Panasonic now says September...how long will I have to wait if I get in line now?
 

So, I saw on the Panasonic site that the expected shipping date for the GH1 is now September, and Amazon is taking pre-orders stating a 1-2 month wait. First of all, how much should I count on it actually being September (seeing as it was June, then July, and now they've just skipped August all together)? And then, assuming I get in the pre-order line now, how long do you think I should expect to wait to actually have a US version in my hands?

I'm very interested in the GH1 as, for the $3500 I'm looking to spend, I can get the camera and lens, a decent tripod and head, and even a few lights and other bits and pieces. IS the GH1 the best camera out there? Not necessarily. Depends on your needs, I guess. Is it perfect? No. But for that investment I can get a lot of practice shooting in various styles, have the support gear and lights that will never go obsolete, and even have a pretty nice stills camera to boot (and with that pancake lens, I could practically pocket that thing meaning I could have the camera with me at all times). If I had $7000, I'd probably get the JVC HM700. If I had $5000, I'd get the HD200 (as you can tell, I'm a fan of JVC). And even then, I would just be getting the camera and no support gear. But I have $3500 to spend and I think the GH1 is the best tool for me at the moment. Anyway, enough of my rant...

But, in the end, I'd rather get shooting sooner than later. If it's a matter of waiting a couple of months, that's fine. If I'd be lucky to see one by the end of the year...I may have to reconsider.

Which also begs another question, which I know has been asked, but should we be expecting some announcement to precede the US release (i.e., higher bitrate, live HDMI out, zebras, audio levels, firmware that can do your taxes, or...?). Is that why we're sitting on our hands and waiting when a good portion of the world has had the camera for a while now? I know we can only speculate and hope and pray... which is exactly what I'm doing.

Thanks.

I've had it on backorder - and out $1800 for it (including acc. and warranty) from B&H for about two weeks now.

I think Panasonic put the September date on the site to somehow decrease the amount of emails they receive.

I’ve mentioned this already but I would call local authorized dealers. Not saying you’ll be as lucky as I was but it’s worth a try.