New Panasonic Micro Four Thirds camera leaked

Over the past few weeks, Olympus' first Micro Four Thirds camera, the EP-1, has been the talk of the town, thanks in no small part to its retro and compact form factor. That gave it greater buzz over Panasonic, which launched the first two Micro Four Thirds digicams, the Lumix DMC-G1 and DMC-GH1. A Chinese forum has now let loose some images of what seem to be the upcoming Lumix GF1, and if the site is to be believed, Panasonic will soon have an answer to the EP-1.

From the pictures, it appears to be very similar in size to the EP-1 and will even have a built-in pop-up flash, something Olympus' offering lacks. Given the form factor, this looks like a souped-up LX3 and will certainly excite enthusiasts looking for a relatively compact camera to complement their main dSLR system. Digging deeper, Digital Photography Interface is even speculating that it will sport a fingerprint sensor. That seems a little far-fetched at the moment, but we won't know for sure until more information becomes available.

Editors' Note: Panasonic has asked us to note that the rumors from xitek.com are speculative and not official.

(Source: Crave Asia via Engadget)