Canon G10 or the Leica D-Lux 4?

[pswork]

I am trying to decide between the Canon G10 and the Leica D-Lux 4. My friends son swears by Leica and claims their lens quality is superior. I get a discount on the Leica through my company, so the difference between the two comes out to about $180. I have always had Canon's in the past and have had good luck. I do want to upgrade from my 5.0 megapixel and I'm willing to pay the extra money if you think the difference in lens quality is worth it. Any insight is appreciated.

Thanks

[Photo-John]

With compact digital cameras, a good lens is nice, but the limiting factor is usually the sensor. And in this case, I like the Leica/Panasonic strategy better. They went for less resolution on a larger sensor, which should deliver better image quality. And reports from people who've used both cameras seem to bear that out. Plus, for most people and most purposes, 10 megapixels is more than enough. So I would go with the Leica.

[Liz]

With compact digital cameras, a good lens is nice, but the limiting factor is usually the sensor. And in this case, I like the Leica/Panasonic strategy better. They went for less resolution on a larger sensor, which should deliver better image quality. And reports from people who've used both cameras seem to bear that out. Plus, for most people and most purposes, 10 megapixels is more than enough. So I would go with the Leica.

I agree. Actually I chose the Panasonic LX3 over the G10. I had purchased the G10 and returned it due to over-exposure problems (I think it was the specific copy I had). However, I've read many user reviews about the LX3 and have seen some excellent images. Here is one of mine shot with the LX3.

The Leica D-Lux 4 is a better choice than the LX3 - so I would vote for the Leica.

A first image - straight out of camera first time use from the LX3 at 24mm - 16.9 format.

Liz