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Digital Camera Reviews and Ratings By manufacturer:
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The Canon PowerShot G9 is a 12.1 megapixel camera with a 6x optical zoom and 3.0 inch high resolution LCD Screen.
This update of the award winning G7 adds a variety of features, most notably RAW shooting mode.
The Canon PowerShot G9 features face detection (auto focussing and auto exposure), a new thumb grip, compatability with Canon's wireless flash transmitter, image stabilization, DIGIC III, ISO of up to 1600, 25 shooting modes, hot shoe flash plus lots more.
The Canon PowerShot G9 will have a retail price of $500 USD when it hits stores in October.
“A combination of advanced features, precision Canon optics and user-centric design made the PowerShot G7 our most successful G-series camera yet,” explained Mogens Jensen, Head of Canon Consumer Imaging, Europe. “By incorporating user requests and adding further enhancements, our engineers have made a great camera even better.”
The PowerShot G9 features:
* 12.1 Megapixels (1/1.7” sensor) with RAW mode for maximum image control
* 6x optical zoom lens with optical Image Stabilizer and SR coating*
* DIGIC III and iSAPS for lightning fast response, superb image quality and advanced Noise Reduction*
* Face Detection AF/AE/FE and Red-Eye Correction in playback
* 3.0” high-resolution, PureColor LCD II with extra wide viewing angle
* ISO 1600 and Auto ISO Shift
* Compact body with dedicated ISO and Multi Control dials
* 25 shooting modes including full manual control and 2 custom settings
* Extra telephoto reach with Digital Tele-Converter and Safety Zoom*
* Hot shoe support for Canon Speedlite flashes and optional lens accessories
*See Technologies Explained
Total image control
With an enlarged 12.1 Megapixel (1/1.7”) sensor, the PowerShot G9 gives photographers the flexibility to crop images and produce high quality prints up to A2 size. The addition of RAW image recording and simultaneous RAW+JPEG recording offers advanced users complete control over image processing. The supplied ZoomBrowser software includes RAW Image Task for fine adjustment of settings such as exposure compensation, white balance, tonal curve and colour temperature. RAW images can then be converted into either JPEG or TIFF format.
Canon precision optics for ultimate clarity
Exceptional optical performance is assured by the fast f/2.8 (W) – f/4.8 (T) Canon 6x optical zoom lens (35-210mm focal length, 35mm equivalent), which includes a double-sided aspherical lens element to counteract lens distortions. The addition of SR coating significantly reduces ghosting and chromatic aberration, while Canon’s optical Image Stabilizer technology counteracts the effects of camera shake. The risk of image blur is further reduced by ISO Shift, which allows an instant ISO boost whenever camera shake threatens to affect image quality. Benefiting from the large pixel count, Safety Zoom allows extra digital zoom with no interpolation – images can be captured at up to 15x zoom with enough resolution for lab-quality postcard (10 x 15cm) prints. Digital Tele-Converter adds extra telephoto reach to every shot (1.5x or 2.0x), without any reduction in aperture.
Improved Face Detection and Red-Eye Correction
The PowerShot G9 offers high speed operation and accurate image rendering through Canon’s DIGIC III processor, which also powers Face Detection Technology. In addition to focus and exposure control, Face Detection Technology has been improved on the PowerShot G9 to adjust for flash exposure – particularly helpful when using the flash close to a subject. A new Face Select and Track function enables the user to manually select and track an individual face from up to 35 faces detected in frame. Photographers will also benefit from Red-Eye Correction in playback, allowing in-camera removal of red-eye from captured images.
Designed for photographers
Built for photo-enthusiasts, the PowerShot G9 provides external controls that include a dedicated ISO dial, multi-control dial and customisable shortcut button. The analogue-inspired design of the PowerShot G9 has been updated on this model with a textured coating and a black alumite lens ring. A larger grip and pronounced thumb rest ensure secure and comfortable handling. On the back of the camera, a 3.0” PureColor LCD II offers several benefits. With 230,000 pixels resolution, the high contrast screen provides vastly improved colour reproduction and better visibility at wider angles of view. An anti-reflective coating helps in sunny conditions, while a protective layer guards against knocks and scrapes. The PowerShot G9 retains its optical viewfinder for extra framing flexibility.
Creativity unlimited
Advanced photographers will benefit from a selection of 25 shooting modes that includes full Manual, Av and Tv, along with two custom modes for user-defined settings. Shooting modes are complemented by a variety of features that assist creative shooting. Safety MF performs fine adjustments to aid manual focusing, while Safety FE reduces the risk of blown highlights when using the flash. Photographers can now choose a smaller AF frame size for finer focusing control – particularly helpful when using the camera’s 1cm Macro mode. Other useful features include an in-built ND (Neutral Density) filter, AEB (auto exposure bracketing), focus bracketing and a live histogram display. A new Image Resize function lets users downsize full-resolution images to 1600x1200, 640x480 and 320x240 sizes. This is equally useful for conserving storage space or preparing images for email or the Web.
Powerful movie functions
The photographic features of the PowerShot G9 are matched by a powerful array of movie capabilities. In addition to VGA (30fps) and high resolution XGA (15fps) movie recording, the PowerShot G9 introduces LP (Long Play) mode. This mode offers movies of half the file size without compromising on resolution or frame rate. The new Time Lapse Movie function allows the extended capture of changing scenes – such as a blooming flower, or bustling city streets - for accelerated playback as smooth VGA-quality movie clips.
No boundaries: Speedlite flash units and system accessories
With hot shoe support for Canon Speedlite EX series flash units, the PowerShot G9 is ideal for existing EOS digital SLR users or those seeking to experiment with creative flash photography. The camera supports the Speedlite ST-E2 wireless file transmitter for multi-flash setups. Additionally, the camera’s menu can be used to control flash settings for the recently launched Speedlite 580EX II.
The PowerShot G9 is compatible with a range of optional lens accessories, including wide (0.75x) and tele (2.0x) converter lenses. A waterproof case allows for shooting at depths of up to 40 metres. Offering a level of flexibility typically only found on digital SLRs, the PowerShot G9 provides photo enthusiasts with a camera that’s fully equipped to lift the limits of their creative potential.
Additional Information
Printing
Full PictBridge support means users can print directly to any PictBridge compatible printer without the need for a PC. A Print/Share button allows one-touch printing and easy uploads to Windows or Mac systems.
Language
The PowerShot G9 user interface supports 25 languages: English, German, French, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Italian, Norwegian, Swedish, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese, Russian, Portuguese, Korean, Greek, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Thai, Arabic, Romanian and Ukrainian.
Memory Card Support
In addition to SD, SDHC and MMC cards, the PowerShot G9 supports the new MMCplus and HC MMCplus formats for storage capacities of up to 32GB. The camera comes supplied with a 32MB memory card.
Software
The PowerShot G9 comes bundled with the following Canon Software:
* ZoomBrowser EX 6.0 (Windows), ImageBrowser 6.0 (Mac): For organizing and editing images, movies and slideshows, or creating and printing digital photo albums.
* PhotoStitch 3.1 (Windows) /3.2 (Mac): For creating panoramic photos from multiple images.
The bundled software supports Windows 2000 (SP4), XP (SP2) and Vista, or Macintosh OS X v10.3-v10.5. The PowerShot G9 supports PTP for driverless transfer to Windows XP and Mac OS X, along with MTP for image and movie transfers to Windows Vista. Purchasers of the camera are eligible for membership of CANON iMAGE GATEWAY*, 100MB of online ‘personal gallery’ space for sharing stills and video with family and friends.
Buy it at Amazon at Canon PowerShot G9
CNET reviews the Canon PowerShot G9 and gives it a rating of 8 out of 10. They write - "Like its predecessor, the G9 offers all of the exposure, focus, and shooting controls any enthusiast would want. They include a spot meter, user-selectable focus zones, two custom settings modes, continuous- or shot-only IS settings, manual ISO settings up to 1,600 plus a High mode that reaches up to 3,200, voice annotation, and a hot shoe.... The Canon PowerShot G9 gets a leg up over its predecessor by improving photo quality and restoring raw-format support while maintaining the same excellent performance and body design. You probably can't miss with this model as a compact backup for your dSLR."
Popular Photography review the Canon PowerShot G9 and writes - 'After the disappointing lab results of its predecessor, the Canon PowerShot G7, we were a bit skeptical of the Canon PowerShot G9. Not anymore! In general we like what we see. We like Adaptive Noise RAW conversion. We like a compact camera that syncs with external strobes. We like full manual controls. And we like Scene Assist modes to help beginners get better with their compositions before venturing into the uncharted waters of full manual control. We love the Focus Confirm and face recognition instant playback. We like the high-quality half-camera, half-computer Panoramic capture mode. Overall, we like this camera a lot. However, we're not so impressed with ISO 1600 image quality, nor the mostly useless low-resolution ISO 3200 mode.'
Digital Camera Review has reviewed the Canon Powershot G9 and writes - "As recently as two years ago many digital camera industry insiders were predicting the imminent demise of top of the line (read expensive) prosumer/enthusiast digital cameras due to the introduction of affordable entry-level digital SLRs – those dire prophecies clearly haven’t come to pass. The G9 has a few warts, but at this point in time and when compared to the other cameras in its class - the G9 is as good as it gets. If that’s not enough, RAW is back, the G9 is more powerful, it has more features, and it’s cheaper (MSRP) than its predecessor."The Online Photographer reviews the Canon G9 and writes - "I could probably write much more about the G9. It has many more features and highlights than I've noted. But I think you get the idea. It's an exceptional little camera whose specs and performance would have been hard to imagine just a few years ago, particularly for $500. If you're looking for a go-anywhere pocketable camera in this price range you owe it to yourself to look at Canon's G9. I believe that it truly represents today's gold standard for point & shoot camera performance and specifications."
Digital Camera Info reviews the Canon PowerShot G9 Digital Camera and writes - 'Canon made a lot of improvements on the PowerShot G9 – most notably the image quality, LCD screen, and RAW file capability. The Canon G9 offers more megapixels than its predecessor, the G7, which on paper suggests it will have better resolution but more noise and worse dynamic range. Our tests prove the G9 has significantly better resolution, better than most cameras released this year. Noise levels are high, but not any higher than the G7, which is commendable. Color accuracy is fantastic, as is the Movie mode, both of which have become consistent successes for high-end Canon PowerShots.'
DCRP reviews the Canon PowerShot G9 where they write -
"The PowerShot G9 is a solid high-end camera, though it won't be replacing your digital SLR anytime soon. It offers a full set of features, both automatic and manual, and throws them into a well-built, expandable body. If you keep the ISO as low as possible you'll get some nice photos out of the camera, though a D-SLR will wipe the floor with the G9 at higher sensitivities. Though I still miss the fast lens and rotating LCD of the older G-series models, I can still recommend the PowerShot G9 to anyone who wants a high-end camera without stepping up to a digital SLR."
DP Review has posted their review of the Canon PowerShot G9 where they write - 'Overall performance is roughly the same as the G7, which is generally speaking a good thing - in most respects the G7 was a very speedy camera. That said, I'd hoped Canon would use the G9 upgrade as an opportunity to improve on the slightly under-par shutter lag when using the LCD and to speed up the focus (particularly in low light and at the long end of the zoom). Whilst side by side tests showed that the G9 is marginally faster at finding focus it's still far from class-leading.'
Cameras.co.uk has a review of the Canon Powershot G9 and writes, "the Powershot G9 is about the most advanced compact camera on the market. In terms of features it has a roll call similar to what you would expect from an SLR camera. It is ideal for a photography enthusiast or someone who owns an SLR, but is looking for a more portable second camera. ... The Powershot G9 scores well in just about every area. It outperforms just about every other consumer camera on the market. ... If quality is what counts for you the Canon Powershot G9 should be towards the top of your shortlist. It is packed with features, offers excellent picture quality and has a good build quality too."
Imaging Resource reviews the Canon PowerShot G9 where they write - 'Sure, I wish the Canon G9 were just a bit smaller to fit in a shirt pocket without strangling me. But at least the Canon G9's large body contains a lot of good stuff. With above-average performance, a 6x optical zoom, image stabilization, and that gorgeous 3.0-inch LCD, the Canon G9 is the G-series reborn. Though it's still lacking the swivel screen, I found the Canon G9's big LCD useful enough that I didn't miss it much. Though I'm one reviewer who will take the noise at ISO 1,600 and work with it later, I do wish ISO weren't stranded out on that dial, retro-cool as it is.'
Posted by Darren in our Canon category on August 20, 2007