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Being a professional photographer, I shoot photos and video with my DSLR equipment when it counts.  But for casual, every day shooting I have to confess that dragging around a camera back filled with DSLR equipment and lenses is…well…a drag.  Mobile phone cameras get better every year, and I shoot a surprising amount with my iPhone.  But there are some times…actually many times when I wish I had the opportunity to zoom in and out.  The iPhone camera does not yet give you that option (“digital zoom” doesn’t count).  For many years I’ve carried a Canon S100 as my portable point and shoot option.  I’ve used it with great satisfaction on several trips for photos and with even greater satisfaction for videos.  For me, it pretty well negates the need for a dedicated video camera.  However, all good things come to an end, and unfortunately my beloved S100 finally bit the dust a couple of years ago.  I had actually ordered a replacement for it with the Canon S120 – but later cancelled that order when I found it lacking in the wifi connectivity areas I was looking for.  So I’ve limped along ever since using my iPhone.  In late 2014, Canon announced the Canon PowerShot G7 X and I was pretty excited.  Not only was this camera roughly the same form factor is my S100, it actually had significantly more zoom capability – a 24-100 35mm equivalent range which is incredible for its size.  Also extremely impressive regarding the lens is the F1.8 – F2.8 maximum aperture range.  F1.8?  Sign me up.  Combine that aperture with the Canon DIGIC 6 processor, and it should produce some absolutely incredible stills and video (it can do 1080P at 60FPS in video, and a very respectable 6.5 FPS in continuous shooting mode) .  Not only can I get some great video footage day or night, but I can also get some decent action shots of my dog when we train.  The only problem I could see with this camera when it debuted was the price – Canon slapped it with a $700.00 MSRP when it first debuted.  For that price, I wanted to see 4k video and a mic out jack for using an external microphone.  Fast forward about a year, and the camera is now available for much less money, and the market hasn’t produced any better options.  So I placed my order – I’ll provide a review when I’ve had a chance to play with it!