Panasonic CM1 Review - the smart-camera-phone

[Andrew Reid]

Panasonic have just released the best smartphone available for sensor size and image quality. A limited retail launch is underway now in Germany and France with the UK to follow by Christmas.

Against the backdrop of a run of hits from Panasonic like the GH4 and LX100, the CM1 unfortunately is the one that got away.

An inadequate replacement for your existing high end smartphone, even if you value the camera side.

Read the full article here

[Mat Mayer]

Sounds awful. 15 fps 4k is not very useful. For a quarter of the price you can get a stunning ultra thin phone that shoots 30 fps video very well. I am talking about the OnePlus One. Or for a third of the price of the Panasonic you can get the Oppo Find 7a which shoots longer 4k videos.

My RX100 ii was put up for sale immediately when I realised how much better the Oppo is. The difference in color and detail is unbelievable, the Sony is miles behind. Sony and the rest are holding back the technology, so people into certain videography like me have jumped ship. Phones are the way to go at the moment for ultra cheap ultra HD video, which is actually pretty good. There is probably no need for most people to buy this massive brick made by Panasonic.

[D.B.]

Phew...right between the eyes.

[Andrew Reid]

My RX100 ii was put up for sale immediately when I realised how much better the Oppo is. The difference in color and detail is unbelievable, the Sony is miles behind. Sony and the rest are holding back the technology, so people into certain videography like me have jumped ship. Phones are the way to go at the moment for ultra cheap ultra HD video, which is actually pretty good. There is probably no need for most people to buy this massive brick made my Panasonic.

 

Don't agree.

[Lamartine Cabral]

I think it was your worst review so far.

Your ideas about what panasonic should have done... Seriously?

And android tacky... Wow.

[MiL0]

This review didn't really do it for me. All the comments about android are how I feel about iOS; particularly iOS 7 and 8 which look and feel so cheesy and unpolished. I suspect the final score would have been higher if the reviewer didn't have such an obvious apple bias.

[Andrew Reid]

Hmm just a guess but you might be an Android fan!

 

Look I don't deny it can't be a cutting edge mobile OS for certain devices especially those from Samsung, but it doesn't have the same user experience as an iPhone.

 

That you can't even visualise my idea for Panasonic, tells me that you don't really mind the tacky lack of visual appeal on the Android platform either.

 

Have some imagination.

 

A powered case that happens to have a 20MP 1" camera in it, clips to the back of the phone same as the extra juice cases do. That way I get to keep iOS and I get a better camera... and it would still end up thinner than the CM1

[Lamartine Cabral]

Hmm just a guess but you might be an Android fan!

 

Look I don't deny it can't be a cutting edge mobile OS for certain devices especially those from Samsung, but it doesn't have the same user experience as an iPhone.

 

That you can't even visualise my idea for Panasonic, tells me that you don't really mind the tacky lack of visual appeal on the Android platform either.

 

Have some imagination.

 

A powered case that happens to have a 20MP 1" camera in it, clips to the back of the phone same as the extra juice cases do. That way I get to keep iOS and I get a better camera... and it would still end up thinner than the CM1

 

1st: I am an android user but I do not hate iOS. I think it's great, actually.

2nd: Samsung's TouchWiz are the android's shame. That's the one I really hate.

 

3rd: I had got what you said about your idea for panasonic. I just expected you to see that this isn't even possible. It's easier for you to suggest kodak or polaroid to do so.

[Tuan209]

Really this is your worse review yet.  

 

Half of what you wrote bashes Android.  I get some people dont like Android or vice versa, but I felt it wasnt really necessary to make the point so emphatically.  It just made you look like a huge Iphone fanboy. 

 

Anyhow, thanks for the review.  I think its a great concept.  I could really use something like this on my snowboarding adventures.  Have a phone for "emergencies" and having a nice camera too!

[Andrew Reid]

Worst review ever / thanks for the review...

Are you two people under one account? :)

[MattH]

So in short.  New camera phone running android: not for apple fan boys.

 

I think your critisisms of the device are valid apart from "I don't like this because it isn't my sexy new iphone 6 plus"

 

I will be be giving this devise a miss because like iphones and flagship samsungs it is retardedly expensive for what it is.

[theSUBVERSIVE]

Yeah, the review didn't do for me as well. I really think the focus should had been simply on the user experience, camera feats, video feats, etc. and some touches about the design, look and feel as well. I mean, people know the difference between iOS and Android and there are better channels that cover that, I found the constant nagging quite distracting from the real point of doing a review of this phone in a page like EOSHD - maybe it should be simply called a camera because that's how Panasonic portraited it, they said it was a camera first, phone second and it that sense it seems that it's exacty that, they are not pretending to be something else.

 

As a side note, for the record, I own both Android and iOS - and I could care less about OS's bash or even brand hating, I just pick whatever suits me better. I really liked lollipop, it addresses most of my complains about the previous Android's lack of cohesive overall design, luckily this phone will get the update. Since Windows Phone brought some different ideas, it took a while but Android finally adjusted to it with Material Design, as for iOS, it's quite restrictive for my taste but the bad part is that it became quite boring looking lately, but yes, it does work, that's one of the best things about iOS, it works as it should - and also because it has the best creative apps.

 

And I don't get the feel that Panasonic was going for Apple's market at all, that take feels like a big misread about them. Based on what was said, I do think Panasonic should had refined the design better, at least the feel because I didn't dislike the look as much as Andrew did. But that said, I don't think Panasonic has that pretension of going after premium phone market or anything like that.

 

It just seem like Panasonic found a way to deliver the best camera and IQ in what can still be called a phone, much better than the QX nonsense. I do agree with a lot of the cons but the constant "something something Apple iPhone" became quite annoying and almost turned this into simple fanboyism, it made it hard to finish the read, it felt like those people from facebook complaining about life. I say that because at a point, everybody already got how much you prefer one or another, the constant reminder ends up working against it. Plus, I think that whoever feels like buying this phone, the list of pros is exactly what they actually would expect from this phone and in that sense, it's as expected. It clearly didn't worked out for Andrew, but I think maybe he had a too high of a expectation about this phone and maybe he wanted too much for this to be his all-in-one camera-phone and he ended up frustrated.

 

Despite the price tag, I don't think this is aimed to be a super premium phone, the price is due to the sensor and optics, that's quite obvious to miss, otherwise this would had been a $600 phone or less, so it's simply a great camera that can also be used as a phone. It's for those that use the phone for usual stuff and those that would rather have the better camera than the better phone. Sure, it would had been great to have both, but maybe next time. This camera-phone was never for me but I think there are photographers that would enjoy it, hopefully, enough people so they can make a better phone next time - but hopefully a better phone via firmware update.

[Andrew Reid]

If you look at how the CM1 stacks up against other Android smartphones, it's also piss poor.

[theSUBVERSIVE]

Solely as a phone, it probably is. Hopefully Panasonic can overcome some of the shortcomings with a future firmware update. Panasonic isn't Fuji but they have been pretty active with firmware updates, so it may depend if they can sell enough phones so it's worth the money they will need to put in R&D to make it better. I hope it does because I think this is a much better idea to put a camera and phone together than the QX from Sony.

[Tuan209]

Worst review ever / thanks for the review...

Are you two people under one account? :)

LOL
 

Well I appreciate the effort you have made for this site and the reviews you have done =).  

 

I enjoyed the camera part of the review, and I think you did a great job there.  Like the person above, I think the review should have concentrated mainly on the camera/video aspect of the device and not bash the OS used.   

[Tuan209]

If you look at how the CM1 stacks up against other Android smartphones, it's also piss poor.

 

 

Not really.  

 

It uses a Snapdragon 801 CPU, which is the same CPU/GPU combo found in some of Android's flagship phones.  It also has a 1080p screen, so PPI wise, its up there with best and even tops the iPhone 6....

 

Id say spec wise, it is pretty dang good! :)

[Andrew Reid]

Spec specs spec... what about usability? What about feel? What about music quality? This is everyday stuff guys. This phone doesn't get it right. Until you have had one in your hands you just won't understand.

[D.B.]

Andrew, I really want 4k video in a phone.  Do you have any other recommendations?

Like you, I held off on an iphone 6+ waiting for this one but your review convinced me to bag that idea.

[leeys]

Andrew I'm afraid I didn't like the review either because you kept on harping how bad Android is. The thing is I like Android, hate iOS, and your review did little in telling me if it works well or if it's a buggy mess.

 

This is the equivalent of a review where say, the first breakthrough camera from Nikon is slammed because the dials are in the wrong place compared to a a Canon, the menu system sucks because the Canon layout is sooooo much better, and so on. It's not useful if it's just a general rant against Android.

[nowinaminute]

I'm sorry but too much of that review is dedicated to Apple snobbery for my tastes.

I use both platforms and they both have their strengths and weaknesses, ios is smooth and user friendly but part of that is down to it's simplicity which makes it somewhat restrictive as well. Some people just seem incapable of enjoying different things and have to take sides.

The comment about the android logo just came across as a needless schoolyard insult especially when the Android and Apple logos are so fundamentally similar in their purpose, the beauty of both is surely that you simply have to say what you see and you instantly have the company name. I feel they are both triumphs in logo design and have more similarities than differences.

I also don't understand the bragging about imessages, it's locked to iOS so is incredibly restrictive by nature. Android users just tend to use one of the numerous multi platform apps and talk to everyone instead of being locked to users of the same operating system. If Android used something similar to imessages it would br rightly ridiculed for being a closed party with other OSes left off the guest list.

As for specs, those tend to be incredibly important to iphone users when they are industry leading but the exact moment android devices exceed them then suddenly specs are no longer the important thing? I suppose it's like how big screens weren't important and even a source of mockery from some insecure Apple users until the 6 came out and suddenly those same people I saw in facebook insulting the large screens on Android devices were suddenly talking of how the larger screens on the 6 were "game changers" and that apple were "reinventing the phone again" it seems to me Apple users care a whole lot about specs when the specs are competitive or superior, it's only when they lag behind Android devices that a change of stance is taken.

This particular phone may well be poor but I don't see how that justifies a review that takes the time to insult Android in general and go as far as complaining about the logo used by the operating system, I really can't see how that has any relevance.

Unfortunately Apple users have a reputation for being insecure and acting as if threatened and needlessly biased as if choosing sides is necessary and this review has done little to alleviate that.

I use both systems and enjoy the inherent strengths of both and perhaps that's why I've never indulged in bashing because I don't feel like I have to be loyal to one or the other.