Canon Brings Stacked Sensor Tech to PowerShot Line

Canon is refreshing two of its enthusiast-oriented PowerShot cameras, the G7 X Mark II and G5 X, adding a more modern image sensor that supports faster burst capture and 4K video, along with some other refinements.

From the outside, the PowerShot G7 X Mark III looks a lot like the Mark II. The body style is largely the same—a pocket-friendly point-and-shoot with a touch LCD with front-facing selfie support.

The zoom lens is also unchanged, a 24-100mm f/1.8-2.8, and while the 20MP sensor resolution also matches the Mark II, the way the sensor works is very different. The stacked design reads out much faster than the more pedestrian 1-inch BSI CMOS chip used in the previous generation. The practical result is much faster capture in Raw format—up to 30fps with fixed focus and at up to 8.3fps with continuous focus enabled.

The sensor supports 4K video capture at 30fps using the full width of the image sensor. If you opt for 1080p you can push the frame rate to 120fps, which can be played back as a quarter-speed slow-motion clip at 30fps.

Other features of note include support for 9:16 vertical video capture, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi connectivity, and in-camera charging via USB-C. Live streaming to YouTube directly from the camera is supported, but you'll need to connect it to a Wi-Fi network or tether it to your phone to get it online.

The G7 X Mark II will ship in August. Canon is going to offer it in a black or silver finish, with a $749.99 price tag.

Where the upgrade to the G7 didn't make a lot of cosmetic changes, owners of the G5 X Mark II will notice that the Mark III is a decidedly different design. It's much more in line with the G7. The swing-out vari-angle LCD is dropped, in favor of a forward-facing selfie screen.

The eye-level EVF isn't gone, but it is hidden. It slides into the body when not in use, popping up just like the flash, when needed. It's a very similar design to what Sony uses in its RX100 VA ($999.99), a competing camera with the same type of 1-inch stacked image sensor.

Where the Sony has a rather short 24-70mm zoom, the G5 X Mark II goes longer. Its 24-120mm f/1.8-2.8 lens isn't the absolute longest zoom we've seen in this type of camera, but it is the longest one with an f/1.8-2.8 f-stop.

The lens and EVF are the differentiating factors between the G7 X Mark III and G5 X Mark II. Other imaging and video features are identical. The G5 will also ship in August and is priced at $899.99.

Finally, Canon is also announcing a new lens for its mirrorless RF system today. The RF 24-240mm F4-6.3 IS USM boasts a big 10x ratio, but weighs just 1.7 pounds. It is set to ship in September for $899.99 on its own, or in a bundle with the entry-level EOS RP for $2,199.

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