Canon has dropped a big one here at CES 2012 with the new PowerShot G1 X, which features a 1.5-inch CMOS sensor.  The big sensor is the largest sensor Canon has ever put in a PowerShot camera and looks to rival the compact mirrorless camera market.

The G1 X’s sensor dimensions measure 18.7 x 14mm.  Compare this to Canon’s APS-C DSLRs at 22.3 x 14.9mm, Micro Four Thirds at 18 x 13.5mm, and Nikon’s 1 Series at 13.2 x 8.8mm.  The sensor size on the G1 X provides about a 1.85x crop factor.

Even with such a large sensor, Canon has managed to put a 4x fixed zoom lens on the camera, which is down from a 5x zoom on the Canon G12.  The 15.1-60.4mm lens translate to a full frame equivalent of 28-112mm zoom range.

The big sensor offers 14MP resolution for still images and 1080p video capture.  While the lens starts a f/2.8 on the wide end, as you zoom out, the max aperture drops to f/5.8 at the tele end.  That’s physics though – and what you get when you stuff a 4x zoom in such a compact package using a sensor this big.

The Canon G1 X should be available in February at a retail price of $799.99.  Check availability at B&H, Amazon and Adorama.

I’ll have a full hands-on report here at CES 2012 within the next day or so.  So stay tuned.

In addition to the new G1 X, Canon announced a couple other PowerShots, the ELPH 520HS and ELPH 110HS.  Check them out, along with more details on the G1 X in the press release below. [Read more…]