Help Me Decide .... G2 or G3 ?!?

[pigpicker]

Hi,

I'm in a severe quandry - however it's a nice one to be in I suppose - I have narrowed down my search for a new digital camera to either the G2 or G3.
I have heard the arguements for and against each camera from people who use either one ot the other but I need to hear from people who have experience of using both the G2 and G3 to give me a balanced opinion.

My question is which camera actually gives the best all round images and which one is the least exasperating to use?
The G3 is more expensive however I don't mind paying the extra if the images are of a higher quality.

I'll also post this on the G3 forum and see what sorts of replies I get there. Should be interesting !

Thanks and I look forwards to your replies.

[jonnaro]

well my take is the images are generally the same. the g3 has more of a zoom range. but the images are generally both 4mp, so the detail level will pretty much the same. the g3 has slightly better color separating. as for the quality of images i don't think there is that much difference honestly.

the g3 also has some improved controls and menus.. you should play with both of them at a store and see what is most comfortable to you. it also comes a lot down to money - if you think it is worth the price difference.

[rrosener]

The only reason to buy the G3 is the longer zoom lens. As mentioned before, both are 4 megapixel cameras. The "superior" resolution of the G3 is mainly smoke and mirrors. It's the same CCD as the G2. My take on it is this; The G3 is an interim model for Canon to clear the shelves of their 4 MP CCDS. Soon, maybe as soon as late summer, Canon will have a 5 or even 6 MP G4 out. There will be more G2's made because of it's longer production run, therefore you can expect better support and repair for it than the interim G3, which will have a short production run. Get a G2 for $200 less that the G3 and use the extra cash to buy a TTL 420 EX flash if the money is still burning a hole in your pocket. Either camera will have more features than you'll be able to use in a year of shooting.

[iesrick]

I am not familiar with all of the ins and outs of the G2, but I thought that a few other differences put into the G3 were: 4X zoom, ND filter, orientation sensor, one-button RAW creation and ability to change a jpeg to RAW, Intervalometer, AF assist lamp, included infrared remote and even further improved battery life of an extra +30%.

[adrianw]

I was happy with my G2 but I made the upgrade to a G3 which gives you the 4x zoom, choice of several hundred autofocus points vs 3 on the G2, much easier to alter settings and menus thanks partly to the wheel on the top of the grip.
In Av or Tv mode it's now nice and easy to spin the wheel to alter the aperture or exposure.
I've been putting my G3 on a tripod to take photos in low light and using the infrared remote to trigger it: the G3 has a side pointing IR sensor which is useful and you can set the IR remote delay to 0 (I think on the G2 there was always a 2 second delay when you used the remote.
I haven't needed the ND filter yet and I'm just starting to learn and appreciate the Slow Synch and First/Second curtain flash settings - correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think those settings were available on the G2.

They are both very good cameras, but if and when the G4 comes out I'm assuming you should be able to trade in a G3 for a better price than a G2.

[LJBest]

The LCD on my G2 failed recently (previous post). As I had an extended warranty from the retailer, I had the option of having them send it in for repair - or upgrade to a G3 for a relatively small uplift in price since the G2 is technically out of their delivery pipeline already (they could not do a 1:1 replacement). For all the reasons I though the G2 was a little clumsy - and needed some 2-handed control moves, the G3 has solved it. I particularly like the Manual Focus (MF) control which is used with the fingerwheel on the front. Since I do a lot of close-up work, this has already proven useful. When you net it up, they both take great pictures - leaving ease of use a key differentiator. Having come from a Pentax Spotmatic world, nothing will ever be the same - but the G3 is a good start to 'normalizing' some of the digital photography controls.

[Rider Down]

For whatever its worth, I looked "hard" at both camera's before deciding on the G3, and have never looked back. While both units are 4mp boxes, and I do admit the cosmetic design of the G2 blows the doors off the G3, but it can't even be compared to the G3 due to its superior feature sets and ergonomic redesign of its operating system. Saying the G3 is an interim camera for Canon is ludicrous, even if they plan to soon release a G4 with a 5/6 mp CCD. The G3 takes better pictures than many 5mp cameras I tried, with Olympus' C-5050 being a prime example, its pictures were not near as good as the G3's. You can't do much better than the G3 for my money, and I payed in the $700's for it, and am happy as a clam.

[Jos Vromen]

I don't know if there are stil any new G2 's for sale. I have one and I like it very much. It's my third digital camera, the two other ones where from Kodak.
The picture quality of the Canon G2 is great. I think the quality of the G3 is the same or even better!
The G3 has more tele, but if you don't need that a G2 is perfect. But then again if you have the money buy the G3. (it's not as good looking as the G2 in my opinion, but a bigger lens might be usefull four you).
I wait for the G5, more tele en hopefully more wide angle, and 6 millions pixels, I think I can see the difference then).

[rrosener]

Hate to say I told Y'all so, but the new G5 is out and it appears substantially better than the G3, released only a few months back. Check the specs here:
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0306/03060201canong5.asp
Am I going to dump my G2? Heck no! Is the G3 still a good camera, you bet! But I stand by my original assertion that the G3 is an interim model for Canon to unload its 4 MP chips. The design of the new G5 is strangely similar to the G3 in looks AND price...surely they knew this 5 MP wonder was in the pipeline last Fall. Can't blame Canon though. They make great cameras.



rider down wrote:
Saying the G3 is an interim camera for Canon is ludicrous, even if they plan to soon release a G4 with a 5/6 mp CCD. The G3 takes better pictures than many 5mp cameras I tried, with Olympus' C-5050 being a prime example, its pictures were not near as good as the G3's. You can't do much better than the G3 for my money, and I payed in the $700's for it, and am happy as a clam.

[Stoneh]

I think the G2 has an awesome set of optics, probably the best set of optics for a camera in that price range.

The G5, early tests show some serious flaws at wide apertures. Check these shots out which I took recently, esp the straight from camera picture of my daughter.

http://www.dialasif.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Pages/G2%20Page/Page1.htm

[fearby]

Superb pics stoneh - I am nowhere near fetting anything like that quality of pics with my G2!

[Stoneh]

Thanks,

Use diffused light on a bright day will get you super results, also try using F4 as this is the where the lense produces the sharpest results on a G2. I used to think F8 will produce the sharpest results... it doesnt!