I want a G10 but...

[Tigerman]

A while back, before the G9 came out I was considering wether or not to go DSLR or advanced compact myself.
There was two things that became deciding factors for me in the final choice.
1. The CHDK "hack" - which made me able to shoot RAW on the camera I chose.
2. The fact that a housing for a DSLR would cost me the same as a advanced compact camera with housing.

I went with the G7 and its shot 1500ish pictures by now (98% in RAW and UW). Im very happy with it and cant see any reason you would be less happy with a G10.
Most if not all cameras ive seen thats a notch above "pocket party cameras" use a wheel to select mode and to be honest id think this to be a lot more practical than anything "more digital". 2 quick clicks on the wheel or starting to mess around with menus? Ill take the knob any day.
That being said, my G7 have shot 0 minutes of film to go with the 1500ish pictures..

 

[Gilligan]

What you said about the lens tunnel blocking the flash on closer shots-is that more when shooting macro? I can't really use the flash on my S500 due to back-scatter in the SoCal waters, and don't use it enough to invest in a strobe right now, so as long as I have some control over F-stop / shutter speed / processing time, I think I'll be good. Definately going to take a much closer look at the G10. Thx!!

Yes, it blocks the strobe on up-close shots. The macro mode max is about 19.5 inches from the subject. For the short time I used the built in strobe I simply backed away from the subject so as to get the strobe to fill the photo. I shot some larger target pics in the infinity lens setting and zoomed in on the subject with the on-board strobe set to maximum power. The 28mm lens will let you get closer to bigger targets. You can then crop the photo to fill the frame with the subject. Cropping is not a major issue with the G10 with almost 15 megapixels. It was still a bit of challenge to get the on-board strobe to fill the photo but it can be done. In your diving environment I would be using "Custom" white balance for non-strobe shots. The G10 gives you RAW capability should you decide to use it!

 

[Gilligan]

I like to take a camera with me when I dive, not feel like the whole point of the dive is to take the camera.

A most interesting and noticeable statement. It caught my eye right away.

I wish I had seen it before replying to some folks that asked my opinion on diving the Japanese fleet WWII wrecks in Coron Bay, Palawan, Philippines, which I just returned from.

I did not enjoy the wreck dives due to poor visibility and lack of ambient light making photography near impossible. I take my camera on every dive and don't want to dive without it. Hence I don't enjoy diving unless I can take pictures. Hence I didn't enjoy the wrecks. That's the difference between some divers. I'll coin your statement and use it when asked opinions of dive sites. Thanks for it.