Canon recently introduced at the Canon Expo 2016 in Shanghai, China, its five-year development strategies of both Canon Group and Canon Asia Marketing Group which include the expansion of its business scope for B2B products.
In the expo’s opening ceremony, Mr. Fujio Mitarai, Chairman & CEO of Canon Inc., mentioned that the Internet of Things will play an important role in the company’s growth as it is, to a large extent, built on imaging technology. He said that 87% of all the information that human beings receive from the outside world is processed visually. That said, Canon’s core imaging technologies, lens technologies, sensors and processors will enable Canon to stand out from the competition.
Mr. Fujio Mitarai – Chairman & CEO of Canon Inc.
To achieve this goal, the company plans to reform the current business management structure and “build a ‘Network of Canon Companies’, which is an ecosystem of innovation to leverage local assets while managing globally.”
Mr. Hideki Ozawa, President of Canon Asia Marketing Group, introduced the company’s global strategy in the coming five years:
1. Creating New Customers – turning non-Canon users into Canon-users
2. Cultivating and Developing of Emerging Regional Markets in Asia – opening of more Canon stores not just offline but online, as well as running Canon-related events like PhotoMarathons.
3. Expanding Our Business Scope for B2B Products – Office Multifunction devices, Office Printers, Commercial Printing Products, Medical Equipment, and Security Products.
4. Strengthening Brand Image
With the said strategies, Canon aims to achieve its goal of turning the company into $10 billion Group by 2020.
Mr. Hideki Ozawa – Senior Managing Executive Officer of Canon Inc., President of Canon Asia Marketing Group, President & CEO of Canon (China) Co., Ltd.
Given that the company is expanding into B2B products, we asked Mr. Fujio Mitarai in an interview if consumers should be worried about this new business direction. He said that Canon will continue to invest in the consumer segment and develop high-quality products. Some examples are cameras that can shoot in 4K and 8K as well as high-speed printers. He added that Canon will always be in the Business-to-Consumer (B2C) practices and sees the need to strengthen its consumer offerings in order to successfully enter Business-to-business (B2B).
(L-R) Mr. Go Tokura (Executive Officer of Canon Inc., Chief Executive of Imaging Communication Product Group), Mr. Kevin Ogawa (Managing Executive Officer of Canon Inc., Chief Operation Officer of Canon Asia Marketing Group, Executive Vice President of Canon (China) Co., Ltd.), Mr. Tiger Ishii (Vice President of Canon (China) Co., Ltd.
In a separate interview, we also asked Mr. Go Tokura, Executive Officer of Canon Inc. and Chief Executive of Imaging Communication Products Group, if the company is open to the idea of offering new camera systems such as action cameras as well as imaging sensors and collaboration with smartphone brands. Although he declined to comment on specific products, he said that Canon already has a strategy for its future products but not in the way other brands are doing it. He added that consumers can still expect new and exciting products from Canon with the kind technology the company is known for.
Canon has recently concluded the Canon EXPO 2016 – the largest comprehensive corporate exhibition from Canon Group held every five years. Previous expos were held in New York, Paris and Tokyo, with Shanghai as its final leg. Here, the company has showcased its past, present, and future products, and introduced its future five-year development strategies.
Canon is mostly known for its imaging and lens technologies as well as sensors. While most of the attention is in its consumer offerings like cameras and printers, Canon is also involved in other technologies that are crucial for consumers and businesses in the near future.
The expo is divided into 13 exhibition zones, starting with Canon’s history and their first products which include the Kwanon camera – Japan’s first 35mm focal-plane-shutter camera in 1934.
Another example of Canon’s early venture into imaging systems aimed at healthcare and research is the CX-35 – Japan’s first 35mm indirect X-ray camera in 1941. From there, Canon displayed its current lineup of products for home use like its Digital SLR cameras, compact system cameras, Inkjet printers, scanners, photo printers, and lenses.
For professional use, we have digital video camcorders, DSLRs, and cinema cameras. Canon also has camera systems designed for producing 8K content as well as a projector system that can output 8K resolution images, as well as high-resolution displays and professional photo inkjet printers.
Canon also displayed its EOS camera concept model that packs a whopping 120 megapixel high-resolution sensor that can clearly capture the texture of very small subjects.
There’s also a desktop 3D printer called the MARV that can be used for producing educational tools for kids, personal use, as well as for research and industrial design. In addition, Canon has also showcased its Super Creative Printing technologies that can print images with color, elevation and gloss. Prints made this way display a certain depth and are more realistic compared to ordinary flat prints.
Canon’s professional equipment doesn’t end there though. The company also produces broadcast equipment, ophthalmic equipment for diagnosing health problems through the eye, digital radiography systems, breast CT, and photo-acoustic mammography, to name a few.
For office use, Canon also has its wide-range of multi-function printers, scanners, and multimedia projectors. For the industry there’s the industrial cameras, high-speed printers, digital production printing systems, Mixed Reality (MR) systems, 3D Machine Vision Systems, as well as network cameras for security purposes.
Speaking of security, Canon also develops networked cameras for surveillance. These systems use sophisticated hardware and software to do a variety of tasks – estimate the gender and age of a person, display position and height in 3D, track people movement in a room in 3D, as well as provide monitoring and privacy at the same time.
With the Canon EXPO 2016, the company wants to show that there’s more to them than just consumer cameras and printers. Its imaging technologies allow it to get involved in different industries like healthcare and security as well as the Internet of Things. Its products for the Home, Office, Professional, and Industrial use will certainly help it grow and become a $10 billion Group by 2020.
Canon has recently concluded the Canon EXPO 2016 – the largest comprehensive corporate exhibition from Canon Group held every five years. Previous expos were held in New York, Paris and Tokyo, with Shanghai as its final leg. Here, the company has showcased its past, present, and future products, and introduced its future five-year development strategies.
Canon is mostly known for its imaging and lens technologies as well as sensors. While most of the attention is in its consumer offerings like cameras and printers, Canon is also involved in other technologies that are crucial for consumers and businesses in the near future.
The expo is divided into 13 exhibition zones, starting with Canon’s history and their first products which include the Kwanon camera – Japan’s first 35mm focal-plane-shutter camera in 1934.
Another example of Canon’s early venture into imaging systems aimed at healthcare and research is the CX-35 – Japan’s first 35mm indirect X-ray camera in 1941. From there, Canon displayed its current lineup of products for home use like its Digital SLR cameras, compact system cameras, Inkjet printers, scanners, photo printers, and lenses.
For professional use, we have digital video camcorders, DSLRs, and cinema cameras. Canon also has camera systems designed for producing 8K content as well as a projector system that can output 8K resolution images, as well as high-resolution displays and professional photo inkjet printers.
Canon also displayed its EOS camera concept model that packs a whopping 120 megapixel high-resolution sensor that can clearly capture the texture of very small subjects.
There’s also a desktop 3D printer called the MARV that can be used for producing educational tools for kids, personal use, as well as for research and industrial design. In addition, Canon has also showcased its Super Creative Printing technologies that can print images with color, elevation and gloss. Prints made this way display a certain depth and are more realistic compared to ordinary flat prints.
Canon’s professional equipment doesn’t end there though. The company also produces broadcast equipment, ophthalmic equipment for diagnosing health problems through the eye, digital radiography systems, breast CT, and photo-acoustic mammography, to name a few.
For office use, Canon also has its wide-range of multi-function printers, scanners, and multimedia projectors. For the industry there’s the industrial cameras, high-speed printers, digital production printing systems, Mixed Reality (MR) systems, 3D Machine Vision Systems, as well as network cameras for security purposes.
Speaking of security, Canon also develops networked cameras for surveillance. These systems use sophisticated hardware and software to do a variety of tasks – estimate the gender and age of a person, display position and height in 3D, track people movement in a room in 3D, as well as provide monitoring and privacy at the same time.
With the Canon EXPO 2016, the company wants to show that there’s more to them than just consumer cameras and printers. Its imaging technologies allow it to get involved in different industries like healthcare and security as well as the Internet of Things. Its products for the Home, Office, Professional, and Industrial use will certainly help it grow and become a $10 billion Group by 2020.
After pitting the Huawei P9 against the Nexus 6P during our previous Camera Blind Test, we now reveal the results to see which photos you think is better.
Outdoor – General Shot
Winner: B for Nexus 6P
Outdoor – HDR
Winner: A for Nexus 6P
Outdoor – Close Up
Winner: A for Nexus 6P
Outdoor – Silhouette
Winner: B for Nexus 6P
Outdoor – Greens
Winner: A for Huawei P9
Indoor – Low Light
Winner: A for Nexus 6P
Indoor – Low Light (2)
Winner: A for Nexus 6P
Indoor – Flash
Winner: A for Nexus 6P
Outdoor – Night Shot
Winner: B for Huawei P9
Outdoor – Night Shot (2)
Winner: B for Nexus 6P
Video Quality
Winner: A for Huawei P9
Overall Winner: Google Nexus 6P
The votes suggest that many prefer how the Nexus 6P shoots than the P9. Although both are carrying the same Huawei brand, the company implemented different cameras for each hence the difference in results.
Want more comparisons between smartphones and how they take photos? Which devices would you want us to pit against each other next? Let us know in the comments section below.
Compact cameras are now getting more and more feature-packed that some already offer capabilities usually seen on bulky DSLRs. Such is the case with the Canon G3X by equipping its rather small body a zoom lens that is designed to be able to bring far away subjects nearer. Being a camera that is easily portable, is it a real travel buddy?
Design and Construction
Being a compact shooter, the G3X is strict on maintaining its bulk to a minimum so we have a seemingly oversized lens attached to a timid body. It’s got an all black hue which pushes itself to look like a mini DSLR.
The body itself is made of metal alloy which is tough and weather-resistant so you could still use the camera and shoot during light rain showers or during any instance that the weather could be a bit harsh.
Up top, we have the hot shoe for an additional flash, the main control ring, wheel and physical dials lined up for navigating the shooting modes and different settings. At the leftmost corner we have the built-in flash that pops out when pushed from the back.
The G3X has a 3.2-inch tilting touchscreen display for live view and media playback. It unhinges itself from the body which you can then tilt up or down as it compensates for not having a viewfinder built-in.
As for the lens, it has a 25x optical zoom with wide angle capabilities at 24mm and goes all the way to 600mm for telephoto use.
At the back, we have additional navigation buttons and another wheel for adjusting the settings on the fly. It also has a plastic flap that hides the external microphone jack, headphone jack, and HDMI output terminal that all help when shooting videos.
At its base is the compartment that houses the removable battery and memory card slot.
Controls and Ergonomics
G3X’s grip area was inspired from the design used for EOS DSLRs so it’s a familiar feeling if you’re used to holding the bigger, bulkier ones. Plus, it also offers a secure grip so we had no problems carrying it around even without a strap.
The control dials up top are easily accessible by the right hand so that’s something commendable in terms of ergonomics. One thing we noticed, though, was that the single record button for videos is located at the very edge of the panel up top which could sometimes be a challenge to reach and feels unnatural to press, at least for us.
In general, holding the camera up when shooting offers a pretty steady balance thanks to the contoured grip on the right side and the kind of heft it packs. Speaking of heft, one would notice that the lens has more weight than the body itself.
Live View
As mentioned earlier, the G3X doesn’t have any viewfinder installed, so everything (from composing your shot and previewing it afterwards) will all be done on its 3.2-inch 1.62M-dot LCD.
The display is also touch-enabled so you can navigate by swiping on the images, press buttons on-screen, and tap to focus on subjects.
It can be tilted up to 180 degrees upwards for selfies and 45 degrees downwards which resulted to comfortable viewing either when we were shooting up or shooting down.
Autofocus, Noise, and ISO Performance
The company claims that it uses a powerful linear control mechanism that ensures speedy focusing and can handle moving objects. We put it to the test and we could say that it does focus well on normal shots, but when zooming in close to a distant subject, the camera experiences some difficulties with its autofocus when there are other details in the background. We brought this camera at a nearby park in London and tried looking for some moving subjects. Here are some shots:
As you can see, the photos with a solo subject has a pretty good focus to it considering we were zoomed all the way. Although the shot of the biker shows that the rider himself is a bit out of focus as the camera concentrated more on its background.
In terms of noise, you may also refer to the photo of the biker and notice the digital noise present on the dark areas. This is because the G3X’s aperture is at f/2.8 on its widest but could only go until f/5.6 when zoomed in and when there’s shortage of light coming in, the ISO goes up to compensate and produce an image with acceptable exposure — hence the presence of noise.
Zoom Performance
We also put its telephoto lens to the test to see how it would fare during real-life instances. Just to get a good idea of how far away its 600mm maximum focal length is in terms of zooming, check out the photo below that’s taken without zooming in:
See that bridge in the middle area of the photo? Here it is on full zoom:
Another one:
Zoomed in:
Here’s one more sample shot using the maximum possible length the G3X can offer. It was shot on auto mode, with no tripod, and certainly no photoshop treatment.
In short, it’s pretty crazy how far away this lens could bring your subjects right at your face. Not only that, it could also quickly adjust the settings (shutter speed, aperture, ISO) to match what the subject needs — in this case, raise the shutter speed in order to make the details of the moon appear.
For people as subjects, it was also able to maintain a good exposure with clear details. The above photo was taken across a large hall when the Huawei P9 was launched. When Henry Cavill came out for a short talk, we were able to get a shot that makes it seem like he was just in front of us.
Image and Video Quality
As for the general quality of the shots the G3X produces, its 1-inch CMOS sensor comes into play and makes sure the photos remain detailed even when zoomed in. Colors are also lively enough while maintaining good contrast between light and dark shades.
In low light instances, the G3X still proved to keep the composure of its darks and minimized digital noise once we took over control and switched to manual mode.
Below are more samples from the G3X:
The following are photos using different focal lengths of its zoom:
Video-wise, it shoots a maximum resolution of Full HD or 1080p. Users can play around with how many frames it shoots per second and could go for a cinema-like feel at 24p or a more fluid movement at 60p.
The G3X also has a Manual Movie feature for adjusting the settings on the fly. Check out the following videos showing its performance during day time, night, and zooming capabilities. Be sure to switch the resolution to 1080p for best quality.
Day
Night
Zoom
Battery Life
As for the battery life, Canon claims 300 shots. In our usage it was able to last for about two days of casually using it around London — taking pictures and videos of anything interesting before it required us to charge. We would say that we’re satisfied with how well it could stretch a single charge even when it always uses its LCD for both preview and live view.
Charging takes about 2 hours to fill up the battery.
Conclusion
From its compact build and weather-resistant body that makes it a good companion for traveling, to its superzoom capabilities in an instant, and down to its decent battery life, the Canon G3X is an effective consumer product for casual photographers looking for a compact camera with a good telephoto lens.
This camera can zoom farther in comparison to other cameras in the same range, although aperture is at its widest at f/5.6 during this operation. Digital noise is sometimes present on auto mode, but could be avoided by choosing a better camera setting. Autofocus is also generally swift, but still has room for improvement.
At Php41,998, it’s a bit pricey considering it lacks some functionalities present in its competitors (like 4K recording and a built-in viewfinder). It does have easy sharing capabilities like NFC and Wi-Fi so the company didn’t really skimp on the extra features.
Canon G3X specs:
20.2MP 1-inch high-sensitivity CMOS sensor
DIGIC 6 image processor
25x optical zoom f/2.8-5.6 IS lens
24-600mm (35mm equivalent)
3.2-inch 1.62M-dot tilting touchscreen LCD
High-speed AF with 31 focus points
Full HD Video at 60p with HDMI output
Wi-Fi
NFC
ISO 12800
5.9 fps continuous shooting
At the back, we have additional navigation buttons and another wheel for adjusting the settings on the fly. It also has a plastic flap that hides the external microphone jack, headphone jack, and HDMI output terminal that all help when shooting videos.
