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FOR many loyal followers of the renowned PowerShot G-Series from Canon, the G7 was a real disappointment. All the major features that made the G-Series, particularly the G6, legendary, were glaringly absent.

Owners loved the G6 for the flexible tilt and swivel LCD display panel, the ability to shoot in RAW format for post-processing and the amply-endowed hand grip. It was everything a professional photographer would require on his day out with the family or on a rough-and-tumble holiday.

Fortunately, the folks at Canon did pay attention to all criticism hurled at the G7, which is why the G9 fares better.

The most desired feature - RAW support - has been brought back into the G9.

Its facade doesn't depart radically from the tried and tested design of the G7. Skipping up a model (there is no G8), the G9 now comes with a bigger three-inch LCD display panel compared to the 2.5 inches of its older sibling.

It's a big leap forward in usability - previews and playback of the images are much easier and more accurate. In fact, you can set the G9 to give you a zoomed-up view of the centre of the screen to check for focusing accuracy. The G9 also has a wider viewing angle, making playback of images to show your friends more pleasant all around.

Another improvement is in resolution. Instead of the 10 megapixels of its older brother, the G9 boasts a 12-megapixel imaging sensor.

The sensitivity is also souped up to ISO 3200 (albeit only at a pixel resolution of 1,600 x 1,200). I found that for all practical purposes, anything beyond ISO 400 is just too noisy and grainy to be of any use.

Check out the 6x zoom (35mm to 210mm in 35mm film equivalent) and the built-in IS (image stabiliser). And it's very fast in focusing and can shoot movies at a top resolution of 1,024 x 768 pixels at 15 frames per second.

While all those pluses put the G9 a notch over the G7, those already used to the G6 will find the G9 still wanting. Although the hand grip is slightly enhanced, it is nowhere near the luxury and comfort that G6 users are accustomed to.

The tilt and swivel LCD of the G6 is also absent and although the viewing angle of the G9's LCD panel has been increased, it is not a good replacement.

FINAL SAY

The Canon PowerShot G9 is a marvel of miniaturisation with features to die for, in a compact well-designed, all-black, point-and-shoot the size of two decks of playing cards.

By M.K. Wong, an entrepreneur and freelance writer.