Timings & File Sizes
As expected the G3 is a quick camera, most actions such as auto focus, shot to shot and lag timings are as fast as we have seen for this level of camera. The major delay point is startup, because of the G3's extending lens there is always a delay of at least four seconds while the lens extends.
Timing Notes: All times calculated as an average of three operations. Unless otherwise stated all timings were made on a 2272 x 1704 Super-Fine JPEG image (approx. 1.8 MB per image).
The media used for these tests were:
- 256 MB Canon High Speed CompactFlash card
- 512 MB Viking Type I CompactFlash card
- 1 GB IBM Microdrive Type II CompactFlash card
| Legend | |
| Quickest | |
| Noticeably slower | |
| Action | Details | Time,
seconds (Canon CF) |
Time,
seconds (Viking CF) |
Time,
seconds (Microdrive) |
| Power: Off to Record | Lens extension | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.2 |
|
Power: Off to Play *1 |
Image displayed | 3.4 | 3.5 | 6.2 |
| Power: Record to Off | Lens extended | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 |
| Power: Play to Off *1 | Lens retracted | 0.9 | 0.8 | 1.8 |
 |
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| Mode: Record to Play *2 | Image displayed | 2.2 / 0.5 | 2.1 / 0.5 | 3.9 / 0.5 |
| Mode: Play to Record | Lens extended | 1.9 | 1.9 | 1.9 |
|
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| Play: Magnify | To 10x magnification | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| Rec: Thumbnail view | 1.3 | 1.1 | 1.9 | |
| Action | Details | Time, seconds |
| Zoom from Wide to Tele | Full zoom from 35 mm to 140 mm (4 x) | 2.7 |
| Auto Focus LAG | Wide angle | 0.7 - 0.9 |
| Auto Focus LAG | Telephoto | 1.0 - 2.2 |
| Shutter Release LAG | Using viewfinder | <0.1 |
| Shutter Release LAG | Using LCD monitor | 0.1 |
| Total LAG | Wide angle *3 | 0.8 - 1.0 |
| Total LAG | Telephoto *3 | 1.1 - 1.5 |
| Off to Shot Taken | Using 256 MB Canon High Speed CF | 4.4 |
|
||
| Shot to Shot | Identical with or without record review | 1.9 |
| *1 | You need to 'hold' the PLAY lever in its right most position for at least 1.0 second for the camera to recognize that as a change of power state (on or off), this is to avoid accidental knocks of the lever. The timings shown for this measurement are excluding this 1.0 second. |
| *2 | The G3 appears to buffer an image once displayed in play mode. This means that if you return to play mode for a second time the display time is just half a second, compared to two seconds for the first display of a new image. |
| *3 | The G3's Auto focus proved to be very fast, especially if the subject distance was near or the same as the previous shot taken. Even at telephoto zoom Total LAG was less than a second if the subject distance was similar. |
Auto Focus LAG is (roughly) the amount of time it takes the camera to autofocus (a half-press and hold of the shutter release button), this timing is normally the most variable as its affected by the subject matter, current focus position, still or moving subject etc. This timing is an average.
Shutter Release LAG is the amount of time it takes to take the shot from the moment you fully depress the shutter release button, measured both as a time including auto focus and a time assuming you have already pre-focused by holding a half-press of the shutter release.
Continuous modes
The G3 has two different continuous drive modes. The first (Continuous) shoots at approximately 1.5 fps and displays each frame on the LCD monitor as it is taken. The second (Continuous H) shoots at approximately 2.5 fps but blanks out the LCD monitor while shooting.
The table below shows the results of our continuous shooting test, indicating the actual frame rate along with maximum number of frames and how long you would have to wait after taking the maximum number of frames before you could take another shot. Timings taken using the 256 MB Canon High Speed CompactFlash card.
| Mode | Image Type | Frames per sec Avg. / 2nd onwards *1 |
Max no. of frames *2 |
Wait before |
| Continuous | 2272 x 1704 RAW | 0.50 / 0.50 fps | 3 | 6.5 sec |
| Continuous | 2272 x 1704 Super-Fine | 1.41 / 1.50 fps | 8 | 4.3 sec |
| Continuous | 2272 x 1704 Fine | 1.47 / 1.50 fps | 14 | 6.7 sec |
| Continuous | 1024 x 768 Fine | 1.49 / 1.50 fps | 38 | 12.0 sec |
| Continuous H | 2272 x 1704 RAW | 0.50 / 0.50 fps | 3 | 6.5 sec |
| Continuous H | 2272 x 1704 Super-Fine | 2.20 / 2.40 fps | 9 | 4.2 sec |
| Continuous H | 2272 x 1704 Fine | 2.25 / 2.40 fps | 15 | 6.3 sec |
| Continuous H | 1024 x 768 Fine | 2.39 / 2.40 fps | 65 | 18.7 sec |
| *1 | Delay after first frame is always longer than shooting speed for subsequent frames, this drags the average fps down. |
| *2 | In a single "burst" (finger held down on shutter release) |
| *3 | You can take a frame as soon as there is space in the cameras internal buffer (writing continues "in the background"). |
The average continuous shooting speed appears to be spoilt by the first frame delay which was always slightly slower than the rest of the burst. Removing the first frame from the equation revealed 1.5 and 2.4 fps for Continuous and Continuous H modes. A good performance with a good sized buffer.
File Flush / Display Timing
Timings shown below are the time taken for the camera to process and "flush" the image out to the Compact Flash card, the timer was started as soon as the shutter release was pressed (shutter click was heard) and stopped when activity indicator LED beside the viewfinder stopped blinking. This means the timings also include the cameras processing time and as such are more representative of the actual time to "complete the task".
The media used for these tests were:
- 256 MB Canon High Speed CompactFlash card
- 512 MB Viking Type I CompactFlash card
- 1 GB IBM Microdrive Type II CompactFlash card
| Image Type | Time
to store (seconds) |
Time
to display (seconds) |
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| Canon | Viking | Microdrive | Canon | Viking | Microdrive | ||
| 2272 x 1704 | RAW | 6.5 | 5.9 | 7.2 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 2.0 |
| 2272 x 1704 | Super-Fine | 3.6 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 1.8 | 1.6 | 2.5 |
| 2272 x 1704 | Fine | 2.6 | 2.6 | 3.4 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 2.0 |
| 1024 x 768 | Fine | 1.9 | 1.9 | 2.5 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 1.4 |
As expected the two flash memory based devices performed roughly the same, they're both fast enough for any delay to be caused by the G3's processing speed. The Microdrive suffers because of the time taken to 'wake from sleep' (for the disk to spin up).
File Sizes
Here's a comparison of the average byte size of each of different image size / quality combinations (identical to the PowerShot S45).
| Image Type | Image format | File
size *1 (approx.) |
Number
on a 1 GB Microdrive |
|
| 2272 x 1704 | RAW | CRW | 3,800 KB | 272 |
| 2272 x 1704 | Super-Fine | JPEG | 1,800 KB | 512 |
| 2272 x 1704 | Fine | JPEG | 1,000 KB | 910 |
| 1600 x 1200 | Fine | JPEG | 580 KB | 1726 |
| 1024 x 768 | Fine | JPEG | 250 KB | 2982 |
| 640 x 480 | Fine | JPEG | 120 KB | 5468 |
| *1 | All file sizes are an average of three files. As is the case with JPEG it's difficult to predict the size of an image because it will vary a fair amount depending on the content of the image (especially the amount of detail captured). For example, take a photograph of a fairly empty wall and you'll get a small JPEG, take a photograph of a bush with a lot of detail and you'll get a larger image. File sizes here are closer to the later, the larger size of file you should expect. |
Battery life
We ran the camera through our new battery life test. This test is designed to be fair and comparative to each camera and battery type:
- Take 4 shots without flash
- Wait 2 minutes (50% of the time powering the camera off)
- Take 1 shot with flash
- Wait 1 minute
- Repeat
This test routine was carried out on five different cameras simultaneously. All batteries had been fully discharged and recharged before the test and all cameras were reset to their factory default settings. Here are the results:
| Camera Prosumer / SLR-Like |
Battery | Power | Battery life | Number of shots |
| Minolta DiMAGE 7 | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 1 hr 14 mins | 125 |
| Minolta DiMAGE 5 | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 1 hr 56 mins | 195 |
| Nikon Coolpix 5700 | EN-EL1 | 4.8 Wh | 2 hr 08 mins | 215 |
| Canon PowerShot S40 | NB-2L | 3.9 Wh | 2 hr 13 mins | 225 |
| Minolta DiMAGE S304 | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 2 hr 18 mins | 235 |
| Canon PowerShot S45 | NB-2L | 3.9 Wh | 2 hr 28 mins | 240 |
| Nikon Coolpix 4500 | EN-EL1 | 4.8 Wh | 2 hr 27 mins | 250 |
| Fujifilm FinePix 6900Z | NP-80 | 4.1 Wh | 2 hr 29 mins | 250 |
| Nikon Coolpix 990 | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 2 hr 30 mins | 255 |
| Nikon Coolpix 995 | EN-EL1 | 4.8 Wh | 2 hr 30 mins | 255 |
| Nikon Coolpix 5000 | EN-EL1 | 4.8 Wh | 2 hr 32 mins | 260 |
| Minolta DiMAGE 7Hi | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 2 hr 33 mins | 260 |
| Canon PowerShot Pro1 | BP-511A | 10.2 Wh | 2 hr 36 mins | 265 |
| Canon PowerShot S50 | NB-2L | 3.9 Wh | 2 hr 39 mins | 270 |
| Minolta DiMAGE S404 | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 2 hr 39 mins | 270 |
| Sony DSC-V1 | NP-FC11 | 2.8 Wh | 2 hr 39 mins | 270 |
| Olympus C-7000 Zoom | LI-12B | 4.5 Wh | 2 hr 44 mins | 280 |
| Nikon Coolpix 8700 | EN-EL1 | 5.0 Wh | 2 hr 45 mins | 280 |
| Minolta DiMAGE 7i | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 2 hr 46 mins | 270 |
| Olympus E-20 | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 2 hr 48 mins | 285 |
| Canon PowerShot G1 | BP-511 | 8.1 Wh | 3 hr 00 mins | 300 |
| Nikon Coolpix 5400 | EN-EL1 | 4.8 Wh | 3 hr 06 mins | 315 |
| HP Photosmart 850 | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 3 hr 12 mins | 325 |
| Sony DSC-S75 | NP-FM50 | 8.6 Wh | 3 hr 15 mins | 330 |
| Nikon Coolpix 8800 | EN-EL7 | 8.1 Wh | 3 hr 27 mins | 350 |
| Fujifilm FinePix S602Z | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 3 hr 29 mins | 350 |
| Canon PowerShot G2 | BP-511 | 8.1 Wh | 3 hr 32 mins | 355 |
| Casio QV-4000 | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 3 hr 38 mins | 365 |
| Olympus C-5050 Zoom | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 3 hr 48 mins | 380 |
| Casio EXILIM EX-P700 | NP-40 | 4.5 Wh | 3 hr 48 mins | 385 |
| Sony DSC-S85 | NP-FM50 | 8.6 Wh | 3 hr 50 mins | 400 |
| Sony DSC-F717 | NP-FM50 | 8.6 Wh | 4 hr 02 mins | 405 |
| Pentax Optio 750Z | D-LI7 | 6.6 Wh | 4 hr 03 mins | 415 |
| Sony DSC-V3 | NP-FR1 | 4.4 Wh | 4 hr 05 mins | 415 |
| Nikon Coolpix 8400 | EN-EL7 | 8.1 Wh | 4 hr 09 mins | 420 |
| Sony DSC-F707 | NP-FM50 | 8.6 Wh | 4 hr 20 mins | 440 |
| Fujifilm S7000 Zoom | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 4 hr 23 mins | 445 |
| Konica Minolta DiMAGE A2 | NP-400 | 11.1 Wh | 4 hr 26 mins | 450 |
| Canon PowerShot G3 | BP-511 | 8.1 Wh | 4 hr 32 mins | 455 |
| Canon PowerShot G5 | BP-511 | 8.1 Wh | 4 hr 33 mins | 460 |
| Pentax Optio 550 | D-LI7 | 6.6 Wh | 4 hr 36 mins | 465 |
| Minolta DiMAGE A1 | NP-400 | 11.1 Wh | 5 hr 02 mins | 515 |
| Leica Digilux 2 | BP-DC1-E | 10.1 Wh | 5 hr 05 mins | 515 |
| Sony DSC-F828 | NP-FM50 | 8.6 Wh | 5 hr 28 mins | 540 |
| Fujifilm FinePix S5000 | 4 x AA NiMH 1600 mAh (GP) | 7.7 Wh | 5 hr 31 mins | 555 |
| Canon PowerShot G6 | BP-511A | 10.3 Wh | 5 hr 38 mins | 570 |
| Olympus C-8080 WZ | BLM-1 | 10.8 Wh | 5 hr 52 mins | 595 |
| Other test notes: | ||||
| • LCD monitor is left on during
the battery test • The camera is powered off half of the time and left on half of the time (switch every 10 iterations) • There are now higher capacity AA NiMH batteries available, however in the interests of fair comparison we will continue to use our 1600 mAh test set |
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