Canon PowerShot G17 specs leaked before launch event

The first Canon PowerShot G17 specs have been leaked on the web, ahead of the compact camera’s official announcement event, which will take place during the first half of 2015.

Canon unveiled in late August 2013 the PowerShot G16, a premium compact camera with a 12.1-megapixel sensor, built-in optical viewfinder, and 5x optical zoom lens.

The Japan-based company was rumored to launch a successor sometime in May 2014. This information seemed a little strange, as the G16 was still a rather new camera back then.

Those details turned out to be false. However, a trusted source is claiming that similar information will turn into a reality this time, as the G16 replacement will become official sometime in the first half of this year.

Canon PowerShot G16 is rumored to be replaced by the G17 within the next few months.

Canon PowerShot G17 specs revealed: ultra-bright lens with large sensor “confirmed”

The unnamed source has leaked a preliminary Canon PowerShot G17 specs list, before the compact camera’s announcement. The device is said to come with an “ultra bright lens” that will offer a maximum aperture of f/1.2-2, depending on the selected focal length.

Speaking of which, the shooter is said to employ a 7x optical zoom lens, which will provide a 35mm focal length equivalent of 24-168mm. Additionally, the lens will come with a Super Ultra Low Dispersion element in order to correct some optical flaws and to increase the overall image quality.

The amount of megapixels is unknown, but the camera will feature a 1-inch-type sensor. It would not be a surprise if it were the same Sony-made sensor employed by the PowerShot G7 X and the upcoming PowerShot G3 X premium compact cameras.

Its body will be made out of magnesium and its processor will be a DIGIC 6+ image processor. More specs will be revealed closer to the device’s announcement, which is said to take place “sometime before July”.

The PowerShot G17 will join Canon’s newly-established series of premium compacts

The PowerShot G17 will be another member of Canon’s premium compact camera family. For the time being, this line-up includes the PowerShot G1 X Mark II and the PowerShot G7 X.

At the CP+ 2015 event, the company confirmed that another premium shooter with a large 1-inch-type sensor and a superzoom lens would be released in the near future. As stated above, it will be called PowerShot G3 X.

As for the PowerShot G17, it remains to be seen whether it will feature a built-in viewfinder or not. If it does, then it will be the first model of this new Canon series to have a viewfinder integrated into the body.

For the time being, the Canon PowerShot G16 is available at Amazon for about $450 with a slew of free accessories.