Canon PowerShot G1 X review

This isn't a gripe about depth-of-field; the larger sensor size of the G1 X allows for shallower DOF at narrower apertures than the smaller sensors in the Olympus and Fujifilm cameras. It's about light constraints at reasonably short focal lengths.

And that's only one problem. The other is the lens' minimum focusing distance. First, it can only focus as close as 7.9 inches, and that's in macro mode; in standard focus, it's a more common 1.3 feet. Even the G12's lens focuses as close as 2 inches in normal mode. More annoying, the camera can only autoswitch between macro and standard focus modes in complete Auto. It means unlearning habits about lens settings and spending too much time jumping in and out of macro modes.

Bigger, heavier, and boxier than the G12 and with a pop-up rather than front-mounted flash, the G1 X nevertheless looks and feels quite similar to its older sibling. Overall, I like the design, though the function button behavior can get a little frustrating: unlike other cameras, which automatically hide the menu when you press the shutter button, Canon's remains until you press the function button again. As a result, I frequently found myself scrolling around the options when I thought I was changing the shutter speed. Otherwise, I like the flip-and-twist LCD--it's bright and big--and though the optical viewfinder is quite small, it's useful to have. And the buttons and dials feel responsive and well laid out.

Canon PowerShot G1 X photos

Many of the new features, like the multi-area white balance and Intelligent IS, which launched with the S100, work only in auto mode; Intelligent IS autodetects what type of stabilization is necessary in both still and video modes, and the updated white balance does better scene analysis. It also introduces face recognition, and can store up to 12 faces with some limited associated metadata. You'll find a bunch of multishot modes, including five-shot HDR, though I find Canon's implementations so-so. Like the G12, it has a built-in neutral-density filter.

Conclusion
A lot of people think that Canon's missing out by lagging in its ILC development--and it is. The G1 X targets a growing part of the market, composed of people who don't really care about changing lenses and just want better photo quality. But, ironically, its disappointing lens makes a better case for getting an ILC in this price segment than for buying this fixed-lens option.

Shooting speed (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)

Time to first shot

Raw shot-to-shot time

Typical shot-to-shot time

Shutter lag (dim)

Shutter lag (typical)

Olympus E-PL3

1 

0.8 

0.7 

0.6 

0.3 

Fujifilm FinePix X10

0.9 

1.2 

1.1 

0.6 

0.3 

Canon PowerShot G12

2.1 

2.5 

2.2 

0.6 

0.4 

Olympus XZ-1

1 

1.4 

1.1 

0.7 

0.4 

Canon PowerShot G1 X

1.9 

3.2 

2.4 

0.7 

0.4 

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

1.6 

1.7 

1.4 

0.8 

0.4