Canon G7 X Mark III vs Fujifilm X100VI: Which Compact Camera Should You Buy?

Jacob came to us with an 11-year-old camera and a familiar problem. He shoots mostly video, and his photos hadstarted to look like frames pulled from his footage: fine, but flat, without the colour and intent he wanted. He’dnarrowed his upgrade down to two very different compact cameras, the Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III (oftenshortened to the G7X III) and the Fujifilm X100VI, and couldn’t choose between them.The short answer: buy the Fujifilm X100VI if you want images that look close to finished straight out of thecamera, especially of people and in low light. Buy the Canon G7 X Mark III if you want a real zoom in a camerathat fits in your pocket, for about half the price. In our side-by-side shoot, the X100VI’s colour and low-light resultswon Jacob over. The G7 X Mark III is still the one we pack for overseas trips.How we tested: we put both cameras in Jacob’s hands outdoors from late afternoon into dusk, shot the sameportraits and lifestyle frames on each, then compared the files on screen together. We own and use both camerasourselves. It’s a real-world comparison, not a lab test.

Neither is a better camera overall. They’re built for different ways of shooting, and the right one depends on whichof those rows sounds most like you.

Specifications from Canon’s official PowerShot G7 X Mark III specifications and Fujifilm’s official X100VIspecifications. The Canon Australia G7 X Mark III page lists the RRP as $1,349. Prices change, so check theproduct pages below for today’s price, or ask us in store or on the phone.

These two cameras get cross-shopped because they’re both small, premium and popular with content creators. Underneath, they’re built around opposite ideas.

The G7 X Mark III is about versatility. Its 1-inch sensor is small enough that Canon could fit a bright 24-100mmzoom into a body you can put in a jacket pocket. You can go from a wide street scene to a tight portrait withoutchanging anything, which is exactly why it comes travelling with us.

The X100VI is about image quality and the experience of shooting. Its APS-C sensor has roughly three times thearea of the Canon’s, paired with a fixed 23mm f/2 lens that frames like a 35mm lens on full frame. There’s nozoom. To frame a shot, you walk closer or step back. Some people find that limiting. Others find it makes themcompose more deliberately and enjoy shooting more. If you’ve never used a fixed-lens camera, that’s the question to ask yourself first: do you want the camera to adaptto every situation, or are you happy to adapt to the camera?

The G7 X Mark III’s flash took more fiddling. You raise it manually and change the flash setting before it fires the way you want, which slowed us down. The images were noticeably flatter. Colour was less vibrant, skin looked a little washed out, and Jacob said he’d need to lift the greens and rework the colour in editing, which was exactly what he wanted to avoid.

To be fair to the Canon, this wasn’t a controlled test. We didn’t match the settings or zoom position between cameras, and the flash was set up differently on each. But the same difference showed up in every pair of shots we compared on the day.

Dusk portrait with built-in flash: Fujifilm X100VI (left) and Canon G7 X Mark III (right).

▶ Watch in the video: see the dusk flash portraits from both cameras (approx. 03:38), including Jacob’s reaction to the first X100VI frames.

Jacob also shoots brand-style content, so we sat him on a wall looking out over the scene and shot the same frame on both cameras.

He liked the G7 X Mark III results, but felt they weren’t different enough from what his current camera already produces, and that they lacked character. The X100VI frames had deeper blacks and more contrast, but in a way that kept skin tones natural, and the lights in the background stood out. As he put it, the X100VI image felt like exactly what he’d composed, “right off the bat”.

The same lifestyle frame: Fujifilm X100VI (left) and Canon G7 X Mark III (right).

▶ Watch in the video: see the side-by-side review of the photos (approx. 13:02), where we compare skin tones, greens and background lights frame by frame.

Three things explain most of what we saw, and the lens aperture is the smallest of them.

Sensor size. The X100VI’s APS-C sensor collects light over about 3.2 times the area of the G7 X Mark III’s 1-inch sensor. That means less noise and more detail once the light drops, which is where the difference showed up most clearly in our shots. A larger sensor also gives you more background blur at a similar framing.

Aperture. It’s easy to overstate this one. The X100VI’s f/2 is about one stop brighter than the G7 X Mark III only when the Canon is zoomed in to f/2.8. At its widest setting, the Canon is actually slightly brighter, at f/1.8. So aperture helps the Fujifilm in some shots, but sensor size is the bigger, more consistent advantage.

Colour comes mainly from how each camera processes the image. Fujifilm’s Film Simulations, modelled on the look of its film stocks, are a big reason X100VI images feel finished before you edit them. The G7 X Mark III can produce good colour, but in our shots it needed more work to get there.

The X100VI has 20 Film Simulations, Fujifilm’s built-in colour profiles. They range from classic looks like Classic Chrome to the newer REALA ACE. Changing them is quick: press the Q button, select Film Simulation and turn the dial. You see the change in the viewfinder or on the screen before you take the shot, so you choose the look while you’re composing rather than in editing afterwards.

When Jacob tried this, the reaction was immediate. For someone trying to spend less time editing, choosing the look in camera was one of the main reasons he leaned towards the Fujifilm. He also found the X100VI felt more responsive in his hands.

▶ Watch in the video: see the Film Simulations being switched in camera (approx. 09:16).

It would be easy to read all this as a clean win for the X100VI. It isn’t, and it’s worth being clear about why we still own and use the Canon.

The zoom. 24-100mm covers wide landscapes, interiors, street scenes and tighter portraits without changing lenses or walking anywhere. The X100VI can crop to 50mm or 70mm equivalent with its digital teleconverter, and its 40MP sensor leaves room for that, but it’s a crop, not an optical zoom.

The size. At about 304 g, the G7 X Mark III goes in a pocket. The X100VI is compact for what it is, but at about 521g and 55 mm deep, it’s a camera you carry on a strap or in a bag.

The cost. At current Georges prices, the X100VI costs about twice as much. That matters in itself, and it changes how you use the camera. On a trip, we’re far more relaxed about the Canon getting knocked around or left behind.

Self-filming. The G7 X Mark III’s screen flips up to face you and it has a standard 3.5 mm microphone input, which is why so many vloggers use it. The X100VI’s screen tilts but doesn’t face forward, and its microphone input is 2.5 mm, so most microphones need an adapter. The X100VI records higher-specification video (up to 6.2K, and 4K at 60p in 10-bit), but for filming yourself on the go, the Canon is easier.

Close-ups. The Canon focuses as close as 5 cm at the wide end, against about 10 cm for the X100VI, which helps with food, product and detail shots.

Like Jacob, most people looking at these two are upgrading from something: an older camera, or a phone that no longer does what they want. It’s worth being clear about what each one actually adds, because modern phones are very capable in good light.

• The G7 X Mark III adds reach and control. A true optical zoom to 100mm equivalent, a bright lens, physical controls and a flip-up screen, in a body small enough for a jacket pocket. It’s the more natural stepup if your frustration is zooming and versatility.
• The X100VI adds image quality and a different way of shooting. A much larger sensor than a phone’s main camera, natural background blur, Fujifilm colour and a viewfinder. It’s the step up if your frustration is that your photos look flat or processed, which was Jacob’s problem exactly.

If your current camera is a large interchangeable-lens camera and you want something you’ll actually carry every day, the same logic applies: the G7 X Mark III for range, the X100VI for the look.

Jacob shoots for clients who want previews quickly. Both cameras connect to a phone app over Wi-Fi and Bluetooth: Canon Camera Connect for the G7 X Mark III and FUJIFILM XApp for the X100VI. You can send images to your phone moments after taking them and share a preview straight away.

Both apps also let you use your phone as a remote. With the camera on a small tripod, you can frame and fire from your phone, which is useful for self-portraits or for shooting a scene you want to stay out of.

The images looked like ones he could send “straight to my client”, and he’d be happy to post them. (Jacob received a $500 Georges gift card for letting us feature him and his questions in the episode.) That’s a useful test for your own choice. If most of your photos get edited heavily anyway, or you need range more than a particular look, the G7 X Mark III’s flexibility is worth more than the X100VI’s colour. If you want to take a photo and be done with it, the X100VI earns its higher price.

The best way to settle this is to hold both. Come into our Sydney CBD store at 387 George Street or our Chatswood store, and bring a few photos you’ve taken recently so we can see what you shoot most. We’ll put both cameras in your hands, and you can compare the results on screen before you decide. Find our store locations and opening hours

Want to be in a future episode of Try Before You Buy? Tell us what you’re trying to create and what you need help testing. If we feature you and your questions on our YouTube channel, we’ll help you find the right gear on camera and give you a $500 Georges gift card. Terms apply. Apply to be on Try Before You Buy

More from Georges: Read our Fujifilm X100VI review · Fujifilm compact cameras at Georges · Canon compact cameras at Georges

Irene presents Try Before You Buy on Georges Cameras TV, and owns and uses both the Canon G7 X Mark III and the Fujifilm X100VI. For this episode, we tested both cameras with Jacob outdoors from late afternoon into dusk for flash portraits, lifestyle shots and in-camera colour.