Canon G5 X review – An SLR in your pocket?

Image quality

Image quality was excellent throughout my tests. Details were crisp, colours were lifelike and automatic exposures were generally well judged. The wide-aperture lens helped to keep the ISO speed down in limited light, and noise levels remained remarkably low at ISO speeds up to 1600. With an effective aperture equivalent to f/4.9-7.6 on a full-frame camera, this little camera not only performs exceptionally well in low light, but also gives a narrow depth of field to help subjects stand out from their backgrounds.

Compared to the very similar Sony RX100 IV, the Canon produced smoother, crisper fine detail in JPEGs, and its noise reduction produced more pleasing results at ISO 3200 and above. It also benefits from a better-specified lens, with a 24-100mm (equivalent) zoom compared to the RX100 IV’s 24-70mm. Both lenses have an f/1.8 maximum aperture at the wide end of the zoom and f/2.8 at the long end, but the Canon’s stays wider for longer, managing f/2.2 and 35mm whereas the Sony has already topped out at f2.8.

^ Focus is excellent in wide-angle shots, and fine details are handled well, too. The sky is over-exposed but that’s forgivable in this instance, and there’s barely any sign of chromatic aberrations in the branches against the sky. (1/100s, f/4, ISO 125, 24mm equivalent)

^ There’s a slight loss of focus towards the right edge of the frame in this shot, mid-way through the zoom range, but it’s barely noticeable at normal viewing sizes. (1/1000s, f/2.5, ISO 160, 46mm equivalent)

^ Skin textures are detailed and lifelike, and the wide aperture gives a shallow depth of field, throwing the background out of focus. It’s hard to believe this shot has come from such a small camera. (1/200s, f/2.8, ISO 160, 100mm equivalent)

^ The camera has – somewhat surprisingly – pushed the shutter speed up to 1/1,000s and the ISO speed to 800, but it hasn’t had a significant impact on image quality. Noise reduction has glossed over hair texture a little but quality remains perfectly acceptable for big prints. (1/1,000s, f/2.8, ISO 800, 100mm equivalent)

^  Shooting in very low light, the f/1.8 aperture means the camera only needs to resort to a modest ISO 800 setting. There’s some grain in shaded skin tones but it’s an excellent result. (1/20s, f/1.8, ISO 800, 24mm equivalent)

^  The narrow depth of field in this shot helps to draw attention to the main subject, and there’s no need to raise the ISO speed above its base setting. (1/30s, f/2.5, ISO 125, 24mm equivalent)

^  It’s done a fine job of capturing the colours in this post-sunset sky, and there’s still some detail in the foreground, too. (1/25s, f/2.8, ISO 800, 100mm equivalent)

^  Shooting a dark subject under dim artificial lighting pushes the ISO speed up to 3200. There’s remarkably little visible noise, and it’s virtually imperceptible at normal viewing sizes. (1/20s, f/2.5, ISO 3200, 40mm equivalent)

^  ISO 4000 is about as far as I’d go with this camera. Details are grainy and smudged but it’s a passable snapshot. (1/20s, f/1.8, ISO 4000, 24mm equivalent)

Conclusion

With truly exceptional image quality from such a small camera, anything less than five stars may seem unduly harsh. The G5 X’s performance should be better, though, and it’s important to remember that – unlike the Canon G7 X and Sony RX100 IV – the G5 X won’t fit comfortably into a trouser pocket. At this size and price it has the formidable Panasonic LX100 to contend with. The LX100 is slightly bulkier but it has a bigger sensor for even better image quality in low light, 4K video and much faster performance. The LX100 remains our favourite premium compact camera, but the G5 X isn’t far behind.