Average Rating: 
Rating:  - powerful product
Bought this product about a month ago and have used it in a variety of situations.In general it is easy to use and well laid out. For ``cool factor'' buffs it looks and feels like a small plastic brick brick and doesn't have any wow factor. It makes up for this by being extremely easy to use with well laid out controls that can be learned quickly.
The G3 has most if not all of the features that you would want from a semi-pro/pro SLR with a good range of manual options for those who know something about photography. In the hands of someone who doesn't, it will yield good results on idiot program/auto mode. My wife, who has never used a camera before, picked it up and soon got the hang of the fact that if you don't like what you have created you just delete and try again. The photos she took are better than the results I got from my Nikon SLR and range of lenses! This is a big plus for those who a shifting to digital and the G3's large mobile screen helps with this. Negative points:
The included memory card is too small. Go out and get a 256meg card, it's worth the expense.
It is made of plastic. For those who are used to brass cameras that can be dropped, picking up a camera like the G3 is an unnerving experience. This is by no means unique to this model, I'm sure. The zoom lens unit feels fragile and it is worth buying a good camera bag if you are going put to carry it round a lot.
This is not a handbag camera. While light, it will not easily go in small handbags or pockets.
The function lever - the one which switches between capture and view mode feels fragile.
Flash - as with all built-in flashes in small cameras, you get overilluminated main subjects with depth being lost. The G3 has a shoe which will take other powerful (and expensive) Canon flashes that will allow bounce and reflected flash photography.
The strap is horrible and gets in the way of parts of the camera you need access to. If you can afford this camera, you can afford to get a better strap elsewhere - a very minor quibble. Good points:
The functionality on this camera is mind-blowing. Canon have packed a lot in here and the options and controls are easy to use and logically laid out. Learning how to use it will not take very long.
The image quality is excellent. Messing around with images in Photoshop (a supplied software package) and printing them on a good printer, yielded excellent results. Unless you are making posters, a G3 is more than good enough. Range of functions - as indicated above - it has something for everyone: point and shoot power plus advanced functions for those who are serious about photography. Please note that this is the first digital camera I have owned or used. A lot of my opinions are more relevant for those who are switching from film. I did extensive research before chosing the G3 but there's nothing like picking one up and playing with it first...
Rating: - Excellent camera
I spent a lot of time comparing different cameras, and I realized that there is not such thing as the best digital camera. You can always spend more money to get a better one.However, for a $600-$800 budget, I think this camera is an excellent choice. It has a beautiful design, lots of features, very easy to use, very configurable and customizable, and the battery duration is amazing!!! Also, the display is "hinged" and it can be placed in a myriad of positions, or to protect it against any damage. Excellent idea! One bad thing is that it comes with a pitiful 32mb compactflash card, and for most purposes, it is not enough. However, it seems that this is the general rule for most digital cameras. Another good thing is that this camera seems to introduce much less noise in dark places than others I've seen.
Rating: - You'll take more pics... that's what its about
I don't write many reviews but I'm compelled to do so with this camera. First and foremost, it will take better pic's than most film camera's. Save them on computer and print out just the ones who want. Duplicates are a no brainer and cheap. No more wasted time and money developing rolls of pic's for just a couple of keepers. Crop and enlarge the best at practically no extra cost or time. The technology is finally here folks, to make your photo life easier...a great new use for that underutilized computer.A digital camera will stay at home if its a hassle to use. Poor quality pics, short battery life, slow time consuming uploads and printing will ruin the digital camera experience and keep you buying film. This camera has none of these flaws and will be something you'll use all the time. My wife shuns all new technology and compained when I brought this home, but now she's forever asking for the digital camera. And I let my kids shoot as many pics as they want, let them review them on the camera and just print the good ones (which are not many). Get the Canon 850 printer and an EX flash. In short, I have a new SLR with an expensive lens and several film point and shoots. I haven't used any of them since I got the G3. Unless your a professional, now you will need only one camera...this one.
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