all the camera stores here in Australia says they expect the next batch release (first for australia) to be mid to late Jan.

as for gh2 prices...who knows. you may just see those deals again when stores take a final plunge to quickly clear their gh2 stock.

You will always be able to find 2d hand GH2 in 2013 and 2014 ...

Products don't disappear because they are not sold on store anymore, they usually just get cheap

I only mention my budget to let you know this will be my first major purchase. The cash will be put to the GH3 or GH2, Summilux 25mm, hand grip and Panny DMW-FL360L Flash for now. If I go with GH2 I will have more to invest obviously.
Patiently awaiting insight... Derek

(but I so don't want this thread to come off as every other lame ass "I'm thinking of buying... thread"- just looking for info on what you guys think about the "topic at hand" to help me) Thanks again, from everyone who may be wondering.

I think that the GH3 will get nowhere near to the sales of the GH1/2 . Because the money needed to get it is serious money now. The greed took over the project? yeah. Anywho the Gh2/1 and 3 are still the only consumer cameras capable of shooting videos for more than 29 minutes. But 1.3K plus 300 (yes, 300!) for the grip is a lot of money. The GH2 does the same thing and spending that kind of money for a "normal" mic port and headphones (that should've been there in the first place) it's not gonna happen in my house. Greed is not good for the business. Any. It may work out somehow for the first days but then reality will hit hard. Too bad.

Well...I have the GH1 . Bought it in october 2009 with 14-140 mm for U$ 1499 at Amazon . I disagree entirely with @village_west . I think the GH3 will be a success . The 29 limit doesnt bother to me . Although my camera does not have this limitation its kind unlikely that a single take takes that longer ( in my use, of course). We need to remember that the GH3 is not only a mic port and headphone out . There´s are a sealed body , wifi, better battery among other features that are pushing the price ...

And , more , I want someone presents me a camera , today , that can take great stills and record videos with that great quality for U$ 1299 !!! Canon 5d MIII ? 2x the price ? 2x the weight ?

Anyway...I dont think the price will get down in 2013...at least not in the first half year

it's the "consumer" world . Price is important. Very. We have guys trying to save 20 bucks building DIY stuff here. I'm not really debating the value "per se" : I'm debating the marketing at Panasonic's. And the obvious greed that this new model shows (clearly). I mean.. people.. twice the price? Come on. How greedy is that? They got caught by the excitement (of the money) and decided to charge the double and see what happens. Beside the 29 min limitation there is no doubt that the 5D is the better big sensor tool (for video) , so the only reason why the GH2/1 got life in the market is the price. no? what else?

For me life is simple . I think . If I must pay 2x the price to carry 2x the weight I WANT 2x the quality . Not a pixel less . And no need to send me pm with 5d videos. I ve watched a lot as I told . And yes , they are pretty , pretty good. But not 2x more than what you get with the GH3. And , if we consider the GH2 for U$ 800 ...ok , given the FF you can go further in ISO and the shallow depth of field . But , show me a movie where you need to focus the nose and defocus the entire face ? In real life , in real movies , you dont use that kind of depth of field . Many says the GH2 and GH3 have a digital look , but in the right hands you can achieve that cinematic look . I ve seen many indies movies in Vimeo that prove that.

Considering just the format FF cant match a 35mm from Canon Cine Cameras and so on, isnt it ? Again...for U$ 1299 do I have a better option ? For me the 29 min limit would not pose a problem , its not a reason to avoid buying the 5d.

anyway ...lets kick this discussion off before someone starts blocking our posts here...a hug ...

Let me take you back a few years. The price on the GH1 dropped to $399 clearance, as the GH2 availability became more prevalent. I came very close to pulling the trigger on a GH1, but decided to get the GH2 which I did not hack for the first 10 months. I shot a feature film with it (unhacked), and have been in love with it after hacking it. There are no guarantees. But if and when the GH3 is hacked, it will likely be an astoundingly nice camera. But even so; as is, it is still more than nice enough to shoot a feature film with. And has many features I really like.

I think the cameras are neck and neck in terms of quality.. right now. So I don't see the NEED to upgrade just yet. There is a desire to have some of the new features, the increased DR, the decreased banding, etc. But not a NEED. So I will wait it out.

That is just my opinion.

I agree with you @shin . I will pick the GH3 only because I live in Brazil , and Panasonic doesn't sell the camera here. And I dont know when I ll come back in USA . Its a hard time for Brazilians upgrading their cameras. So I hope my 19 December preorder will be processed by Amazon until 24 January when I ll be at USA ...

I ll keep my GH1 hacked with me of course ...I think will be a huge upgrade from the GH1 both in stills and video for me ...

@lalalbi Yes ! this bokeh mania is becoming boring to death and distracting: one thing is a 2-3 seconds shot of a portrait with a tele (for compression) and a totally different thing is a continuous footage with a short focal all wide open: it's "fiction" mixed with the excitement for the gear but the viewer will fall asleep .. watching it: the viewer doesn't care if the camera operator got a new or used 50mm 1.4 cheap and can't wait to show the bokeh. and for the entire footage! come on ... enough of this bokeh mania already, no?