Another G15 price drop ?

You can set the Fn button to that if you wish, followed by the ISO. That's how it comes preset from the factory and it's not that bad. Either a simple button press or a double one is not that bad for quick access. It's also on the bottom of the four way control wheel. Not having a viewfinder and hotshoe still doesn't justify the "rudimentary controls" qualification. It's a camera that tries hard to fit in a jeans pocket and pretty much succeeds. Why would you have to get used to a new interface? Because it's an amazing camera whose output wows you in a way incremental IQ updates like the G15's don't. But of course you don't have to.

Why would we consider its position on the price vs time curve? I am not a scientist to get excited by comparing curves (actually maybe I am but that's irrelevant). I just had an itch to buy a new premium compact camera right now (my last one was the Canon G7). I just felt like having a new high end camera. The RX100 was simply quite a bit cheaper RIGHT NOW and I have never used neither the hotshoe nor the viewfinder on my G7, so the RX100 was a no-brainer choice.

EDIT: And the reason why the G15 is still more expensive, even though the RX100 has travelled down its price-curve list, is simply Canon UK's ridiculous MSRP. As you're saying, the rest of the bunch (XZ2, P7700) are cheaper right now even if they're as new as the G15 and by all accounts in the same category and IQ bracket. As they should.