New Slik Sprint Pro II with Canon G9 mounted compared to Manfrotto 190MF3 with Canon 20D.

the Sprint Pro is actually taller than the 190MF3.... even with a tall ballhead like the Markins mounted to the Manfrotto. So more than tall enough for serious use... this is no mini/micro pod that's for sure

I took the main part of the extension column off and swapped the Slik quick release mini ballhead with a Giottos MH 1004 micro ball head, (not that the Slik head was bad just a slight bit of overkill for a 330 gram compact camera)
I can screw mount and unmount the G9 in less than 3 seconds so lack of quick release is not a big issue.

Between swapping the ballhead and dropping the main extension column this shaved a couple hundred grams off the weight AND as a bonus alows the column to be inverted and stored between the legs making the whole unit a measly 41cm long... even shorter than the Manfrotto 785B (Maxi Modo)

At 760 g it is significantly lighter than the Manfroto 758B and lighter than even almost all quality full sized carbon fiber tripods designed for compact cameras (yes... of course carbon fiber dampens vibrations better than aluminium but ... at 1/3 the price of the cheapest equivalent carbon fiber tripod? sure, I can live with that)