PHOTO QUALITY. This 20-megapixel advanced point-and-shoot camera captured images with very good quality. Pictures were very sharp, which means you can see even tiny details and very subtle patterns in the image. In low-light situations without a flash, pictures were sharp. We judged this model excellent for outdoor performance, such as shooting landscapes in the daytime; excellent for indoor performance, such as photographing a well-lit basketball game in a gym; excellent for performance under natural light without a flash, such as shooting under an overcast sky; and very good for low-light performance without a flash, such as capturing a birthday party. Photos taken in our low-light performance tests displayed little image noise; subjects retained most of their correct detail and color.
FLASH. The PowerShot G7 X captured flash shots that were very good. In our distance test, we found the camera's flash could illuminate subjects very well, both near and far. The flash also has very good, even coverage.
LENS. This camera includes a 4.2x zoom lens, bit more zoom than a standard 3x. The lens also has very wide-angle (24mm) capability that's very useful for landscapes and group portraits, although you may notice a bit of distortion when you're shooting faces up close, for instance. The lens has a bright f/1.8 aperture (at its maximum), which gives you a shallower depth of field for producing more professional looking portraits and images.
IMAGE STABILIZER. This is an important feature; taking hand-held shots at the telephoto end of the zoom range can generally blur or soften images due to the slight movement of your hands. In low-light settings, it performed excellently and almost never produced blurry photos.
SPEED. In terms of performance, the Canon PowerShot G7 X powers up very quickly. It has a short interval between shots, which can be important when shooting fast-moving or unpredictable subjects.
VIDEO. The Canon PowerShot G7 X takes excellent video, higher quality than almost all in its class. It captures full HD video at 1920 x 1080. As for sound, it captures good audio in stereo.
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS. It has HDR (high-dynamic range) settings. Unlike most advanced point-and-shoots, this camera does not include a viewfinder, which means you'll need to rely on the LCD to compose your photo or video. The display also swivels; this can be helpful when shooting self-portraits or hard-to-reach shots. Like all cameras of this kind, it can capture RAW files, which gives you the most flexibility when manipulating image files with software. This advanced point-and-shoot is thinner than most in its class.
