Panasonic: no GH3 this year

Panasonic has confirmed to TechRadar that there will not be an upgrade to the GH2 by the end of the year.

Speaking to our camera head of testing, Angela Nicholson, Panasonic's Mr Uematsu said that Photokina 2012 would be very important for Panasonic, perhaps hinting at a release date for next September.

It seems likely therefore that Panasonic is now concentrating on the release of a pro version of its GF camera, the GF 7/8/Pro.

The latest version of the GF, the Panasonic GF3, was unveiled earlier in the year.

Back in June, Panasonic's Director of DSC Business Unit Ichiro Kitao said that although he was unable to confirm a date for a pro GF camera, the company did intend to split the series into two lines and release a GF camera aimed at more experienced photographers.

It's thought that news would be welcome for many owners of the original GF1 who were left disappointed by the supposed "dumbing down" of the line for the GF2 which saw fewer direct control buttons.

At the time, Kitao also commented that the GH series is very important to the Panasonic business, suggesting that an improvement to the electronic viewfinder was likely.

Wishlist

As there's no announcement imminent, we have created a list of specifications that we would like to see, or we think are likely, in an impending GH3:

• Better EVF - in terms of resolution and refresh rate
• Better screen - in terms of resolution
• Better software that is more integrated with the camera settings like Canon's Digital Photo Professional
• Wider area available for AF selection to cover the edges
• Better AF in less than perfect conditions
• Pin point AF
• Name change for the Film modes

Stay tuned for more details on any impending cameras from Panasonic, including the GF pro and GH3 as they emerge.