Canon G3 X: A Premium Compact with a 20MP 1-inch Sensor and a DSLR-style UI
Canon has just announced its new PowerShot G3 X premium compact camera, which packs DSLR-style features into a smaller, fixed-lens package. This is the camera that Canon announced the development of earlier this year.
At the core of the camera is a 1-inch 20.2 megapixel CMOS sensor with an ISO range of 125 to 12,800.
On the front, you’ll find a 24-600mm (35mm equiv.) f/2.8-5.6 lens that offers 25x optical zoom. Built-in 5-axis image stabilization helps to reduce blur, especially while shooting at the extreme telephoto end.
Canon designed the G3 X to be the most rugged camera so far in its G-series lineup. The construction and rubber sealing allow the camera to be both dust- and water-resistant. Another first for the G-series is the DSLR-style interface on the camera, which borrows from the EOS line of DSLRs.
Among the UI components are an Auto Exposure (AE) lock button, Auto Focus (AF) selection button, DRIVE/AF button, manual exposure control, a mode dial, a programmable continuous ring on the lens, an exposure compensation dial, and a rear control dial.
On the back of the camera is a 3.2-inch, 1.62-million-dot multi-angle LCD touchscreen. There’s no built-in electronic viewfinder, but the camera is compatible with Canon’s 2.36MP EVF-DC1 viewfinder accessory.
Other features of the camera include RAW, 5.9fps continuous shooting, a 31-point AF system, 1080p Full HD video recording, an external stereo microphone jack, a headphone jack, manual control of video exposure and audio levels, live HDMI output, Wi-Fi, and NFC.
Here’s some sample footage captured with the G3 X:
The Canon PowerShot G3 X will be available starting in July 2015 for $1,000.
