Canon Powershot G9 Review

Review Date: October 8th 2007
Author: Mark Goldstein

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Page 1
Introduction / Ease of Use
Page 2
Image Quality
Page 3
Sample Images
Page 4
Design
Page 5
Specifications
Page 6
Conclusion

Specifications

IMAGE SENSOR
Type 1/1.7� CCD
Effective Pixels Approx 12.1M
Colour Filter Type Primary Colour
IMAGE PROCESSOR
Type DIGIC III with iSAPS technology
LENS
Focal Length 7.4 - 44.4 mm (35mm equivalent: 35-210mm)
Zoom Optical 6x. Digital approx. 4x (with Digital Tele-Converter approx. 1.5x or 2.0x and Safety Zoom�)�. Combined approx. 24x
Maximum f/number f/2.8-f/4.8
Construction 9 elements in 7 groups (1 double-sided aspherical element)
Image Stabilisation Yes (shift-type)
FOCUSING
Type TTL
AF System / Points AiAF (Face Detection / 9-point), 1-point AF (Any position is available, fixed centre or Face Select and Track)
AF Modes Single, Continuous
AF Point Selection Manual selection using FlexiZone AF/AE, Size (Normal, Small)
AF Lock On/Off Selectable
AF Assist Beam Yes
Manual Focus Yes
Focus Bracketing Yes
Closest Focusing Distance 1cm
EXPOSURE CONTROL
Metering Modes Evaluative (linked to Face Detection AF frame), Centre-weighted average, Spot (centre or linked to Face Detection AF or FlexiZone AF frame)
AE Lock Yes
Exposure Compensation +/- 2 EV in 1/3 stop increments
AEB 1/3 - 2 EV in 1/3 stop increments
ISO Sensitivity* AUTO, High ISO Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600
SHUTTER
Speed 15 � 1/2,500 sec
(Available shutter speeds vary depending on the shooting mode)
WHITE BALANCE
Type TTL
Settings Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Flash, Underwater, Custom1, Custom2
COLOUR MATRIX
Type sRGB
VIEWFINDER
Viewfinder Real-image zoom, optical viewfinder
Dioptre Correction Yes
LCD MONITOR
Monitor 3.0� P-Si TFT, approx. 230,000 pixels
Coverage 100%
FLASH
Modes Auto, Manual Flash On / Off
Slow Sync Speed Yes
Red-eye Reduction Yes
Flash Exposure Compensation +/- 2 EV in 1/3 stop increments. Face Detection FE. Safety FE.
Flash Exposure Lock Yes
Manual Power Adjustment 3 levels with internal flash (19 levels with external EX Speedlites�)
Second Curtain Synchronisation Yes
Built-in Flash Range 30cm-4.0m (W) / 2.5m (T) (at ISO AUTO equivalent)
External Flash E-TTL with EX series Speedlites (4), Canon's High Power Flash HF-DC1�
SHOOTING
Modes Auto, Program AE, Shutter priority AE, Aperture priority AE, Manual, Custom (2 modes), Stitch Assist, Movie, Special Scene (Portrait, Landscape, Night Scene, Sports, Night Snapshot, Kids & Pets, Indoor, Foliage, Snow, Beach, Fireworks, Aquarium, Underwater, ISO 3200�, Color Accent, Color Swap)
Photo Effects My Colors (My Colors Off, Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, Black & White, Positive Film, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Vivid Blue, Vivid Green, Vivid Red, Custom Color)
Drive Modes Single, Continuous, Self-Timer
Continuous Shooting Approx. 1.5 fps�, AF: Approx. 0.7 fps�, LV: Approx. 0.8 fps� (until memory card becomes full)�
RECORDING PIXELS / COMPRESSION
Image Size (L) 4000 x 3000, (M1) 3264 x 2448, (M2) 2592 x 1944, (M3) 1600 x 1200, (S) 640 x 480, (W) 4000 x 2248. Resize in playback (M3, S, 320 x 240)
Compression Superfine, Fine, Normal
Movies (L1)1024 x 768, 15 fps, (L2)640 x 480, 30fps, (LP)640x480, 30fps (M)320 x 240, 30fps, (S)160 x 120, 15fps (Time Lapse) 640 x 480, 0.5/1fps (Playback 15fps)
Movie Length Up to 4GB or 1 hour (L1, L2 and M)�
Up to 3 mins (S)�
Up to 120 mins (Time Lapse)�
FILE TYPES
Still Image Type JPEG compression, (Exif 2.2 [Exif Print] compliant) / Design rule for Camera File system, RAW, Digital Print Order Format [DPOF] Version 1.1 compliant
Movies AVI [Motion JPEG compression + WAVE (monaural)]
Sound Files WAVE (monaural)
DIRECT PRINT
Canon Printers Canon SELPHY Compact Photo Printers and Canon Inkjet Printers supporting PictBridge (ID Photo Print, Fixed Size Print and Movie Print supported on SELPHY CP & ES printers only)
PictBridge Yes
OTHER FEATURES
Red-Eye Correction Yes, in playback
My Camera Start-up image and camera sounds customisation
My Category Image tagging feature
Sound Memo Up to 60 sec per image
Intelligent Orientation Sensor Yes
Histogram Yes, live histogram
Self Timer Approx. 2 or 10 sec. or Custom
Menu Languages English, German, French, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Italian, Norwegian, Swedish, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Chinese (traditional), Japanese, Russian, Portuguese, Korean, Greek, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Thai, Arabic, Ukrainian, Romanian
INTERFACE
Computer USB 2.0 Hi-Speed (Mini-B, PTP)
Other A/V output (PAL/NTSC)
MEMORY CARD
Type SD, SDHC, MMC, MMCplus, HC MMCplus. 32MB memory card supplied
SUPPORTED OPERATING SYSTEM
PC Macintosh Windows 2000 SP4 / XP SP2 / Vista
Mac OS X v10.3 - 10.4
SOFTWARE
Browsing & Printing ZoomBrowser EX / ImageBrowser
Other PhotoStitch, RemoteCapture
Drivers TWAIN (2000)
POWER SOURCE
Batteries Rechargeable Li-ion Battery NB-2LH/NB-2L (NB-2LH battery and charger supplied)
Battery Life Approx. 240 shots�
Approx. 420 min. playback
AC Power Supply Optional, AC Adapter Kit ACK-DC20
ACCESSORIES
Case Soft Case DCC-600, SC-DC55A
Waterproof / Weatherproof Case Waterproof Case (40m) WP-DC21, Waterproof Case Weight WW-DC1
Lenses Tele-converter 2.0x TC-DC58C
Wide-converter 0.75x WC-DC58B
Lens adapter/Hood set LA-DC58H
Flash Canon Speedlites (220EX, 430EX, 580EX II�), Speedlite Transmitter ST-E2, Off-Camera Shoe Cord OC-E3
High Power Flash HF-DC1
Power Supply & Battery Chargers AC Adapter Kit ACK-DC20, Car Battery Charger CBC-NB2, Battery Charger CB-2LWE
PHYSICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Operating Environment 0 � 40 �C, 10 � 90% humidity
Dimensions 106.4 x 71.9 x 42.5 mm (excluding protrusions)
Weight (body only) Approx. 320g
   
Zoom � Depending on the image size selected
� Digital zoom available for still image and standard movie modes only. Optical zoom may not be available during movie recording
Manual Power Adjustment � Not all functions of the flash are supported
External Flash � Not all functions of the flash are supported
Modes � Recording pixels fixed at 1600 x 1200
Continuous Shooting � Large/Fine with LCD monitor off
� Depending on memory card speed / capacity
Movie Length � Depending on memory card speed / capacity
Battery Life � Based on the CIPA Standard and using the batteries and memory card format supplied with the camera, except where indicated
Flash � Not all functions of the flash are supported
All data is based on Canon standard testing methods except where indicated.
Subject to change without notice.
* Standard Output Sensitivity / Recommended Exposure Index. According to ISO 12232:2006 (20th April 2006)
which specifies the method for assigning and reporting ISO speed ratings for digital still cameras.
 
Page 1
Introduction / Ease of Use
Page 2
Image Quality
Page 3
Sample Images
Page 4
Design
Page 5
Specifications
Page 6
Conclusion

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