Panasonic's Lumix DMC-L1, first DSLR

Well we'll be a monkey's uncle, Panasonic tapped Olympus for a little bit of the old intra-corporate synergy to help fill in that weak spot in their digital product lineup: DSLRs. Among other things, Panny's new DMC-L1 features the Venus Engine III, a 2.5-inch live LCD (like in Olympus's E-330), and a 7.5 megapixel "Live MOS" sensor, as they call it -- which sounds more or less like a CMOS, though they claim it has reduced power consumption and more CCD-like image quality. (Remember, Canon also uses CMOS sensors in their DSLRs.) Panasonic has also added Oly's Supersonic Wave Filter dust reduction system, which shakes dust off the sensor before it has a chance to sully the image. The DMC-L1 also includes Panasonic's image stabilization system, and continues Panny's use of Leica-branded lenses -- though in this case the lenses use Olympus's Four Thirds system. No announcement on price or release date yet, but we aren't expecting this fine motha to run us cheap.