating with it (but the Panasonic Image app works OK). When I hit the 'connect' button, usually nothing happens for while, then I get error messages popping up in the app (about various URLs failing). I managed to get it to actually put the camera into 'record' mode once, but usually I can't even get it to connect i.e. see the camera going into remote control mode on the LCD. (Note this is using 'direct WiFi connect' mode on the G9, not via an access point etc.) Any ideas? (I'll try it from a different Android device later, just in case that might make a difference).

Given the UK G9 body-only price is currently £950, and earlier in the year the UK cashback on it was £300 for a few weeks (when the body price was higher), £600 as limited period/limited stock promotional price is not out-of-line with that... I don't think it's been selling well, it started out as a £1400 body, then dropped fairly quickly to £1100-1200, then to £950 a month ago.

I have been planning to try it sometime ?

See below, table from the manual for the UK version - 100 Mbps for 4k24p/25p/30p (30 minute limit), 150 for 4k50p/60p (10 minute limit) So yes, same bitrates as the G80, but honestly at £600 it's a steal...

No (it's a stills orientated camera, after all). I own both the G80 and the G9 - compared to the G80 it has the 20M pixel sensor, better IBIS, no-extra-crop 4k at 24p/25p/30p/50p/60p, clean audio from the on-camera mics, really nice looking 1080p, a headphone socket, USB charging and dual SD card slots. It's also faster in operation. Only downsides are that it's larger and heavier, and (for me) the video record button is in a more awkward position - but I just programmed one of the front function buttons to do that instead, problem solved. One of the other front function buttons I use to control the 'IS lock' mode, which is just an amazing feature... So yes, I think it's definitely worth the upgrade from the G80.

Quite... One thing with modding the GX80/85 is that the camera would still be doing all the (IBIS and focusing) noise-suppression processing on the audio. With a proper external mic jack like on the G80/85, the camera knows when an external mic is plugged in, so it can turn all that off (to give you cleaner audio).

As an LX100 (Mk1) owner, I'd agree with that. It's a great camera for stills, and pretty good for video, but it's compromised in various ways to keep it small - the LCD is fixed (and non-touch), the LVF is small, it only uses part of the micro-4/3 sensor area (so it's not really a micro-4/3 camera), the power zoom can be jerky and difficult to set exactly, and the lens is a bit prone to flaring. It's a great camera for its intended (enthusiast compact) market, and I like mine, but it's not a GH4 + 12-35mm F2.8 combo equivalent... These days I'd probably buy a GX80/85 + 12-32mm 'pancake' zoom kit instead, and put a (cheap, lightweight) 25mm F1.7 lens in the bag for really low-light situations.

That matches the results in the dpreview 'Video Still Comparison' images - the 1080p moire looks worse than the Sony A6300/6400/6500 and the A7 III (which also have some at 1080p). That said, at FF 4K it's not visible on the test charts. so are you sure the 4k moire you are seeing is not a result of downscaling in the monitor or software?

Don't forget there have been two firmware updates to the H-FS14140 since those forum threads started - and the Lumix cameras since the GX8 have IBIS/Dual IS/EIS support as well. (But I've no idea if the firmware updates have made any difference to the lens OIS performance when used on a non-IBIS camera)

Both of the 'F3.5-5.6' versions support both 'Dual I.S.' and 'Dual I.S.2' (with the latest firmware installed). But only the G80/G81/G85/G9/G90/G91/G95/GH5 cameras support Dual I.S.2 - the GX8/GX80/GX85/GX9 don't (only Dual I.S.) (Info from the official Panasonic lens/camera Dual I.S. compatibility list).

Just so we know, is this with 4k24p, 4k30, 4k60 or 1080p, and using FF or APS-C mode?

I bought the G6 + 14-140mm kit (in the UK) some years ago - that lens was the F3.5-F5.6 Mk1 version i.e. the H-FS14140 As far as I'm aware, the main difference with the latest H-FSA14140 version is that it's dust/splash resistant, whereas the earlier versions are not. Both the H-FS and the H-FSA versions are dual-IS/dual-IS2 compatible (see the compatibility list here - https://av.jpn.support.panasonic.com/support/global/cs/dsc/connect/dual_is.html ), so if you're not bothered about the dust/splash resistance, the H-FS version seems to be basically the same lens (and they turn up on the used market frequently). As webrunner5 says, it's a really useful 'do anything' travel lens.

Yes, basically - certainly the low-end handheld recorders I have can be very sensitive to 'handling' vibration. If you can, try putting the recorder on a separate (from the camera) stand/tripod, and suspend it in a 'rubber band suspension' type shock mount e.g. something that looks like this - https://www.gear4music.com/Recording-and-Computers/Shock-Mount-for-Pencil-Microphone-by-Gear4music/1RNWhttps://www.gear4music.com/Recording-and-Computers/Shock-Mount-for-Pencil-Microphone-by-Gear4music/1RNW (that's just an example of what they look like, you'll need to find one the correct size for your H1 - there are plenty of them around on eBay, Amazon and from other suppliers at low cost). Also, if you are using a camera-mount mic, remember that vibration can travel along the cable, so be careful how you route the cable that so that it can't flap about and knock against the camera or mic body when you move.

Exactly the reason I've used them for some years - even more so now that Panasonic has excellent IBIS. I quite often pair a GX80 with the Pana 14-140 zoom - dual-IS, and a very compact overall combination (smaller than some 'super-zoom' cameras but with a larger sensor). Recently, after much thinking about whether I could live with the larger, heavier body, I bought a G9 primarily to get 4k60p and better 1080p - one of my better decisions, it's a great hybrid camera for my (amateur) purposes, and the IBIS is on another level compared to the GX80 (for me, that's worth a lot more than relatively small improvements in picture quality I might get with moving to APS-C sensor cameras).

The G85 has noticeable aliasing (in some circumstances) in 1080p. I've never owned a G7 (only G5, G6, G85, GX85, G9) but I think the FHD quality actually got a bit worse with GX85 and G85. Also the audio from the on-camera mics is worse on GX85/G85 than the earlier cameras (low-level crackling noises and distortion, presumably due suppressing the noise from the IBIS system). If you are in the market for another micro-4/3 camera, keep a watch on the prices for the G9 - they keep falling (currently less than £1000 in the UK, body only). When Panasonic were doing 'double cashback' (£300 back) offers a few months ago I finally bought one. It's a great camera - almost instant start-up, lovely EVF, excellent 1080p (much better than the G85), 4k60p if you need it (albeit with a 10 minute record limit) and superb IBIS - the tripod-like 'I.S. lock' mode is just amazing... The audio sounds better too (both from the on-camera mics and using external mics). Yes, it's a stills-targeted camera, but it seems to share the video and audio processing pipeline of the GH5 (without the more specialist video-orientated features), at a somewhat lower price. My own favourites out of the cameras I've owned - the G6, GX85 and G9.

Intel GPU included in Apollo Lake/Kaby Lake (7th generation) and later CPUs have hardware VP9 decoding support - see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Quick_Sync_Video#Hardware_decoding_and_encoding - but I've no idea if Apple support it in their software (I'm a Windows user).

Well, yes (with some more messing about with an attenuator cable), but you have to remember to turn it on and put it into record (or record pause) etc. - and the small handheld recorders I've used (not tried an H1 though) are generally bad for handling noise, so you also ideally need a shock mount for it. The beauty of plugin-powered mics like the TM-2X is that you just turn the camera on and it's working - perfect for 'run and gun' style use, and it's got a shock mount built-in. (P.S. I think the TM-2X sounds better in 'high sensitivity' mode - there is a low/high switch on it - so I use that mode and turn the recording level well down in the camera, but your mileage may vary, especially if you are in a very loud environment).