Panasonic LX7 - $299 from Panasonic Direct

I don't see that deal on their website anywhere, but out of curiosity, I did a search to see what the camera is going for. It's back to $449 pretty much everywhere, including B&H. But oddly B&H also has a "basic kit" version of the camera with an 8 gig SD card and a pouch of some sort for $322, so pretty close to the Black Friday price. I can't quite get this camera off of my mind. My X10 is demonstrably better in lowlight and in terms of DR, but I don't think I've ever enjoyed shooting with a small camera as much as with the LX5/LX7. Hmm, I could still probably sell the the X10 for about $400 or a bit more, even when Fuji reduces the list price to $499.

-Ray
 
The Panasonic Direct listing vanished for a few hours, then came up again late this evening. As of five minutes ago, B&H still had the $322 bundle offer, and Hunt's Photo and Video (big retailer in the Boston area, also takes orders online) was showing the camera in stock for $299.
 
And now its back to $299 everywhere again, through 12/22. The LX5 still shows up at $349 or $359 on Amazon. I guess this is shaping up as a real failure for Panasonic, but its a great little camera, so their loss is our gain. I'd hope that at $299, they'd sell a lot of them. I'm gonna get one and sell the X10 and a couple other things to thin the herd. No good reason for it, but I just like shooting with the LX5 and LX7 too much and at that price I should come out ahead selling the X10.

-Ray
 
And now its back to $299 everywhere again, through 12/22. The LX5 still shows up at $349 or $359 on Amazon. I guess this is shaping up as a real failure for Panasonic, but its a great little camera, so their loss is our gain. I'd hope that at $299, they'd sell a lot of them. I'm gonna get one and sell the X10 and a couple other things to thin the herd. No good reason for it, but I just like shooting with the LX5 and LX7 too much and at that price I should come out ahead selling the X10.

-Ray

It's hard to keep up with you!! I was starting to consider a X10 as an improvement to my LX5 and now you're changing again. (I've abandoned the idea of a X100 because the refurb price has increased here in the UK). Maybe I just need to brush up on my technique...............
 
It's hard to keep up with you!! I was starting to consider a X10 as an improvement to my LX5 and now you're changing again. (I've abandoned the idea of a X100 because the refurb price has increased here in the UK). Maybe I just need to brush up on my technique...............

The X10 is more capable both in terms of DR and low light. If it was an only camera, I'd stay with the X10 for sure. But I have other cameras way better in both of those areas and I really don't push a compact that hard anyway. The RX100 is probably the best of the lot, but I just never enjoyed that camera. I like the X10 plenty, but I seem to be able to get into a shooting flow with the LX cams that I've never come close to with any other small camera. So that's the direction I'm going (back) to. In really challenging conditions, I'd be using my OMD or X-Pro anyway.

-Ray
 
I guess this is shaping up as a real failure for Panasonic...

I hope not. No doubt they, like everyone else selling high-end small-sensor compacts, are being forced to rethink what they can sell such a camera for in the wake of the RX100, but...

I'd hope that at $299, they'd sell a lot of them.

...and that they'll make enough of a profit even at that price to justify continuing this product line.
 
Yeah, it uses a lens cap, but you can get one of those exploding automatic lens caps for it footprint about $10-15. It attaches differently than on the 3 or 5, but it works the same way.

-Ray
 
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