My need from this camera:
I'm searching for a small-ish, very high quality camera that I can fit into my daily work briefcase/bag or maybe even my pocket that delivers excellent image quality.  I have tried a few different cameras in this quest - from a high-end point-and-shoot (Panasonic DMC-LX100) to a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (Sony a6000).  Below are my thoughts and observations on the Canon PowerShot G5 X after testing and using it for a few days.

** All sample photos posted from this camera were captured in Superfine JPEG and presented without adjustments, except for the two product photos immediately below (obviously, not taken by the Canon PowerShot G5 X but with my iPhone 6 Plus).  Also, the samples are real world, everyday shots - nothing glamorous or frame worthy.

Look & Feel:

• love the retro, old school styling with the metal knobs and control rings
• built like a tank - tons of metal everywhere.
• good weight: not too heavy but it is substantial (this is a good thing)
• love the fully articulating and flipping touch screen (I really like that I can keep it folded into the body while not shooting to protect the screen)
• high mounted electronic viewfinder (EVF)
• all the function wheels click nicely
• roomy, textured grip
• hotshoe for extra accessories

 Features:

• larger 1" sensor with 20MP for better resolution and ISO performance
• nice zoom range: 24-100mm
• fast lens: f/1.8-2.8
• full manual controls
• high density EVF resolution
• touch screen
• exposure bracketing settings along with decently fast 5.9 fps shooting mode
• lot of customization options for the various buttons, knobs, and control ring
• both in-camera USB charging and regular battery charging via included wall charger (in-camera USB charging is great for recharging in the field with a battery pack or in your vehicle between locations when your truck is equipped with a USB port)

In Use:

• feels great in the hand
• well shaped thumb rest combined with the generous front grip provides secure handling
• fast focusing
• close macro performance, but only sharp in center of frame when photos taken at wide end of zoom when using fastest apertures (almost like a soft focus lens - more details below)
• fully articulated touch screen allows for variety of angled shots
• great electronic viewfinder with lots of detail, fast response, and flips the shooting info vertically when shooting in portrait orientation; automatically turns on when you raise the camera to your eye
• compact, yet robust
• controls are within easy reach and easy to make adjustments for settings on-the-fly
• using front control ring for manual focusing is speed sensitive: the faster you turn, the faster the focus distance changes; slow down for micro adjustments in focusing
• in general, you may need to keep the EV bumped by 1/3 or 2/3 stops to get brighter photos right out of the camera

Image Quality:

• great image quality, overall
• sharp photos w/ center and corners looking good, except wide open macro photos
• impressed with the high ISO performance: ISO 5000 shot still had a lot of detail
• for higher ISO, it's very helpful to expose to the right: better noise control while retaining finer details in image quality if you pull down the highlights rather than to bring the shadows up
• decent bokeh with the fast aperture lens, especially on the faster end at f/1.8
• zoom range is very capable and useful for most everyday needs

Full photo taken at f/1.8, 24.6mm, ISO 800

Crop from above photo:

Full Photo taken at f/2.8, 101mm, ISO 5000:

Crop from above - ISO 5000:

Summary (my personal three category system of Yay!, Meh?, and WTF?! debuts below):

Yay!

• built like a tank
• retro looks
• great image quality, overall
• customization options galore
• great EVF
• fully articulating touch screen
• impressive high ISO performance
• fast focusing
• able to recharge the battery in-camera, but also out-of-camera - best of both
• very handy manual focusing with front control ring: speed of turning the ring adjusts speed of focus distance adjusting

Meh?

• customization options are ample, but still only certain things you can assign to the front wheel and front control ring
• video modes:  doesn't have 4K video.  For me this is a complete non-issue.  I don't remember the last time I used a video mode on any camera I've owned.  I am only interested in still photos.  I list this simply because 4K video seems to be the latest "must have" feature, and this high end camera doesn't offer it.

WTF?!

• full retail price
• macro image quality: the camera can focus very close at the widest end of the lens, but significant softness except for the very center area when below f4 - almost like a soft focus filter where the center circle of sharpness is all that remains sharp.  Additionally, you can see the effect happen as the camera locks focus because it's setting aperture.  As long as you stay above f/4 while at very close distances, the effect is greatly lessened.  At f/8 it's essentially nonexistant.  When not close focusing and still at the widest end of the lens, the image is much sharper over the whole frame.  Imaging Resource noted this same issue with the Canon G7 X and Canon G1 X Mark ii.  They call it "localized flare at maximum aperture", and it's quite evident at close focus distances and the widest end of the zoom on this G5 X as well.  So this isn't a great camera for close macro work utilizing the fastest apertures.  Stopping down to f/8 makes dramatic improvements in macro image quality, but also negates your ability to blur the background.  This is the camera's biggest weakness, in my opinion.  You have to decide if this is a dealbreaker or not. For me it isn't.  It's an annoyance, but not a dealbreaker at this time.  I'm spoiled to excellent macro quality with my Canon 100mm macro lens on my DSLR, so I tend to prefer that combo for any serious macro work.  And hey, you could even call this a feature since it "automagically" adds instant fokeh (fake bokeh) around your center subject.  I plan to try to replicate this on display models at nearby stores to see if it is normal for this particular camera or if mine is a fluke.

Example showing the "soft focus" effect on macro focusing - f/2.8 at 100mm, ISO 125

Crop from above - showing glow/soft effect

Stopping down to f/8 makes dramatic improvements under macro conditions - f/8 at 100mm, ISO 1600

Crop from above - no more halos or soft glow:

Closing Initial Thoughts:
Regarding price - you're paying for a fast lens with good reach, high quality sensor, great image quality, excellent EVF, fully articulated touch screen, excellent metal build quality, and tons of manual controls and customization options all in a small, robust package that looks and feels great in the hand.  Yes, a DSLR starter kit is cheaper.  But the same quality is not there - ISO above 400 or 800 starts going downhill quickly on entry level DSLRs; the included kit lenses are not this sharp nor have such fast apertures.  And DSLR kits are soooo much larger than this little beast.

I also tried the Panasonic DMC-LX100 and the Sony a6000 cameras before deciding on the Canon PowerShot G5 X.  The LX100 looks amazing with its very high-end retro styling.  The photos were quite good from it, but the resolution was low at only 12MP.  There was little room to crop and the resolving power wasn't as good.  It had similar brightness in its lens of f/1.7-2.8 but only covered the range of 24-75mm.  The extra zoom on the G5 X makes a big difference in my shooting. The LX100 was also thicker which, for me, defeated a key requirement: small camera, easy to carry in my daily work bag, potentially pocketable (if needed).

The Sony a6000 delivered great photos with tons of detail/resolution and had very good high ISO performance.  It has super fast burst rates, excellent customization options, fast autofocus, and the benefit of being able to upgrade lenses.  But the kit lens was significantly slower with a range of f/3.5-5.6.  With the 16-50mm kit lens it is approximately the same thickness as the LX100, so it didn't fit my needs for easy portability.  If you start adding lenses to improve the IQ and get faster f-stops, then you're adding additional cost, weight, size, and the hassle of a new body and lens system.  I didn't want anything that large and "complicated" for daily use.  But don't get me wrong, it's a great camera system to buy into and delivers excellent results.  It's just that I didn't need a new ILC kit since I'm a Canon DSLR shooter.

To me and for me, the Canon PowerShot G5 X is a great camera to carry in a large pocket or small daypack when I can't or don't want to lug my big boy DSLR and lenses with me. The Canon PowerShot G5 X provides generally excellent images in a variety of lighting situations, including those needing to use ISO all the way up to 5000 in a compact all-metal body.  I can carry this on hikes in the woods, city exploring, trips, or just a night out with friends while never being conspicuous or weighted down.  Yet I know I can still deliver excellent results that I will be pleased with for print or screen usage.  If you're thinking about a high-end camera as your smaller second camera to complement your DSLR setup or if you want this as your only camera, then you will be rewarded with excellent images and great performance.  Eat bologna sammiches for lunch for a while, save your pennies, and go buy yourself one!

Additional Photos (I'll add more as I take them over the next few days):

Canon PowerShot G5 X ~ f/4 ~ 101mm ~ 1/1250 ~ ISO 125 Canon PowerShot G5 X ~ f/1.8 ~ 24.6mm ~ 1/30 ~ ISO 250 Canon PowerShot G5 X ~ f/2.5 ~ 44mm ~ 1/30 ~ ISO 800 Canon PowerShot G5 X ~ f/4 ~ 24mm ~ 1/100 ~ ISO 125 Canon PowerShot G5 X ~ f/2.8 ~ 1/100 ~ 101mm ~ ISO 200 Canon PowerShot G5 X ~ f/2.8 ~ 100mm ~ 1/100 ~ ISO 160 Canon PowerShot G5 X ~ f/4 ~ 100mm ~ 1/100 ~ ISO 125 Canon PowerShot G5 X ~ f/4 ~ 100mm ~ 1/125 ~ ISO 125