Customer Reviews

Canon PowerShot S1 IS 3.2 MP Digital Camera with 10x Image Stabilized Optical Zoom

5 star:		(81)
4 star:		(52)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

After researching other cameras in its class including the Panasonic DMC-FZ10 and Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z2, I finally decided on the Canon S1 IS. Having taken a few hundred pictures with it, I am completely satisfied with my purchase.

With this camera I have the flexibility to take pictures with point-and-shoot ease while also having plenty of manual capabilities available to take more artistic pictures. Although the camera has "only" 3.2 megapixels this is more than compensated for by the 10x optical zoom. With this zoom you simply don't need as many megapixels (although it would be nice) because you won't be cropping out as much of the picture. Instead of cropping out excess, you just zoom in while you are there and have a nice original to begin with. Furthemore, more megapixels don't necessarily mean a "better" picture. There are other factors like the lens, cmos, and other processing that will affect the image quality just as much as the megapixels if not more.

Image stabilization is an awesome feature and until now has been reserved for the more expensive cameras. This feature definitely helps with the long zooms and low-light conditions. With the long zoom you can do shots where the primary object is very clear while the background is all blurry. This isn't as easy to do on cameras with less zoom.

The physical layout and the menu interface are excellent. The placement of the buttons are very intuitive and the menu setup is among the best I've ever used on any electronic device. It allows me to use all the manual settings with ease and speed. I can't really think of any better way to set it up.

Although the viewfinders tend to make images look like they are overexposed I think that as the viewfinder ages and dims (as any LCD will do over time) the picture will improve and not look as overexposed. So, I think it is excellent foresight on Canon's part to make the pictures seem overexposed. Personally, I don't find it to be a major issue because I view all the pics on my computer before deleting them anyway. The swiveling LCD is a feature that is indispensible. Not only does it protect the LCD if you flip it around, but you can take pictures of yourself (or others next to you) or and you take pictures at weird angles (such as close to the ground or high above a crowd) without contorting yourself.

I don't find battery power to be an issue. Just get 2 or 3 sets of NiMH batteries and you should be fine for a long day of heavy shooting. Plus the fact that you can use AA instead of a proprietary module means you can use regular AA alkaline batteries in a pinch.

The movie mode is great not only because of the high quality movies, but also because you can zoom while taking the movie. Most cameras will not let you zoom and you have to leave it where it is. The only downside is that you will need a high-speed compact flash card (like the Sandisk Ultra II) to take the highest quality movies. Slower cards can't keep up with the high amout of data being written.

The focusing system is also great and not usually found on cameras at this level. You can move the autofocus box to any postion you want and set an autofocus lock so it doesn't change once you've set it. You can also use the manual focus if you can't get a good focus in low-light situations. There is a meter that pops up showing the approximate distance to the object that you want to focus to which is quite helpful. With the manual focus, I've been able to focus on any object without too much trouble.

There are only 2 things I would like to see improved. One would be some sort of battery meter but it would be wildly inaccurate without some sort of proprietary battery (which they don't make you use) so I'm ok with them leaving that out. I would also like the lens cap to 'click' on instead of just sliding on. I understand why they made that decision though: they want the cap to slide off automatically when you turn it on which is a convenience so I don't have to take it off every time I turn it on. These are just minor suggestions and really just personal preference things. Otherwise, this camera is perfect for the price and what you get.

I highly recommend this camera to anyone to both point-and-shoot people and people who want that along with some artistic flexibility. The feature set is unbeatable and the picture quality is amazing.

[...]

I have used the Canon Powershot IS 1 for over a month and have shot many 100's of images with it.
The good points:
*Produces beautiful images under most conditions.
*The image stabilization system works very well. You are able to take sharp pictures down to 1/6 sec in the wide angle position.
*I used it exclusively at Disney World for the Epcot International Flower Show and thought the night exposures were wonderful. No flash, just hand held photography.
*The movie mode works well under the difficult lighting conditions encountered at the night time parade at Magic Kingdom.
*The color saturation was beautiful. I used the Program mode mostly at ISO equivalent of 100 and the Vivid setting.
*The noise was minimal with the 100 ISO setting. The advantage is higher shutter speeds to stop the action.
*I was able to set the depth of field in Aperture mode for good garden bed shots.
*The 10/1 zoom is incredible!
The bad points:
*The Electronic viewfinder is terrible! The resolution, sharpness, color accuracy and saturation of the finder make you wonder what Canon was thinking of. An optical viewfinder is 100% better.
*The finder blanks out when going from dark to bright outside subjects, making fast picture taking impossible under many instances.
*The resolution is so bad that it is difficult to see if the focus is right on. It usually was.
*The Canon A-70 is a better camera for faster picture taking. However, the anti- shake and 10/1 zoom override all other considerations for me.
*The LCD viewer on the back of the camera is useless in the bright light and its color accuracy is terrible too. I have taken many beautiful sunsets and you cannot see the red sun in the viewfinder or on the monitor. HOWEVER the resultant images were spectacular when viewed on the computer screen.
*The battery consumption seemed to be higher than the A-70 but I did not do a very accurate test. I used two sets of NiMH batteries in a full day of shooting at Epcot. However I was shooting in movie mode some of the time and using a 1 GB flash cards to hold the many images. All the images were taken with the best quality jpg settings.

The bottom line is that the camera is very good for most picture taking opportunities, but is no good for fast moving objects such as flying birds.
Forget what you do not see in the viewfinder or the viewer and shoot away.
The big thing here is to have faith!
I give the camera 4 out of 5 points.
NEW! I just had to change the Time/Date battery. My instruction manual is WRONG!! The battery goes in with the (+)positive terminal up.
Fred Sgrosso

fsgrosso@hotmail.com

After considerable research I purchased the Canon S1 IS camera from Amazon about a month ago along with the Lexar 12X 256MB Compact Flash memory. It arrived even before Amazon said it would! This is my first digital camera and so far I am very pleased with it. I wanted a camera that would take good travel pictures and images of grandchildren who often don't like cameras near them. I expect to print the better pictures as either 4x6 or 5x7 and occasionally 8x10s. At first I was reluctant to consider 3.2MP cameras but my research showed that a figure of merit for a digital camera should actually be proportional to MP times the optical zoom factor squared. This gives a heavy weighting to optical zoom (it's related to picture area) and it also means that you can avoid considerable cropping and wasting of MP. That's why people are often surprised that this camera does so well against its higher MP competition. It's also adequate for printing my size pictures. Unfortunately, most hand held 10X cameras used at maximum zoom also need to have a shutter speed of 1/400th of a second to avoid picture bluring caused by camera shake so that you can use this 10X feature only in bright sunlight, unless you support the camera. The Canon S1's image stabilization system allows hand held pictures with much slower shutter speeds so it is useful more often. I always leave it on and I've taken sharp pictures of ducks, birds, and, oh yes, our grandchildren at a playground. Our daughter, who is a professional photographer, has even commented on the quality of these candid shots, something she did not do with my film camera with lower power zoom. Independently, I also purchased a lightweight RipVan100 battery charger that can operate at overseas voltages and I carry around an extra set of charged NIMH AA batteries, just in case, although I've yet to need them. Of course, in a pinch, I can always use universally available AA batteries, another feature of this camera.

This camera, like all 10X zooms, uses an electronic viewfinder. I find that it is hard to see well in bright sunlight (especially if I'm wearing sunglasses), even at maximum brightness setting. Its resolution is also poor and the images often seem overexposed - but, and this is important, the images don't shake at 10X with the IS on! and the actual pictures are correctly exposed. The swiveling LCD screen grows on you and you can take pictures looking down at the camera at waist level. The grandchildren may not even realize you are actually taking their picture, adding to the candid effect. I haven't found the lack of an autofocusing lamp to be a problem in dim light and you can always set the manual focus to about 8 feet (no zoom used) and everything from 4 feet to infinitity will be sharp. (I got this tidbit from my research).

After it was announced but before it was readily available the camera received so-so reviews but the recent user reviews from those who actually own and use one have been highly favorable and I agree with them. It's well made, not too heavy, and the basics can be learned quickly. Advanced users can find many features to investigate and I'm still learning how to use some of the exposure and focus lock modes for special cases. I think that using the Auto mode (or the Program P mode) with IS on will work for most people, most of the time. And, as an added bonus, you can even take movies (9 minutes/1GB at best quality) if you have a large memory. I'm glad I discovered this "fun" camera.

Hi,

I just picked up my Canon S1 an simply love it. The feel of it is very sturdy in your hands and feels well constructed. The controls are very nicely placed. You could easily handle this camera with one hand. The zoom control is nice and fast, it takes a bit to get used to how touchy it can be, but easlily controlled once you get the hang of it. The colors look great for outdoor shots, and indoor shots as well. The AF(Auto Focus) seems to pick up indoors quite nicely, except for really low light areas, as i've usually had problems with my Fuji and other cameras, the Canon seems to focus more easily. Plus you can see thru the LCD or viewfinder indoors as well very nicely. You also get a 32mb CF with the camera, which is nice, but of course can fill up fast. I suggest picking up at least a 256mb card, Costco has Sandisk 256 for around $41. As for the menus, very easily done and easy to navigate thru. I also love the MF (manual focus) on the S1. You can't use it in Auto, but can in all other settings. Where I couldnt focus with the AF, I could easlily focus with the MF. I love the the LCD screen swivel capabilities also. I'm looking forward to shooting above crowds while being able to see what im shooting at. The 10X optical zoom is wonderful, and combined with the Image Stabilizer, is just near perfect.

The cost of this 3.2 MP camera may seem alittle overpriced, but with the super bright LCD swivel screen (easily viewed in daylight), the Image Stailizer and the 10X optical zoom, and the 640 x 480 @ 30 fps video, "automatic pop-up flash", indoor low light capabilities and nice overall construction, plus a ton of other features, you will know its worth every penny.

I almost went for the Minolta Z2, but the construction of that camera seemed very poor as the lens it self felt like it was going to fall out. Also when shooting video with the Minolta, the AF sound constantly was picked up in the video, making that a completely useless feature. Not so with the Canon S1, the USM zoom feature is that, Ultra Silent and so is the AF. Not one sound is picked up while shooting video with the S1. The Minolta did do great shots as well, but I finally went for the Canon for the sturdy construction and more readily available accessories, such as a underwater housing and optional remote control.

Also as a side note, I really like the way you can customize the sounds in the camera under "My Camera". Having a bird chird or dog bark, its just the icing on the cake. I'm trying to make a Disney theme for my camera before vacation...I'm glad that companies such as Canon really know how to let the customer feel like its there very own camera, instead of just another cookie cutter gadget.

Honestly, the only cons of this camera is maybe the price, and that is easlily justified with the attention to detail Canon has given this camera.

I would highly recommend anyone to go out and give this camera a run though, you wont be disappointed. Anyone can use this camera,very user friendly. This camera will give you and your family many years of great memories...

Thanks Canon...

If you're like most people reading about the Canon Powershot S1, you've owned at least one or two digital cameras in the past, and chances are they've been the point and shoot kind. Now you'd like something with a few more manual controls.
I'm not going to repeat what's in many other reviews here (an amazing 10x stabilized zoom ... you'll find it difficult to move back to a camera without this, generally excellent photo quality, and really compact - HOW do they fit this all in such a tiny package??) but instead I'd like to point out a few aspects of the camera that haven't been discussed that much in other reviews here.

1. Get yourself a basic book on digital photography, so you will actually use some of the manual features of this camera. A $15 investment will give you better photo results within 30 minutes. Guaranteed. I got myself "Digital Photography Pocket Guide" from Amazon and I can already see the results in my photos.
2. You'll love taking photos by using the viewfinder and not the LCD screen (which, at 1.5", seems dismally small for a camera such as this) - the viewfinder is full of (though not cluttered with) details of your shot. Aperture, resolution, etc.
3. The zoom control is tricky and takes time to get used to. A slight flick of the control and you have quickly moved beyond 5x magnification. You'll get the hang of it quickly, but be forewarned that you will be frustrated using the zoom initially.
4. while other reviews have commented on using the Sandisk Ultra II card for taking VGA movies, I'm a little perplexed. While the movies are recorded on the card just fine, transferring them to my 2.4 gigahertz P4 machine leads to loss of data in the transfer and I am unable to view them properly. I am convinced there is an issue with the file transfer speed related to the camera's mechanism, NOT the memory card - for I have tried multiple ones. If you are buying this camera purely for this reason, do check this out carefully so that you too don't deal with the same problems (besides, the 512 MB card allows barely two minutes of 640x480 video.)
5. The battery meter, which comes on only when the batteries are about to run out, could be better and indicate the approximate number of shots left. Come on Canon, you can do better...

All in all, these are small deficiencies, certainly not glaring. I'm pleased with my stabilized zoom camera choice (the Panasonic FZ series were too bulky, the Minolta Dimage Z series too plastic feeling).

One last point. Avoid the Canon PSC 70 carrying case made for this camera. Do read my review on that one should you purchase this camera.

I bought this camera about a month ago after researching about a hundred different cameras. I was looking for something aroun 4-5 megapixels and $200-$300. This camera had lower megapixels (3.2) and it was at the top of my limits. I have one thing to say:

I am glad I bought it.

I received the camera in a matter of days from Amazon. That was normal for any order that I have placed with Amazon. Fast service. I received it just a few days before we left for a vacation to Disneyland in California so I did not have time to mess with it much, but I had time to play around with some of the features on the way down and I am impressed with this camera. I took pictures from day to night and from stills to shooting scenery out of our vehicle going 85 mph. Oops, I meant 75 mph officer. I would say that 99% of them came out great. I turned the video resolution down to the next one lower. A 512 MB CF card held about 12 minutes of video in one continuous shoot. That is probably the one feature that sold me on this camera. It did not have a limit on the minutes of continous video that could be shot. Other cameras had a 1.5-3 minute limit. I even used it to record half of a speech that I gave to a group to see how I presented myself. The camera was about 10 feet away and it still picked up my voice.

The included AA alkaline batteries went dead within about a couple of hours. I bought two sets of rechargeables and found that one set lasted from 8 am to 10 pm at Disneyland. And I took alot of pictures and video! One day, I filled two 512 MB CF Cards and one 256 MB card. That is my only suggestion with this camera. Buy rechargeable batteries and a larger CF card if you are going to shoot video. I am planning to buy a 1 GB CF card later.

When I bought it, I had the intention of selling it on ebay if I did not like it. No way. I am keeping it. Oh...one other thing in my favor, my daughter-in-law works as a photographer. She could show me things that camera would do that would have taken me quite awhile to figure out. She had a chance to use it and she was impressed with it.

I've had this camera for about a year now and overall I'm still quite happy with my purchase. The drawbacks to this camera are common with all digital models I've tried and the picture quality is quite exceptional. Here's some more details...

First the pros: It's very ergonomic, well-designed, and easy to use, even for first time digital camera owners like me. The 10x zoom works smoothly and very well. In good light the auto focus locks on quickly and the pictures turn out great, even when blown up as large as 8x10. With the right paper in the printer I cannot tell the difference quality-wise between these pix and my old film camera. I really like the flip out monitor screen for shooting pictures over crowds (e.g., at sporting events). It's very visible except in harsh, direct sunlight. The image stabilization works well, eliminating the need for a tripod in most situations. Sports mode gives clear action shots even when your subject is moving quickly. The self-timer is a nice feature too. Images are easy to download to the PC (with XP you don't even need the software that comes with the camera). The built in flash works better than I expected (up to ~10' away anyway).

Now the cons: In low light situations the camera is extremely challenging to use. First off, the viewfinder is electronic and you cannot see what you are aiming at through it or the LCD monitor. In night or auto mode close-up pictures come out okay, you just have to guess at your aim. Longer shots do not work out well at all. At my son's Christmas concert last night I snapped 43 shots. 5 turned out well and 2 more were usable. The rest were garbage. Anytime the kids moved at all, the shot turned out blurry no matter what mode I had it set on (and I tried several), even with a tripod. This was extremely frustrating!! Further, like most digital cameras there is a significant delay between when you push the button and when the picture is actually snapped. It is very hard to take sports shorts unless you get lucky with timing or use the movie mode.

Other stuff: you'll want to purchase a larger memory card. 32mb just doesn't cut it. I went with 256 and have been very happy. You also want to purchase some rechargeable batteries. This thing takes 4 AA's and really chews them up fast, especially when you are using the monitor and zooming a lot. Be sure to use the lens cap strap. It's designed to slide off when the camera is turned on (a convenience?) yet it tends to fall off at odd times since it does not snap in place. Don't buy the Cannon camera bag. It is poorly designed and overpriced.

Canon's done a great think with this product. This AA-ready, 10x-zoom product from a highly reputable camera manufacturer is a *highly*-recommended option for the serious amateur photographer. All in all, this camera is a GREAT value. If all consumer electronics companies held themselves up--for every product they made--to the basic dependability, overall ease of use, and impressive versatility of this camera, we'd all be in a much more affordable and hassle-free world relative to our mobile phones, DVRs, MP3 players, computers (especially), and everything else that sometimes beeps, whirrs, or flashes in our lives!

If you're a "point and shoot" kind of photographer, however, move on: this PowerShot S1 is far more feature-rich, large, and heavier than you'll want.

My review is based on 8 months of use. Heaven forbid that it stops working properly anytime soon--or even anytime within the next 5 years--but, thus far, I'm impressed. The camera accompanied me from the U.S. on a wintertime trip to England at the end of 2004 where it got a thorough workout and a great deal of manhandling, and held up through the entire vacation (and since then) solidly.

*FEATURES: Manual over-ride exists for every key element: aperture, ISO speed (only a 50 to 400 range, however), flash, and even focus. Other features I find myself using a lot include switching the timer from 2 second delay (when I don't need to run in front of the camera to get into the photo myself) and 10 second delay (when I do), and over-riding the flash--that is, setting it from AUTO to ON, so that it will act as a "fill flash" even when the light meter is reading that the scene is bright because of background light. (There are two or three features I'll never use actually--and which I find rather silly, frankly--like "sepia" mode. Whatever.)

*I.S.: Image stabilization is solid--not extra-ordinary, but good.

*BATTERY: I have not had problems with battery depletion simply because I did what I'd recommend you do, too, if considering this product. I bought a AA recharger that I also cannot recommend highly enough (the "Sony Power Charger with 4 Ni-MH AA Batteries"--purchased via Amazon at the same time I purchased the Canon PowerShot) and 4 additional rechargeable AA's at my local K-Mart. So, as I shot, I simply kept 4 charged batteries at hand to swap in for the 4 temporarily exhausted ones if needed. I was never at *any* point without the ability to take photos for want of power. And then I recharged batteries, if needed or desired, during the night. Regardless, I found that 4 batteries lasted through *hundreds* of images with the camera set at the ideal setting for 4"x6" prints (150 dpi, I suspect, but I'm not sure off-hand), and in normal temperatures (more on that below).

NOTE: far too many digital cameras require special batteries, sometimes proprietary (like Kodak for one). Setting aside the issue of batteries being rechargeable, the simple fact that this PowerShot takes AA's is fantastic. It means you will never have a difficult time finding power for your camera...as long as you're not far from "civilization."

NOTE: *Temperature* affects battery life to a surprising extent. I'm aware that cold temperature can affect battery life, but the PowerShot seems particularly sensitive to this. When shooting outside in England in December, keeping that second set of 4 AA's was very important. Four AA's alone would not have been enough. However, indoors or at regular temps in spring, summer, and autumn, 4 batteries--especially those manufactured for use in digital electronic goods--will be adequate.

*VIDEO/AUDIO: I only took 3 video clips on my trip. My sense is that this is what drains battery life; it certainly drains memory. Nonetheless, I considered the video feature "icing on the cake," and didn't care about it much anyway. So, I was very pleasantly surprised when I played back my video clips on my computer and encountered not only a very clear image which demonstrated the camera's ability in video mode to zoom and refocus fast, but also audio that seemed neither muffled nor--the other extreme possibility--"tinny."

(One word of commonsense advice though on using the video mode. Don't speak loudly or at all when you're the shooter, because the microphone will pick up your voice very well due to your proximity to the microphone, and in play-back you'll be roaring compared to all the other sound. I can even hear myself breathing in the playback!)

*INTERFACE: The interface of this camera was designed fairly well considering the wide range of options and features. It's got lots of buttons and lots of options, so ***practice*** with this camera before you use it for some special event or vacation, etc. Canon seems to have correctly anticipated which features people will want to over-ride or mess with the most (such as turning the flash to ON, OFF, or AUTO) and separated those buttons from the rest, which is helpful.

*COLOR: I have not encountered color distortion when viewing images digitally. I have printed out very few images, since I put images online mostly, so I cannot yet review how the PowerShot's images translate color-wise when printed. Of course, the printer one uses affects the quality and color-correctness of prints, too.

*WT/SIZE/FEEL: This camera is totally SLR-esques in feel and heft, though it's more compact than an SLR. I'm happy with the camera's feel. Its size would be difficult to make much smaller given current limits to technology, unless one sacrificed the basic SLR-like mold of the camera. I was able to get this camera completely into the pocket of my winter jacket--I never while in England needed a bag, case, or carrier for it. It will not, however, fit into a typical coat pocket--like on a light jacket, a suit coat, etc. It will fit into a normal purse, I'm sure, but not a small handbag.

It *is* heavy, however. That is one thing to note that is a negative. But, along with that heft, I feel, comes better control and stability.

There are a few little niggling things about the camera's menus that annoy me, 10x zoom is good, but often not enough for me, and the lens cap doesn't stay on very well (but, it's attached to a camera by a shot nylon cord, so you *won't* lose the cap!), and when I think about these negatives I'm tempted to give the camera 4 stars, not 5; but, there are so many other strong positives with the PowerShot S1 relative to the FUNDAMENTALS of camera use and design--plus a competitive (though not "low") price--that I realize the negatives are ultimately minor. If "4 1/2" was an option, I suppose I'd give the product that rating.

That said, I'll rate this camera "5 stars" as an excellent product for the dedicated amateur photographer.

Let me tell you, straight out, this family is a digital family. We've had digital cameras for years now and we've had quite an assortment. Everyone, in our family, has one.

My personal favorite, is the digital rebel. I know you're asking, why is she reviewing this camera then? Easy! I wanted a camera that I could easily whip out and capture a shot with... but I didn't want the tiny handheld ones. I wanted something that felt comfortable, in my hand.... yet.. wasn't heavy. I was also looking for zoom.

This camera fits that bill, perfectly! and at a great price too!

To start, this camera runs on 4 AA batteries. Usually, that's a turn off for me, but I picked up some 2300 mhz batteries and I can easily get 500+ shots out of a charge of those, w/ the LCD and the flash on. With the batteries, this baby weights, about a pound. While that may seem heavy, compared to the little tiny cameras and cell phones that are avialable these days.. Let me tell you. That's not heavy. It's got a great neck strap and the camera carrys comfortably on that, around your neck, w/out weighing you down.

The 10x zoom is real nice! Now, I'm only using optical zoom, otherwise, with the digital kicked in, it would be a 30x. I just rely on the optical. This camera takes some VERY nice pictures with that zoom. A picture worthy of the Canon name! And you can capture such a nice picture because of the IS (image stabilization) that is built into this camera. You will notice little (or no) camera shake when you have it fully zoomed in on something. Admittedly, it seemed like it, with the first couple test shots I took. I was looking through the viewfinder, aiming at something down the street.. and it seemed like I was waivering all over the place. But when I downloaded the pictures. I was VERY pleased. Crystal clear!

I have the found, that some cameras have terrible color saturation, w/ the picture right out of the camera. This isn't one of them. With the default settings, the blues (sky, water) are rich, tonal, and dimentional. There's no red problems, when shooting reds, that I've noticed. Sometimes reds will bleed out .. or not appear true.. and that's simply not the case.

Indoor pictures.. I'll be honest.. W/ the built in flash, this little camera, kicks my $1K camera's behind! The flash doesn't tend to wash out the subject (on the default settings).. skin tones are exactly what they are. Little or no adjustments are needed, in my book.

This camera is fast to start up, and write, to the CF card that it uses (buy a bigger CF card!). It's got auto controls for those that don't want to think. For those that want to learn a bit more about photography, it's got the F stops, and all that jazz..

ALONG WITH...
the ability to change your focal point. You're not stuck in the middle of the frame. If you want your subject off to the left of the frame..and the rest to be 'soft'... That's not a problem. With a simple push of the button, your point of focus changes.

I can go on.. but I'm sure you have the idea, after reading all these reviews.

This is a great camera for the money. While you maybe taking a step down, in megapixels, you're gaining the zoom ability. The decrease in the megapixels, I feel, are not that noticible.

In fact, this camera has all the features that I was looking for, in my higher end cameras. .. but for a fraction of the price.

i wouldn't think twice about recommending this camera to anyone. It's a great camera.

ALL THE REST OF THIS REVIEW MEANS NOTHING. THE CAMERA DIED WHILE PROPERLY STORED IN ITS CASE WITH THE BATTERIES REMOVED. IT NEVER WAS DROPPED. IT JUST PLAIN DIED. HAVING RECEIVED NO ABUSE WHATSOEVER, THE CAMERA'S DEMISE MEANS EITHER PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE OR CRUMMY CONSTRUCTION. EITHER WAY, I'LL NOT BUY ANOTHER CANON SINCE I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE TO HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS. I'VE DROPPED IT FROM 4 STARS FOR ITS SLUGGISHNESS TO 1 STAR FOR ITS POOR VALUE GIVEN ITS EXPECTED LIFE SPAN.


While I am delighted by the camera's picture quality, wealth of features, and logic, there are some caveats. But, although this is just a 3.3MP camera, I think the color quality and resolution will satsify all but the perfectionists.

The caveats are all really related to the pace of the focusing, especially when the zoom is used. Going from no zoom to a 10X zoom is to wait for a good two to three seconds for the focus to catch up. At first, the zoomed-in on object will be just a blur -- both to the viewfinder and to the picture itself if you opt to shoot before the focus catches up. And, in addition, there is -- zoom or no zoom -- about a second's delay between getting the frame in focus and getting the shot.

So, I've taken off a star for the camera's speed. My objection is not about one to three seconds but about the loss of several candid shots you might otherwise enjoy.

The other disadvantage is that the camera DOES go through regular batteries rather quickly. However, with rechargeable batteries, the battery life is several times greater tha with disposable batteries and quite good. (I took about 140 shots on vacation and spent a lot of time fiddling around with the camera in between shots without needing to swap out my rechargeable batteries.)

If your primary reason for wanting the camera is to shoot animals, sporting events, or small children, it's quite possible that you'll be less satisfied with this camera than I am.

On the other hand, there is more to love than the quality and color of the pictures you do catch. The features, which are many, are easy to use once you've read the manual to find which buttons do what. (This is NOT, as a few have written, a difficult camera to learn to use. You can and will be up and running with it in a short time. However, thanks to the wealth of features, the advanced features will take some additional time to learn. This seems reasonable enough to me. Excel is more difficult to use than a calculator and quite difficult to master in all its aspects. That's not because Excel (or this camera) is awkwardly designed. On the contrary, both are very well-designed. Excel is more difficult to MASTER (not use but master) than a calculator because it does so much more. So, of course, MASTERING all the features of this camera will take more time than MASTERING all the features of a disposable camera. Seems fair and logical enough to me.)

Some of the features I especially like:

- It is a cinch to disable the flash by simply cycling through the flash options afforded by the dial (i.e., "diopter adjustment dial") that is located, logically enough, right next to the flash. If you decide to shoot a picture off your TV or to shoot a lit Tiffany lamp at night or to capture just the candles on a birthday cake (and so on and so on), you'll love the ability to turn off the flash.

- The default settings for the camera seem very logical -- the highest setting for photo quality, the disabling of the digital zoom, the enabling of the red-eye protection, etc. So, if you can't wait to start shooting, you'll start off with high quality shots and with setting that you'd probably want most of the time. (Your digital zooming can and probably should be done via software after you've captured the highest quality image with the optical zoom. This will give you the option to decide later whether you really want to give up the quality of the image for a closer look. If you use the digital zoom when you shoot, you've given up the option to back off for higher quality. If you decide that you'd rather give up the quality for a closer shot than the 10X optical provided, you'll get the same result via the included editing software.)

- Macro photography requires no special setting. However, to avoid overexposed macro shots indoors, you may elect to use the zoom rather than to get right on top of your subject.

- The included software provides the option to see what apertures and shutter speeds were used for each shot and whether or not the digital zoom was used. (It doesn't directly tell you whether the optical zoom was used.)

- For those not adverse to reading, the Canon documentation is extensive.

Final tip:

Discover early the diopter ajustment dial next to the immediate left of the viewfinder. This is a focus for the viewfinder. The focus on the viewfinder was not clear until I discovered this little dial. Once adjusted, it has tended to stay adjusted.<P(...)

If the MAIN attraction of this camera is the stabilized 10X optical zoom, you might be surprised to find that it becomes the least desireable feature thanks to its slow focus. However, as one who has owned a Nikon and a Fuji in the past, I soon found that the Canon jumped to the head of the list for its picture and color quality -- as well as for its excellent additional features.

And, oh yes, the camera is loads of fun. You can spend hours exploring its features and in discovering the advantages of its various modes. In just two days, the camera has me taking shots I've never been able to take before. I haven't mastered the camera, but I've acquainted myself with a host of new (i.e., to me) features already. More important, most of my pictures are coming out great. I can still come up with some duds, but that's not the camera's fault!

SUMMARY: The camera is too slow to focus to rely upon for action shots, but -- WOW! -- it's a joy for most purposes.