Another company took over three years to create a compact camera that competed with the excellent RX100 line of compacts. Canon PowerShot G7X ($699.99), is the first compact camera with a 1 inch sensor that does not bear the Sony name.
The G7 X is similar to the Editors Choice Cyber-shot RX100 III and features a 20MP image sensor (1-inch) with a BSI CMOS layout. While the G7 X costs $100 more than the RX100 III and has a 24-100mm f/1.8 to2.8 zoom range, it does not include the Sony integrated EVF. Although the G7 X doesn't have enough quality to challenge our favourite premium compact, RX100 III, it is an appealing alternative for those who want a wider zoom range than an integrated EVF.
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Design and Features
G7X X is a pocket-friendly model that measures 2.4x4.1x1.6 inches (HWD), and 10.7 ounces. The G7 X is roughly the same size and weight as the Sony Cybershot RX100 II (Amazon: $598.00). It measures 2.3x4x1.5 inches, 9.9oz. G7 X comes in black, and the body has very little flair.
It is a zoom lens with a variable aperture of f/1.8 to 2.8. The focal length is 24-100mm. The lens covers a larger range than the RX100 III's 24-70mm zoom f/1.8-22.8 and it is also brighter than the RX100 II's 28-100mm zoom f/1.8-9 zoom. With a three-stop neutral density filter, the G7X can focus to as close as two inches at its widest angle.
This allows you to take pictures in extremely dark conditions with a large aperture. However, it must be manually turned on and off. Other cameras that have integrated ND filters like the Ricoh GR (Amazon: $628.00) can toggle the camera automatically in bright lighting. However, you will need to activate or disengage the ND filter manually with the G7 X.
Top plate contains a pop up flash, On/Off button and zoom rocker, as well as a standard mode dial and exposure compensation dial. Although the mode dial is on top of both dials, they can all be adjusted easily. Although it is standard to adjust the EV compensation dial from -3 up to +3 in increments of three stops, its orientation may be different.
Negative values are found towards the front, while positive values are toward the rear. This configuration is also used by most other cameras, such as the Nikon Coolpix P7800 (at Amazon).
The control ring is located around the lens. It has detents so that it clicks when you turn it. Its function will change depending on the shooting mode. The ring will adjust aperture and shutter speed if you are using a conventional control mode such as Av or TV.
However, if you change to one of the more unusual modes, its function may be different. Creative Shot is a feature of the G7 X. It captures five filtered images and an original. The ring controls which filter will be used. It changes the scene and can be used as a zoom control when it is set to auto. You can change the function of your ring by using the Ring Func. The button is located under the thumb rest at the rear.
Rear controls also include an additional record button that can be used to playback, stop, or start video recording, as well as menu and control buttons. It has four buttons: a Func./Set button at the center and four that control the amount of information displayed on the rear display, including the flash output and focus modes.
Two ways to extend physical controls: The Func./Set button allows access to Canon's overlay menu. This lets you adjust camera settings and not obscure the Live View feed. Touch sensitive LCD displays can be tapped to select a focal point. The LCD has a control surface on its right that lets you expand the functionality of the front control circle.
You can adjust additional settings by tapping the area. However, you will need to hold your finger down on the LCD while you adjust the highlighted option. This can prove handy if you are looking for a quick fix. If you have the front ring assigned to any custom function, it will bring up ISO in available modes.
It measures 3 inches and has a resolution of 1,040k dots. The display is very bright and sharp. It was easy to use on sunny days, even with direct sunlight. The hinge mount allows it to face forward and allow for self-portraits. Fujifilm X30 ($599) has a 3-inch tilting display. It's sharp at 920k dots, but not able to cut through sunlight under similar conditions. However, the X30 features an electronic viewfinder integrated and a hotshoe, which is not available in the G7 X.
Wi-Fi has been integrated. The Wi-Fi menu can be launched during image playback using the upward direction of the rear control dial. Or, you can connect to your smartphone directly by pressing the button on the right. You can also tap to connect if your smartphone has NFC. The Canon CameraWindow free app allows you to transfer photos and videos directly from your camera to an iOS or Android phone. The app also supports remote control, however it is very limited in functionality.
The app allows you to adjust the zoom and set the self timer. You also have the ability to fire the shutter but can't choose a focal point or alter exposure settings. CameraWindow offers a location log feature. If you enable this, it will allow you to attach location data to your photos. This assumes that both clocks on the devices are the same.
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Performance and conclusions
The G7 X starts and captures an in-focus image in about 1.8 seconds, and its 31-point contrast autofocus system locks and fires in about 0.05-second. There are two main focus modes, Face AiAf and 1-Point. The former automatically choose a focus point (or points), with a priority on focusing on faces. If you want to control the focus point yourself, 1-Point allows for that. You can tap the screen to move the point around, and choose from a small or large point via the menu.
I had no issues with the G7 X locking focus using the AiAf mode, but there were a few times when the 1-Point mode had trouble locking focus. When that happens the focus boxes turns yellow with an exclamation point, rather than the green that you get when focus locks successfully.
This didn't happen often, but it is something to be aware of. Canon's G1 X Mark II ($779.00 at Amazon), which has a larger 1.5-inch image sensor, also shows this issue, but it happens less often with the G7 X. There is an Ai Servo mode, which continues to hunt for focus as long as the shutter is halfway pressed.
This mode will never give you a yellow exclamation point; rather, the focus box is blue as long as you half-press the shutter, but it does introduce the possibility of snapping an out-of-focus shot, especially if you try to lock on to a subject that's too close to the lens for focus.
The file type determines the speed of continuous shooting. Raw+JPG photos are shot at approximately 1 frame per second by the G7 X. This speed increases to 1.2 frames per second when shooting in Raw and jumps up to 6.5 frames when using JPG mode. Continuous mode can also be used to capture images that show subject moving towards or away from camera. It captures images in Raw+JPG about every 1.4 seconds. In Raw mode it does so every 1.3 seconds. JPG mode is relatively fast at 4.4 frames per seconds.
The focus rate was good provided that the subject did not change significantly between shots. The camera is not one you would use to capture sports and birds flying, but continuous focus mode can be helpful when keeping up with your child or dog. The RX100 III, a 1 inch camera that can capture burst shots at a faster rate than the RX100 II, is an option. It can take 50 JPG shots and shoot at 6.6fps when you are shooting Raw or Raw+JPG images.
Imatest was used to test the sharpness and quality of the G7X's 24-100mm zoom lens. It's sharp at 24mm f/1.8, scoring 2,508 lines for each picture on the center-weighted Sharpness Test. This is better than our 1,800 line threshold for defining an image as sharp. It also maintains this quality throughout the entire frame.
Although the outer third is slightly soft at 1,593 lines it's still not too bad considering the size of the sensor, aperture and the field of view at 24mm. Similar sharpness is seen in the RX100 III at its broadest angle (2,494 lines), and it has slightly sharper edges (1,769 line).
At 40mm, the lens performs better across the entire frame. The maximum aperture of f/2.5 can manage 2,281 lines. However, the edges show more than 2,000 lines. Stopping at f/4 gives you a little more detail with 2,446 lines. Performance is almost the same as that of f/5.6. Just a bit more detail is available with the RX100 III, which shows 2,464 lines at 35mm at f/2.8 and 2,688 at f/4.
At 100mm, sharpness drops a little. The lens has 1,985 lines at f/2.8, with 1,400 line edges. Stopping down to f/4 improves things all around—2,296 lines on average with edges that top 1,900 lines, and at f/5.6 the lens hits 2,349 lines with edges that approach 2,200 lines. While the RX100 III can't zoom beyond 100mm, it does so with the RX100 II.
At 100mm f/4.9, 2,268 lines are visible, which is comparable to G7X at a similar aperture. The distortion is not an issue throughout the zoom range. There's some correction in camera, but you won't see it unless your Raw converter doesn't account for corrections.
Imatest can also check photos for noise. The G7 X reduces noise to less than 1.5 percent when shooting JPGs and displays about 1.9 percent at ISO 3200. On a NEC MultiSync PA271W ($999.00 Amazon), I examined the ISO test scenes. The G7X produces images at lower ISOs that look just as sharp, if perhaps a bit clearer than the Sony RX100 III.
The Canon's ISO 3200 output is less detailed than the Sony. Neither the Canon nor the Sony do a great job at ISO 6400 and 12800. However, the Sony's JPG Engine outputs a little more detail at higher sensitivities, even though it is a little less sharp than the Canon. In the slideshow, you can see how crops were created during our ISO testing sequence.
Adobe does not support Raw for the G7 X. To convert raw images from ISO to TIFF, I used Canon Digital Photo Professional software. The settings didn't include any noise reduction or sharpening. The TIFF files were imported into Lightroom, and the usual +25 Sharpening/Color Noise Reduction was applied to raw images.
This method isn't perfect—Lightroom doesn't control color noise as well with TIFF files as it does with the original camera Raw image—but it's better than using the Canon software at default settings, as it applies varying noise reduction to Raw files shot at different ISOs that really harms detail at higher settings.
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom was used to convert Raw images. The raw images look a bit soft compared to JPGs. This indicates that additional sharpening may be required. Although Lightroom defaults to 25 sharpening, I discovered that moving the slider from 25 to 50 increased image detail and didn't introduce an artificially oversharpened appearance.
All the crops shown in the slideshow are made using the default sharpening settings. G7 X has a 1-inch 20-megapixel sensor. This is the same resolution and size as the Sony RX100 III.
Although Canon will not confirm the manufacturer of the sensor, there are many people who believe that the G7 X has the same Sony-made sensor as the RX100 III. When shot raw, there is little difference in the ISO settings between the G7 X shots and the RX100 III images. This is especially true after the G7 X had extra sharpening. Higher ISOs produce images that are identical in terms of detail and noise. In this regard, both images are top-of-the-line.
The video can be recorded in MP4 format at 1080p60 resolution. Sharp details and accurate colors are evident in the footage. When rolling footage is being recorded, exposure compensation can be done via touch screen control. Other manual controls cannot. Manual focus can be chosen, however you will need to do so before recording any clip. There is no option to adjust focus while recording.
You can enable autofocus to allow the G7 X's lens to refocus during recording. However, the audio of this whirling sound will be overlaid with dialogue. You can also hear the lens moving in and out. There is no option to attach an external microphone. A micro HDMI port allows you to hook up the G7X to an HDTV and a USB port for connecting to a computer. Canon also includes an external charger so that you can recharge an uncharged battery while still using the camera.
The Canon PowerShot G7 X X looks great on paper. The lens achieves 100mm of telephoto reach by the RX100 II and RX100 II. However, it retains a bright aperture of f/2.8 at this length. Sony's cameras are narrower to f/4.9 when zoomed in. The touch screen display on the camera is bright. I like the option to tap an area to select the focal point.
However, I miss the EVF to allow for eye-level photography. The G7 X may not be the best premium compact camera, but it will take a lot of work to replace the Sony RX100III as Editors' Choice. The lens zooms in slightly further but lacks the excellent EVF and high burst rating that make the RX100 III the preferred pocket camera.
The G7X X, while it doesn't have an EVF and has a 100mm equivalent reach is still a great alternative to the RX100 II. We still recommend the G7 X, even though the RX100 II and RX100 II were rated slightly higher than they were when first available. This is especially true when the G7 X has a $50 price premium to the RX100 II.