G10 and EF 24mm f1.4 also announced

Check out http://www.dpreview.com front page for details.

The 28mm wide end on the new G10 will certainly be welcome. I'm still thinking about getting one of these cameras to supplement my 4X5 for trail photos and I'd like to look at this in comparison with the new Panasonic which has a 24mm wide angle. Too much good camera equipment, not enough dough...

It's a shame they felt the need to cram nearly 15MP onto this tiny sensor, though. Marketing wins over image quality yet again with the 'G' series.
Looks like I'll be hanging onto my trusty G6 for yet another cycle.

Its been pretty clearly shown that at a given print size, the higher resolution camera will show less noise. Obviously this doesn't apply when the images are viewed at 100% on a monitor, but it does work in real prints. On the flip side, I don't necessarily want to store 15 megapixel images on my hard drives.

I'm not so sure, John - at least with this camera. Yours is a popular argument these days. And rightly so, for a majority of consumer point/shoots. But the sensor processors really are keeping up with the sensor sizes, at least with some of the higher end prosumers.

I love the G9. Noise is not issue with this camera, if you have any form of noise reduction software. My only nit as a landscape shooter is the lack of wide angle coverage. 28mm is a nice upgrade, IMO. If the extra 3MP can be offset by the processor upgrade - in terms of noise levels - it will be a worthwhile buy. Heck, if it manages the same noise levels as the G9, it's an awesome p/s offering.

The G9 is the "funnest" camera I've ever used. It's pure joy to use. It's darn near the perfect combo of features, usability and image quality in a portable/easy size.

As a non-owner, I'll certainly give you the benefit of the doubt (and experience).
I would really like this camera to be my 'sidekick', and am rooting for some great future image samples.

Thanks to both for your thoughts.

Each step forward in sensor technology makes it possible to at least maintain the IQ of previous models while giving you more data to work with.

Mel said: "On the flip side, I don't necessarily want to store 15 megapixel images on my hard drives."

Hey Mel, how large are your files from a scanned 4x5 transparency? Storage is so cheap these days, it's hard to even mention that as a concern anymore.

Hey Mel, how large are your files from a scanned 4x5 transparency? Storage is so cheap these days, it's hard to even mention that as a concern anymore.

My 4X5 files are in the 500MB - 2GB range, but I only scan one or two images per trip. I think most I've ever scanned is 6 images from a week long trip. Its easy to rack up 12GB of shots with my 8MP camera in a week.

Storage is cheap, but I have to consider physical constraints with my computer case and hardware too. And when I buy storage, I have to buy it three times. Once for the PC, once for the onsite backup and once for the off-site backup. It does all add up.

The hard truth of it is that I need to be as selective with my digital images as I am with my film ones and that is my own fault.

I've been waiting for something like this to replace my Olympus C-8080; the G10 will do nicely. I just wish it supported CF cards, but fortunately buying new memory isn't as $$ as it used to be.

That 24mm lens sounds nice. As for the G9, I had one for all of a week and the noise was AWFUL, just AWFUL. It was so bad that I could hardly post pictures at web size. Maybe I just had a dud, but I won't consider buying a non-DSLR in the place of a DSLR unless large technological advancements are made.

I think you had a dud Scott? Either that or I'm not seeing noise that well. But, just a little PS noise reduction clears up mine. Here's a link to a recent G9 RAW file of mine - a junk shot - if you want to compare ...

- RAW SHOT

I'll agree that the noise is awful at ISO 400 and above with ISO 200 being barely usable, but my experience mirrors Jesse's. Shoot at ISO 80 or 100 and expose to the right, and noise is not an issue.