Canon powershot G12 part 1

The camera's new front dial button

On/Off controls are recessed

My G12 and the G10 in the background

Over the last 10 years, I've cycled at least 6 out of 10 Canon powershot digital cameras. 

My first was a G-1 which I bought through a friend. It was a showroom set which was taken for trade exhibitions. I paid RM1.6K for the G-1 and subsequently upgraded it to a G-3. 

Soon, the powershot G-5 and G-6 came along and it took a while until I changed it to a G-7. 

My last camera was the G-10 which served me very well. 

It was replaced by the G-11 which features a swiveling LCD screen and low-light capture capabilities.

I came very close to procuring the G-11, but after a deal to sell it went sour, I decided to keep it. 

Recently, I got a very good offer for the camera and decided that it was time to give the G-10 some rest.

First impressions 

With the G-12, Canon did away with bulky boxes and papers. 

Instructional sheets were replaced by a CD-Rom and the package was minimalistic.

I found that the controls too have changed a bit.

The On/Off button is recessed and this is good because it prevents accidental power-up when you are carrying this camera in your pocket. (most people found it to be too big for their pockets and prefer the slimmer S-95)

Anyways, feature selection and certain controls can be accessed with a front-dial. 

This is something that you would find on an EOS camera.

Even the slow-flash sync function on the flash controls were not there anymore. 

Its been replace by a slow-flash feature on the flash function itself.

The G-12 has a low-light capture ability but this is toned down to 2.5MB per image which turned out to be very pixelated when you blow it up on screen at 1040 x 800.

Its good for record purposes but if you want to present this as a large print, better forget it. 

The feature is also limited to large JPEG images. No RAW capture.

On feel, the swiveling LCD is plastic. So, when you play with the jog dial during image reviewing on playback, it feels rather 'plasticky' compared to the G-10 which is housed in a magnesium-alloy casing. 

To me, this is a slight drawback. Nothing really serious. 

As far as value is concerned, the powershot G-12 is a bang for your buck if you prefer a small point-and-shoot camera packed with advanced features.