Haha at this moment I have not seen any other user reports..so maybe I get to be one of those early adopters for once.

First impressions are very good. The screen is awesome..so sharp, could probably MF on it unlike the earlier bodies. And the grip is also well thought-out. Really, a move back in the right direction by Panasonic. Edit: sadly, the thumb wheel is very plasticy (on a mostly plastic camera). Not nearly as nice as the rubberized versions seem on earlier models like my G1. A shame the buttons don't have printing on them. Silver etching on silver buttons is not the easiest thing to make out in direct light.

Not the most beautiful product, but seems very, very practical as a photographic tool.

Anything I should check out? I'm personally itching to do some high ISO shots, low iso to test the supposed improved DR at ISO200 and the HDR mode. Not that interested in video, but might as well see how it goes.

Try the "Pinpoint Focus" feature - you will be amazed

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HDR mode is neat...takes a few seconds to 'stitch' together though, not instantaneous.

Pinpoint focus is pretty spiffy as well..it really is a tiny, tiny focus point when you really want to nail a detail.

I ordered one from my local shop today, I sure hope it gets here soon.

typed on my phone, sorry.

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Looking forward to hearing more impressions as I wait for mine.

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Don

Pictures of the camera?

I'm very interested to know if the G5 is capable of doing full-size raws with electronic shutter, i.e. no curtain movements at all. That's especially interesting for the Panny 45-175mm, a lot of samples seem to have OIS perturbed by shutter curtain vibrations (like mine). Thanks!

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Yep, can shoot RAW with electronic shutter. It's the real deal..this is a great advancement for stealthy shooting.

One negative I've found is slow writing to card, especially after a couple of shots. I can still shoot, so the buffer seems to be reasonably sized, but it is irritating that it takes longer to review/delete shots. Maybe I will try a fresh formatted SD card. Otherwise I'm a bit concerned that there's something wrong with my model and might have to send it back.

What speed card?

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Sandisk Extreme (class 10) 30mb/s. I dunno..right now it's like EP1/G1 speed..and I'm sure it's not just the larger file size. I wonder if I have some sort of processing setting on..maybe I will do a factory reset and see if that resolves it (not that many settings to customize). OR format the card/try another. I've used this card quite heavily and in several different cameras. Again, it's not hampering the functions..but is annoying when I'm trying to just quickly delete shots after taking them.

One interesting thing I've discovered is that the electronic shutter maxes out with ISO 1600. I guess it's some sort of tech limitation..still a worthy trade-off for most shooting. I'll have to remember to toggle it back for low light.

Also..I guess there's no using the built-in flash with the electronic shutter. I remember reading about a flash-sync limit or something, but thought you could still use the little fill flash. Looking forward to confirming with someone else (assuming it's not user error).

As for the mechanical shutter, the thing is loud. Louder than the E-P1 or G-1 is my impression (higher pitched). Certainly not as nice as the OMD. Though...silent > OMD's clunk-clunk shutter.

Edit: for another thought--the buttons are clicky, satisfying and gives you feedback when selected. The dials/toggles are stiff (again compared to a G1), same with the PASM dial..you're not going to accidentally turn it on/off or change settings while handling or pulling it out of your bag. Thus, remedying one of my complaints with Panasonic's numerous external controls. Getting cramped thumbs but quite sure that's from playing with settings, not the camera handling..