newfoundmass

Took too long for me to edit my post! For nearly 10 years it has felt like Sony has had an impenetrable wall around the YouTube/influencer market, especially from like 2018 on. It's weird that we're seeing more people being more critical of them and some even defecting to other brands. Part of it you can chalk up to other brands playing catch up when it comes to working with the YouTuber/influencer types. You've definitely seen a lot more of that from Lumix and Nikon lately. But still, it makes you wonder if something has changed with Sony's marketing strategy, because I don't think that's enough for these people to start switching or being more critical of Sony unless Sony decided it would cater to them less. I'm a Lumix user. I think a lot of the criticism they've gotten has been overblown, especially the rolling shutter nonsense during the S1Rii release, but I also don't see too much in their recent releases that would have made me think that people would be ditching Sony for them. But in the last 6 months I've noticed more and more people are, and that criticism of Sony has been popping up more and more. It's really hard for me to believe it's just because these folks were just so blown away by the S1Rii and the S1ii releases, even though I think both are decent/good cameras (even if, in the S1ii's case it's a bit overpriced.)

It's interesting to me that there are a growing number of YouTubers switching to Lumix. Armando has been a long time Sony shooter, he even references people calling him a Sony fan boy, but here he bashes the camera (which he hasn't used), has generally unflattering things to say about Sony, and mentions that he has switched to Lumix. He also teases that they've got some exciting things down the pipeline. Now, all of this should be taken with a grain of salt. But it's an interesting development.

The EVF is great.

I don't agree that this isn't for us, as I think a lot of us long for the old analog experience. I also think that it could also appeal to the kids buying up old point and shoot cameras looking for a more authentic, analog look. I just think it kinda fails at both. The film mode is actually the most intriguing part to me, but it feels too limiting (in the wrong ways) and gimmicky. I think for that mode to truly work you need an authentic experience; instead it just seems like you're going through the motions. That really breaks the immersion. Whether it's a love letter to those of us that long for the old analog days or a cash grab meant to appeal to Zoomers, $850 is a lot of money for what little this camera gives you. I suppose there are those who'll argue that's the point, but I don't think giving people this kind of experience necessarily means you have to give them less while charging a premium.

It's a reminder that we're very lucky and have also probably hit a wall when it comes to image processing when a 2015 camera still looks so good 10 years later.

Gotta squeeze the last juice out of the fruit. There are a lot of FX3 users itching to buy a new camera, and either the FX3II isn't coming soon or they plan to raise the price significantly.

Honestly the color science from Lumix recently is one of the more underrated things they have going on. It might actually be my favorite currently, but people don't really talk about it much.

The only thing that makes this camera not of interest to me is the price tag. It actually seems like a quality release, but that's just not a competitive price for me at least. My first thought would be to upgrade from the S5II X to the S1II, and then upgrading my two S5s to S5IIs. But It'd make more sense to keep the S5II X and then upgrade the two S5s to the S5II for less than what a S1II would cost me. Still, it's a decent camera. I hope it does well.

I don't think Lumix gets nearly the credit they deserve for everything they throw into these cameras. You could argue that they almost put too much in. The codecs, frame rates, and aspect ratio options could be considered overwhelming by some folks.

I think it's a good release, just a bit overpriced. $2500-2800 would be a much more competitive price point. I imagine it'll be under $3000 soon enough. I'll stick with my S5s and S5II X though. I do like the new lens. I like that it's size. But I think I'll stick with the 20-60 kit lens. That 20mm focal length is really nice to have.

Feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone where Gerald releases a glowing review of it, while Lumix users are stressing out about it before using it. It's usually the opposite!

$3500 is a lot to ask for this camera. I really don't see a ton of reasons to go with it over the S5ii/X. I don't think it's a bad release, but that's not a very competitive price point. Still, I'd like to hear from folks who've used it once it hits real users hands.

Yeah, I was actually pretty impressed watching it. Low light wasn't great, but that's to be expected. There's still a lot to like about that camera.

Agreed. I don't know the overall health of the Lumix line. Maybe it's even as bad as people are saying. There have been some big whiffs for sure, like the LX100, the G100, and the G95, but I feel like a big part of people's criticism is that Lumix is "late to the party" on certain things and when they finally do release a camera that matches the competition, it's "too late" even though they enter a market at an extremely competitive price. I get that it is an adjustment, given that Lumix for so long lead the way when it came to progressing what mirrorless cameras are capable of, so it can be a disappointment in that regard, but I think overall we've hit a wall when it comes to advances. No one is really progressing much, outside of higher resolution. But Lumix is adding little quality of life improvements that the larger companies still haven't added, but they don't really get credit for them. I don't think it's unfair to say that 7 years is a long time to release a successor, but at the same time, would people be giving them the same grief if they were releasing a new model every two years for what is essentially a big firmware update like Sony does? Should they do that instead of supporting their cameras for years with new features via free firmware updates like they have? Would they have been better off if they flooded the market with so many different models? There needs to be some middle ground, and it'd be nice if Lumix found it. I agree with this, but also think it was inevitable. I don't know that they are regressing backwards creatively, as much as they hit the same wall most everyone else has. I do think the design criticism is the most valid, but I also think that too was inevitable. It makes sense that they'd try to unify the camera body designs like Sony has, as I'm sure it's much more profitable for them, especially as they try to enter the market at a more competitive price point. I've never had a problem with the S5ii X's body; I don't necessarily love it it, but I'm pretty indifferent. Where it matters most to me I find it to be pretty good; the buttons are where I'd naturally want them, and I have quick access to pretty much every setting I'd want to have quick access to. It really boils down to personal preference, so if you don't like it then I can see why it'd bother you that they are using it for most of their cameras now. That was a big reason why I didn't like Sony cameras, so I understand it.

This is actually a pretty decent video... The X1500 and X2000 are the same camera, just without the top handle. He compares/matches it with the S5ii X. It's pretty close. Just the low light isn't good.