Canon announced at CES two special products: the PowerShot G1 X with a 1.5″-large image sensor and 4x zoom lens in a housing slightly larger than the PowerShot G12, and the Ixus 500 HS, a compact camera with a 12x-zoom lens.
At the end of december circulated the first rumors that Canon at CES 2012 a kind of ‘super’ PowerShot G-camera wanted to introduce. There was already talk about the use of a larger sensor, but how much greater was not yet known.
Ultimately, it is a 1.5″cmos image sensor with 4:3 aspect ratio with the size of 18.7 by 14mm. This is just a little larger than the image sensor in m4/3 cameras from Olympus and Panasonic and significantly larger than the 1/1,7″sensor in the PowerShot G12 and other high-end compact cameras. Despite the large image sensor, Canon has managed to a 4x zoom lens with a wide angle of effective 28mm in the body to integrate.
At CES, we have the PowerShot G1 X in the hands held and a number of things fall into. Namely, that the aluminium body is indeed that of the PowerShot G12, but that the PowerShots G1 X is a significantly larger and more angular. Despite the larger size and weight, the PowerShot G1 X is good to hold. As with the PowerShot G12 sit at the front and back gripvlakken, but instead of a ribbed structure makes Canon use of material with ‘pits’ that are a little reminiscent of the lensringen of the new Nikon 1 ilc-system. We prefer rather the structure of the PowerShot G12.
In big lines, the bodies of the PowerShot G1 X and G12 are the same, but Canon has a number of things moved or changed. So, the flash is now hinged made, probably to no shade, to get the wider and longer lens, and therefore, there was for the jog wheel for exposure compensation no place more. That is with the PowerShot G1 X finally, as the second ring under the mode dial, where the iso-ring sat.
The direct access to iso-values is now accessible via the d-pad, the mf mode is thereby moved to the left position on the d-pad, which the doubleert with the macro setting. A similar ‘towel laying’game is created by the addition of the red video button, eventually causing the zelfontspanfunctie banished to the menu.
The PowerShot G1 X does not excel in speed, despite the new Digic 5 image processor. The zoom in and out with the lens over the whole range goes pretty slow and also with focussing, the camera is not a Lamborghini.
The shutter of the sample responded very sensitive, so the difference between half and whole pressing was small and so we often, unintentionally, photo made. The ring around the lens that unscrews for opzetlenzen, rattled. Probably the above, due to the pre-manufacturing intelligence of the PowerShot G1 X.
The optical viewfinder covers as usual, but something of 80 percent of the image, and gives no information, but makes it possible to last longer with the battery or a fotografeerhouding which have less vibration.
Canon has already stated previously, no bread to be seen in the placing on the market of a compact system camera and the PowerShot G1 X is to be seen as a response to that trend. The fact that you have a fairly compact camera with built-in lens and a large sensor, weighs for many on against the possibilities of interchangeable lenses. The suggested retail price of 749 euro is high and Canon is positioning the camera compared to the Nikon 1 V1, the E-P3 from Olympus and the Lumix GX1 from Panasonic.
In addition to the PowerShot G1 X caught our eye on the Canon booth at CES, also on the newly announced Ixus 500 HS, in the United States known as the ELPH 520 HS. We are not yet a small, compact camera met with a 12x-zoom lens integrated into it. It has the size of a small pack of cards, and it even has optical image stabilization. The photograph showed the live view quite a bit of noise, but as soon as the shutter button is pressed, the image thereof is purified. It is possible that the live view in the final version, however, noise-free.
The back of the camera is dominated by the 3″screen with 460K subpixels. Instead of a full-fledged d-pad, has Canon on a group of four buttons in a narrow diamond shape, this functionality is assigned, at which the Func.Set button acts as confirmation button. In and out is relatively fast.
In the small metal box is even a flash processed, and if storage allows the Ixus 500 HS use of a micro-sd card. The time that travelzoom-cameras, a large format dictated, are finally over, let Canon with this camera.
