So I owned a G11 - and for whatever reason sold it a few months back. I have since tried the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1, Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5 and Samsung TL500. This whole time I was searching for something better than the G-series - I only found it with the GF1 - but it is too large to be a compact.
I only give this camera 4 stars instead of 5 for the following reasons.
1. External Speedlite control - you still need a "Master" unit like a 580EX II or Canon STE2 to control external Speedlites. Canon should get off their butt in this area to compete with the new Nikon P7000. I almost considered going the Nikon route just to have that feature built in. Canon - start paying attention to what David Hobby says.
2. The screen is only 460K resolution. The Nikon mentioned above is 960K. The Samsung TL500 I mentioned above sports a beautiful AMOLED screen that knocks this one out of the park.
3. The pathetic optical viewfinder. You are catering to those people that say a camera MUST have one of these - stop it. You are wasting space with something so awful that even a disposable camera does better. I would rather have a higher resolution bigger screen (or a smaller camera) than this awful piece of warped tunnel-vision.
4. The rear control wheel is too small - enlarge it so it feels more like one of your DSLRs.
5. While the lens is gorgeously sharp (I mean competing with some of my L-lenses sharp) - f/2.8 to f/4.5 is slow.
6. The lens needs to be wider - 24mm f/2 (or even f/1.8 in the Samsung) equiv is the primary reason I tried the LX5 and TL500 before going back to Canon.
7. No microphone input for video recording.
8. Just too big and bulky - slim it down (but do NOT remove the articulating display).
So 8 knocks like that might sound like a big deal - but believe me when I say this - the camera is phenomenal.
Image quality is outstanding - I have had to process my RAW files with their converter (typically use Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 - but even with their converter image quality is second to none in the compact world. I actually prefer to do product shots with a G-Series than my usual 5D2 kit due to the flexibility and increased depth of field. The lens is magnificently sharp. HD video results look pretty good - but not stellar. It'll do in a pinch - but its no camcorder replacement.
Operation speed is very very good. I have read a few posts saying that focusing speed is vastly improved from the G11 - I haven't found that to be the case but none-the-less its pretty good.
Construction quality is pretty good - but I don't like the rough textured finish as much as the smooth finish on the G11 - it somehow makes it feel cheaper.
Controls are absolutely second to none. Dedicated EV and ISO dials are wonderful. The new front control dial is great. The rear dial however could use a bit of an extension - hard to operate quickly with my fat thumb. The whole camera is a little fat - slim it down and kill the awful optical viewfinder. Would like a dedicated movie button like pretty much all of its competitors. The articulating display is fantastic - PLEASE include this whenever you update the 5D.
Value for the money is mostly good - but if you are like me and need on-camera control of external flashes add a whopping $200+ for the ST-E2.
All in all a fantastic camera - even if it is a minimal update to the G11.
Why I picked it over LX5 > See my LX5 review - but I didn't particularly like that camera. Biggest reason would the articulating display followed by the awful screen resolution when composing on the LX5.
Why I picked it over the TL500 > I couldn't get the TL500 to trigger external strobes using radio triggers - that plus the lens is MUCH sharper on the Canon. I must have a bad copy of the TL500 as finding a sharp photo in my 50+ test shots is pretty hard.
Why I picked it over the S95 > Hotshoe and articulating display. If the S95 had those it would win hands down.
Why I picked it over the P7000 > Articulating display is about it here if you don't take into account I already own several Canon Speedlites.
Why I picked it over the GF1 or EP1 > Size + Nikon P7000 comments.
Hope you found my review helpful - if so please click the link below!
Edit 30 days in: I would add one more negative - once you lock focus in video to start recording - that focus cannot be changed after the fact - disappointed in that.
Also - I dropped mine this morning =( from 4ft onto concrete. Surprised that everything still works great and as expected it got marred up and one corner's metal is a little bent - but it still works which is impressive. Canon G12 10MP Digital Camera with 5x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.8 inch Vari-Angle LCD - Canon - Digital Photography - Compact Camera - Powershot'
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