Controversy!

The venerable British camera review site DPReview (not DPreview; the seldom-used full name is Digital Photography Review, not Digital Preview) has apparently created controversy by awarding the new Panasonic G9 only a Silver Award instead of a Gold Award. This, despite pointing out in the review that the Nikon D500, Panasonic GH5 and Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II are all DPReview Gold award winning cameras, and then concluding that between the G9 and E-M1 Mark II, "honestly, trying to pick one over the other is like splitting hairs," and "the G9 offers the best stabilization of any camera we've tested." The G9 is apparently $300 too cheap, just over a year too late, and has the less prestigious nameplate. So, sorry, Panafans. No Gold for you! 

DPR's commentariat, Panasonic parish, is not pleased. Franz Weber writes, "Michael Jackson got a silver award because he was only catching up with Elvis," and "fishy wishy" writes, "Does it really need to be stated that rating one camera lower than another just because it came later and [is] cheaper is inane?"

Here's a comment from "Bueche":

From the Nikon D610 review...

'Overall Conclusion

Reviewing the D610 is a challenge because it's essentially the same as the D600 with only a handful of improvements....'

and it continues...

'The aspect Nikon didn't promote at the time of the D610's launch was that the new shutter may also have been intended to address the D600's reputation-damaging dust/oil problem.'

So, the G9 got a silver award for 'playing catch-up to a camera released more than a year ago,' while the D610 (launched two years after the D600) got a gold award for having solved the dust/oil problem?? That's ridiculous.

As usual, I have a solution to the problem of conflicts in simple/single-index awards. Just do like some of the car manufacturers do when they give names to the various trims of the same model that make it completely unclear which is higher and which is lower.

Thus, at TOP, the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II would get a Rosette Award, while the Panasonic G9 takes a Ruby Medallion, and the Nikon D500 gets a 36.

Problem solved.  :-)

Mike

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(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Larry Gebhardt: "You seem biased against the D500. It surely earned a 39 if the Panasonic G9 was awarded a Ruby Medallion."

Benjamin Marks: "You know you're down the rabbit hole when the debate is not about which product is better but whether the reviews (previews?) of the product make sense.

"My review of the DPReview is that we should view it in the rear view and I am unshakable in this view. Or that view.

"There is a simple logical way out of this, although I have no dog in this fight. Each product grade is given in the context of the market at time of the review, as its 'job' must be to inform a purchase decision in the 'present' of when it was written. And thus what might have been 'gold star' a year ago, might get a silver star today. For example, if a digital RF camera spec'd like the Leica M8 were released today in some internally consistent review system it might get a lower rating than the original M8 did when it was released because, mutatis mutandis, we have all moved on.

"...and moooving right along....

"I can think of no writing less 'evergreen' than a review of consumer electronics, particularly (these days) cameras or phones. As I am in a Latinate mood: tempus surely does fugit in this field. At least in my view.  ;-)

"Addendum: I see DPReview gave a silver star to my current favorite photo-beast, the Pentax K1. There are so many design things that Pentax/Ricoh got right on this camera that it should get a 'platinum star' in my book. Or platinum with gold leaf cluster and fancy fruit loop. It is like a design team took an imprint of my brain and settled down to make a tool that meets my needs perfectly. All the gold stars in the world won't make the Sony A7RIII a better choice for me. So I am not sweating it.

"There. Now I have a dog in the fight."

Mike replies: This comment receives a gold-crusted florette with a dab of purple icing on top.

Yonatan K: "I was all set to covet (can't actually afford to buy) the G9.... Alas, it was not meant to be—a DPR silver award winner is simply not covet-worthy."

John Krumm: "I know this is out of fashion, but I always thought they should just write good reviews, tell us what they liked, didn't like, give us a few samples and leave it at that. Awards and ratings always lead to long, boring arguments. I do like the personalized 'staff picks' feature they ran, where choices were explained on a more individual level. No awards, just 'here is why I like this camera.' I'd give TOP an award but psychologists have found that awards demotivate, and I want this blog to keep going."

Moose: "Matches my rating...

1. Doesn't have Focus Bracketing, which I use all the time and is a magic tool offered by the main competition. That alone is Silver, rather than Gold for me. And
2. Is larger and heavier than the E-M1 II.
3. Wastes space, size, etc. on a top plate LCD, which is a negative for me. I just did some work with an Oly E-1, and couldn't believe how much I disliked having to look elsewhere for that data. I used, and liked, a GX7 side-by-side with an E-M5 II for some time, and assume the G9 has all the same info available on rear LCD and EVF, so the top plate LCD is just a gratuitous, unnecessary extra that uses up space that could be used for more Fn buttons and better spacing of buttons and dials. The rear LCD is articulated, just spin it to point up, and see not only the data, but the image about to be taken. I understand the marketing logic to attract DSLR users, but it's a negative to this longtime mirrorless user.

"I left Panny for camera bodies for the HR and Focus Bracket modes of the E-M5 II. The G9 is halfway there. I am brand agnostic; I regularly use more Panny lenses than Oly. It's what they do."

Timo Virojärvi: For the record, I am going to buy the G9. I don't care about the awards. I can match it to my needs just fine based on specs and tests. Curiously no review has mentioned one interesting feature: the EVF can show the effect of shutter speed selected, although only up to 8s. I'm waiting to see how it shows running water at longer exposures."

Robert: "The one thing that tends me towards the G9 is the top plate LCD. I have missed this simple and elegant solution for seeing my settings before I bring the camera to my eye that all top-class DSLRs offer. I certainly do not want to waste my precious time or effort either flipping up the rear screen, or bringing the camera to my eye. For this alone the instrument deserves a double accolade."

Stanleyk: "I don't know that site because, well, nothing is less about photography than a bunch of gearheads geeking on cameras. The one thing that always amazed me about camera review sites is how the sample photos were always so terrible/boring. Maybe they ought to hire actual photographers to review the cameras and take the 'test' shots.

"As for Panasonic, after reading about your interest in the GX8, I bought one over Xmas because Adorama had it for $749 for about two days. It's an awesome camera. It's ugly in a charming sort of large plastic/metal brick way. So it definitely won't be replacing my X Pro or X100 (2 and F for those who need the affirmation...). I got the 20mm lens with it and I love it. The funny thing is the tilting viewfinder which was the primary reason I bought is less useful than I thought. It does very good B&W conversions in Lightroom and since I print a lot at 12x16 I don't have to think about cropping when taking a photo.

"So I give Panasonic the gold or silver or whatever award. I really like this camera. So much so that I just ordered the 15mm ƒ/1.7 lens."

Bahi: "One thing I’m surprised by is that the G9’s stabilisation is now considered class-leading by DP Review. I was beginning to think no competitor would catch up with Olympus’s system. I’m using a GX8, which I love (thanks for your comments on it—they were very useful) but would appreciate slightly better stabilisation when using fast primes in very low light. (When using the Panasonic 12–60mm kit lens, you get Dual I.S., which is impressive.) I hope my next one will have the GX8-style body with the G9’s stabilisation.

"I cannot explain why I love the GX8’s tilting viewfinder so much but I do. Even for regular photography, tilting it just 20° or so gets your face completely clear of the camera body but allows a degree of stability that I would miss in any other camera."

Comments

[Khürt Williams]

The DPReview “review” and commentary on the review are an entertaining comedic distraction.

[David Raboin]

Panasonic gets no respect. I have to admit that it took me several years to think of Panasonic as a top tier camera manufacturer and not just a brand that sells plastic boom boxes via Sears. Perhaps their unfortunate branding is the reason Panasonic sells their fantastic cameras at a discount compared to the competition?

Panasonic lenses don't get the respect they deserve either. Check out the amazing 12-32 collapsible zoom and the 35-100. Both are sharp and have great image stabilization and both are tiny. Yes, they have slow maximum apertures, but that's kind of the point, image stabilization plus modern lens design plus micro 4/3 equals small form factor without sacrificing image quality.

Right now I'm walking around the airport on a break between flights with a Panasonic gx85 in my pocket as my "just in case" camera.

[Tex Andrews]

I have suggested to DPR the real, positive solution to this problem: independent editorial review, or peer review. The former case would involve simply a review panel selected from the existing forums moderator pool, which could rotate so that no one was overburdened (I believe these mods are volunteers). The only thing they would need to do is hunt for typos/textual errors, and check for backwards consistency. In the latter case find a pool of independent bloggers/vloggers (whose work isn't in direct competition with DPR) to do the same thing. This is non controversial in academe. These suggestions have been ignored. That fact speaks to the rather British DNA of DPR, a "we know best" thing that has roots in the aristocracy and class system in the UK, and which continued into the colonial period. Moving operations to the U.S. apparently didn't flush out or evolve this part of DPR's DNA.

[Eric Rose]

My solution is to never go to review sites. It's mainly BS and I suspect many "awards" are bought in some way.

[Fritz]

Well, I kind of appreciate DPR's logic:
If my Canon 5D Mark I did get a gold award when it appeared in 2007, should a successor, equally good with the same 12 MP sensor etc. in 2017, also get a gold award? That would have been fair in the evolution from Leica M3 to M4, M6 ... But in the fast moving evolution of digital cameras?

[Nigel]

The problem lies with the lenses for the G9.

There is a certain fauna that frequent the DPR forums, who will explain to you in great detail how for example, the wonderful 12-35 2.8 is really a 5.6 lens and thus making the G9 and all other M43 cameras less than serious cameras.

Some of the staff there concur with this strange theorem as well.

Thus, it is easy to explain the silver medal.

[Jeff Smidt]

The G9 appears to be a very nice camera. But, it is a "we, too" camera. The technology and updates have, mostly, been done. The 16 months since the introduction of the E-M1 Mk II is a long time in the technology universe. In those 16 months we have seen the D850, the 5D Mk IV, and a mirrorless Hasselblad and medium format Fuji. Panasonic is not just competing with Olympus. They are competing in the camera industry. Silver for a nice camera. Gold is for innovation.

[Wolfgang Lonien]

Best problem solving ever! :-)

[John Prendergast]

If you find your identity in products, then yes this would be a crisis. If you find your identity in your work then it is irrelevant what elemental particle your camera is awarded. [I'm partial to Californium]

There's a distinct difference between buying the 'better' camera and becoming a better photographer. Consumerism would like you to think otherwise - but doing do comes with the occasional fussiness seen at DPReview.

[Stephen Scharf]

DPReview has been getting flak for years about how they award cameras Gold or Silver status. Apparently, the overall numerical score has some influence, but the number alone does not drive the award level; there is subjectivity to how award level is decided, which DPR never describes. As a result, there is a lot of inconsistency in award given to cameras. They've been called out on this innumerable times, but have not changed their approach/methodology/behavior for determing award level.

[David Bateman]

Dpreview has turned more into a petapixel copy lately. Although with a one day delay on the stories.
The Gold award was always pointless as it was awarded to everything in the past but Sigma cameras. Then the point system came in or is randomly used, not sure which.
I think they should just bin it all. Even the pixel peeping compare charts are useless as they started changing lenses. The best would be if they used one lens for all cameras, like the Tamron adaptall 90mm f2.8. That would be best.
So I think they should scrape it all and just get 8 specialized photographers to sign NDAs and write up how a landcape, product, portrait, sports, wedding, ete photographer likes each camera.

[Gordon Lewis]

There will be no balance in the universe unless and until this outrageous miscarriage of justice has been rectified.

[Andrew Molitor]

Obviously, the problem is that the Panasonic G9 is "No' Scottish!"

(americans of a certain age will understand this, but probably nobody else)

[Jack]

Two silly points in a silly argument:

1) DPReview is an American site. Amazon bought it and moved it to the Seattle area back in 2010.

2) The "gold" award basically indicates a camera that raised the bar in its category at the time it was introduced... in the opinion of DPR reviewers. A later camera that matches that raised bar ("trying to pick one over the other is like splitting hairs") generally isn't going to get a gold award.

Gold awards are given for being first. Which leads to the amusing situation of an older, perhaps even out-of-production camera having a gold award when newer models with similar capabilities don't.

But then, the same is true of Olympics gold medals -- they don't get taken away if someone does better in a later Olympics. The gold medal simply means you were the best at that place and time.

[Mark Kinsman]

DPReview is sooooo last century. I only give them dishonorable mention, no stars for any of their reviews listed in this century.

[Stan B.]

1) Can you afford it?

2) Does it deliver the goods (you need)?

3) Does it look good?

Once #1 clears, 2 is all that matters, & 3 just makes it fun.

[David Graham]

Nobel prizes are awarded to the first team of physicists who get a new result. When other teams duplicate and confirm the result, that is useful, but not as exciting.
DPReview gold awards are for innovative, above-the-current-standard cameras, as they have explained many times.
Perhaps it would be useful if they also published some ever-climbing numerical performance ratings, so we could compare cameras in context.
Congratulating camera companies for making new advances available to the public is good thing, it helps to advance us all. And later companies get Silver.

[Jim A]

This review hullabaloo reminded me of something Roger Cicala wrote awhile back titled, "My Third Grader Analogy for Lens Reviews and Testing". In his DPReview section under "Things we don't like" (about Third Graders) he wrote, "Emotionally labile; difficult to reason with". :-)

[Gunny]

Isn't DPR based on the US west coast now?

[Brian Ripley]

The venerable British camera review site DPReview ...

Given that it has been owned by Amazon for a decade and based out of Seattle (USA!) for several years, how come we 'British' get credit/blame?

[YS]

This is for Moose: Are you sure the G9 doesn't do focus bracketing? I got the impression the G80 and GX80 cameras did, so it'll be a surprise if the G9 dropped that feature.

I also agree on the top LCD, but just like dedicated exposure compensation dials, they're a relic that enough photographers like.

[David Bateman]

@Jack it is interesting you brought up the Olympics. So then you have the Marry Lou Reton problem. She got a perfect 10 in gymnastics. So does no one else get a gold, because no one else has done better?
Cameras are not speed races with clear best times, but subjective like gymnastics and figure skating. Handling, feature set and shutter sound will be important to different people resulting in different scores.

[Arg]

Controversist!

[I think you mean "controversialist," but okay.... --Mike]

[jseliger]

"The G9 appears to be a very nice camera. But, it is a "we, too" camera. The technology and updates have, mostly, been done. The 16 months since the introduction of the E-M1 Mk II is a long time in the technology universe"

That is my thinking. It's way too expensive. It's hard to imagine how many people want a stills-focused, $1700 camera that doesn't have great continuous autofocus and has (let's face it) a two-stop disadvantage compared to FF.

I say this as someone who has and likes a Panasonic camera. The argument for the GH5 is simple: the best video you can get in that price class and form factor, period.

I don't see the G9 argument. It's extremely expensive and in many dimensions worse than an a6500 (now $1,200). Yeah, someone with a bunch of m43 lenses might want one and not have an E-M1 body already, but that's got to be a very small group.

So yeah, I'd call it a me-too body at best.

There are no bad cameras right now, only bad price points. At $999 or $1,099, a G9 might be attractive. At its present price it's ridiculous.

[Larry]

O Phil Askey, where art thou?

[Lynn]

Is there any difference between a Gold and a Bronze Award for photographers who see in monochrome?

[Kodachromeguy]

I think DPR's editors do this on purpose with silver, gold, or whatever. They know the measurebators and "photographers" will go berserk if their favorite product does not get the top prize, so they start a rampage of comments and voila, more clicks on the web page.

[Brian Taylor]

"This comment receives a gold-crusted florette with a dab of purple icing on top." I'm seriously jealous. :)

[Dave New]

I quit reading DPReview a long time ago.

I still read The Online Photographer.

QED.

[Ed]

Hmzzzz, sounds to me like it is time to stop splitting hairs and to start splitting seconds.....

Greets, Ed.