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Canon G10 VS. Panasonic LX3: The Winner Is?

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Posted by Patrick on Oct 12, 2008 in Cameras, Reviews

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A totally subjective battle royale has been waged between the Canon G10 and the Panasonic LX3 at 60Hz Productions. There has been quite a bit of discussion on the various forums I frequent on which one of these cameras it the superior one, and as with alot of camera comparisons it kind of depends on how you shoot. Personally, I like the idea of the wide and fast glass on the LX3, but others might prefer the range and resolution of the G10. What caught my eye on the Canon G10 was the obvious weakness that I’ve been harping on…

Noise/Artifacts- While it seems to have been an improvement over previous models, it still stinks. I’d be hard pressed to use anything above ISO 400. Also, Canon’s noise, while perhaps retaining more detail, seems to appear to have more of a white spot/dot/artifact look to it. Looks horrible. LX3’s is comparable in terms of the amount, but it, I hate to say this… appears to be more like “film grain” than jagged, ugly noise (let the hate mail begin). One can only wonder whether Canon could have sacrificed detail/resolution (while very nice) and instead given us cleaner/crisper images. I think Canon could have hit a grand-slam if they would have combined what I feel is the perfect G-series body with the image/noise quality of even their earliest DSLR’s like the D30.

-60Hz Productions

On the other hand, they were impressed with the G10’s resolution:

The detail coming from this 14.7MP sensor really is quite remarkable. I was surprised.

-60Hz Productions

What impressed with the LX3?

Fast Lens- This has to be the LX3’s biggest strength, IMO. Sweet, sweet speed in low light situations. Do not underestimate the usefulness of the fast lens.

-60Hz Productions

and

Wide Angle- While the G10 has a more useful range, the LX3’s 24mm simply opens up more creative possibilities. We’ve been seeing images for YEARS in the the “standard” range. 24mm opens the door for something different.

-60Hz Productions

Flaws of the LX3? Well, because of my bias, I’m not going to post them here, instead head over to 60Hz Productions where they very capably break down the strenghts and weaknesses of both models and better yet, have posted some extensive image comparisons, where you can decide if I’m right in leaning to the LX3. (Hey, I’m not seeing a real reason to prefer the 14.7 megapixels yet…)