if you simply and dispassionately compare features alone, it seems to me that this camera does not offer more than the always overlooked olympus xz-2: the oly is 24-100, so a tad less reach, but is way faster at the portrait end topping out at 2.5 vs 3.9; its single programmable lens ring is, like the canons two rings, capable of two distinct functions, one detented one smooth, at the flick of a switch; both have articulating screens, optional evfs and IBIS; and it appears the oly is more 'pocketable'.
so does the excitement stem from the apsc sensor alone? or am i misinterpreting something? i am constantly confounded at how this oly, which yields excellent results, generated zero excitement and is now selling for less than $300...for those who yen for this type camera, id check out the oly!
The achilles heel of premium compacts like the XZ2, LX7, G15, S110, etc has been the sensor size. Those sensors are pretty damn good in good light, but the DR is pretty limited and they go south pretty quickly as the ISO rises into the 800-1600 range. A couple of years ago that wasn't much of a downside because nothing short of APS was much better - the old 12mp m43 sensors struggled by 1600 also. I had the LX5 and LX7 and GRD3 and shot enough to know with the G15 and XZ2 and they all have their feature sets but the sensors are all basically quite limited by current standards. I slightly preferred the LX7, you prefer the XZ2, others prefer the G15 - all are legit choices. But the X10 and RX100 started the ball rolling pretty fast in terms of sensor improvements in this part of the small camera market. And the GR, Coolpix A, X100/100s started showing what could be done with pretty small cameras with a big sensor in a fixed focal length. And the original G1X was groundbreaking as well, but was limited by the speed and range of the lens, the lack of close focus, slow AF, etc. And it wasn't that small. But it started solving the problems of what you can do with a pretty large and capable sensor in a small all-in-one zoom camera. But this camera seems to have started overcoming the limitations of the first gen G1X with a smaller body, a lens that's both faster throughout and with a wider zoom range, better AF, a multi-aspect sensor, etc.
So, yeah, the sensor is a pretty big deal even compared to the RX100 / RX10 1" sensor, let alone the X10/20 2/3" sensor and far outpacing the 1/1.7" shared by the XZ2, LX7, G15, S110, etc, etc. Those small sensor cameras were competing on features alone for a couple of years but were all pretty close on IQ. The larger sensor cameras are expanding the IQ possibilities as well, which to me is a bigger deal than a great feature set, because that will also come along once the sensor wars settle down. But sensor wars are a GOOD thing IMHO. In terms of full frame and even down to APS and m43, sensor tech
may be leveling off a bit (or maybe there are leaps and bounds not far down the road), but this compact sector is where things are in full acceleration. I'm not in the market for any of these at the moment, but I'm really excited by the possibilities (as I was when the RX100 showed up a year and a half ago - despite my distaste for that specific model). To me this G1X II is a pretty good step forward, but I'm sure there's more to come.
Personally, as much as I loved the LX5/7 and the GRD3 for as long as I did, I don't see any reason to shoot with that sensor any more when there are cameras roughly as small and handy coming along with vastly superior sensors. Once I shot with a Ricoh GR and Nikon A I knew one of those was gonna be my "pocket" camera and the LX7 headed out the door soon after. I'm happy enough without a zoom, but for those that like 'em, things are really heating up now...
-Ray