Herman I have no idea what makes it special. I have never owned one before. I've just been looking at the photographs people are submitting to various threads and decided that it, or the GX200 would probably be my next. The price was knocked down so far, I couldnt resist, even though I should have. (Think I'll run a camera sale out of my house this weekend)
So far, I havent taken many pix, just the usual in shop stuff that everyone does. However what I have noticed is that the finish is nice and "grippy". It won't slip out of your hand in a hurry. Its nice NOT to have a zoom, you have to think about framing. It's going to be perfect for the "from the hip street shots" because it focuses really well. Its quiet. Even with the sound on, its quiet. Its lightweight. Its a feather compared to both my G11 and Fuji F550.
Hope to be able to get out tomorrow for a while but I'll be doing my usual testing the sunrise shots, testing the harsh light shots so there won't be much terribly interesting amongst it. I'd go down to the pond if the local council had not put up great plastic orange barriers everywhere and spoilt the ambience. No doubt some parent complained that a child might drown there. Next, there will be chainlink fences. But... I digress... often and a lot.
So far, love the GRD3