Canon PowerShot SX130IS 12.1 MP Digital Camera with 12x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom with 3.0-Inch LCD

by Canon

• Shoot 720p HD video with stereo sound while using the optical zoom
• High-powered 12x wide-angle optical zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer
• Scene modes like Miniature Effect for Movie and Fisheye Effect; Advanced Smart AUTO
• DIGIC 4 Image Processor, with 12.1 megapixels; 3.0-inch wide LCD
• Capture images to SD/SDHC/SDXC memory cards (not included)

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 4.5 x 2.9 x 1.8 inches ; 10.9 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B003ZSHNG8
• Item model number: SX130IS
• Batteries 2 AA batteries required. (included)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (465 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #428 in Camera & Photo (See Top 100 in Camera & Photo)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: August 17, 2010

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Smart, sleek and creative, the PowerShot SX130 IS is the perfect companion to all your good times. Now you can capture every detail of special moments in crisp, stunning 720p HD--even while using the high-powered 12x wide-angle optical zoom. You'll record in stereo sound, then play back your videos instantly on you computer. The SX130 IS is all about creativity, with fun new scene modes like Miniature Effect for Movies, and Fisheye Effect for artistically distorted stills.

While you're having fun creating, the camera's Smart Flash Exposure and advanced Smart AUTO systems are ensuring that every image is the best it can be. Add the DIGIC 4 Image Processor, 12.1 megapixels and Canon's Optical Image Stabilizer, and you've got the ideal camera for making the good times last.

Canon PowerShot SX130IS Highlights

Shoot 720p HD video with stereo sound while using the optical zoom
The PowerShot SX130 IS is the perfect combination of still camera and extraordinary video maker. Videos are recorded in spectacularly detailed 720p HD with clear stereo sound. Better yet, you can now zoom in and out as your creativity demands, without losing a bit of the 720p HD resolution. Given the SX130 IS's powerful 12x wide-angle optical zoom, this capability is especially meaningful.

12x wide-angle optical zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer
With precision engineering and decades of leadership in optics technology, Canon has created a bright, wide-angle lens that magnifies to an astonishing 12x. Moreover, it's sized to fit the SX130 IS's compact profile, performs at high speed, and keeps power consumption low.


Whether you're at a sporting event, school play, or just out and about shooting, you'll love how the SX130's powerful wide-angle 12x optical zoom gets you up close fast and puts more image into every frame. And Canon's Optical Image Stabilizer controls camera shake to ensure that throughout the zoom range, your images are steady and crystal clear.

Scene modes like Miniature Effect for Movie and Fisheye Effect offers creative options for videos and images
Explore your creativity! The PowerShot SX130 IS gives you fun, easy ways to play with perspective in your still images and videos, too.

Miniature Effect for Movies (also available for still images) enhances perspective to give whatever you're shooting the fascinating look of a scene shot with miniature models. At the same time, selective frames are removed to enhance the effect when you play the scene back at 30 fps.

"Fisheye" lenses are favorites of professional photographers: their quirky, convex perspective gives a fun creative punch to shots of kids, pets and more. The SX130 IS creates a Fisheye Effect without the need to attach a special lens--simply activate the mode, choose from three levels (low, medium and high) and shoot!


Smart Flash Exposure determines the correct flash based on the shooting situation
Smart Flash Exposure is a technology that uses the proper flash by analyzing a wide range of lighting conditions, and helps ensure against over or underexposed images. The detail and color of your photo remain intact and truer to life even in challenging lighting.

Advanced Smart AUTO selects from 28 predefined shooting situations
Just set the Canon PowerShot SX130 IS to Smart AUTO and you're ready for maximum enjoyment from your picture taking every time. It's a relaxing and satisfying way to shoot because you can completely concentrate on your subject, knowing that the camera has the technical details covered. Advanced Canon technology intelligently analyzes your situation and shooting conditions. Then it automatically selects an appropriate setting from 28 specially defined settings. So whether you're photographing flowers, a captivating sunset, or your friends at the park, you can be confident that you're getting dramatic, memorable images.

With 22 Shooting Modes including 12 Special Scene Modes, you're ready for whatever shot comes your way.

Capture amazing detail with 12.1-megapixel resolution

Powerful DIGIC 4 Image Processor with 12.1 megapixels
The PowerShot SX130 IS is equipped with many of the same features as a higher-end camera: an ultra-powerful zoom, eye-popping resolution and advanced picture-improving technology. 12.1 Megapixels of resolution gives your photography incomparable depth and ensures that any section of any shot can be enlarged and cropped with no loss in quality when you edit the image even if you choose to print the image. It can create crisp, clear 13 x 19-inch posters.

Canon's proprietary DIGIC Image Processors have long set its cameras apart from the competition, and the new DIGIC 4 sets the bar even higher. Faster, more accurate noise reduction delivers better image quality, even at high ISO speeds.

Large 3.0-inch LCD with wide viewing angle
The camera's high resolution (230,000 dots) 3.0-inch LCD gives you the big picture, whether you're shooting, reviewing or showing off your images. This high-resolution screen offers a crisp, clear picture to make shooting, playback and using the camera's menu functions especially convenient. Clear and bright, it also features Night Display for easy viewing in low light.

AA battery power enables you to easily power up
Conveniently, you don't need to worry about running out of batteries or having to recharge them. Since AA-size batteries can be purchased at any store, simply get new ones locally--wherever you go, no special power adapters or chargers are needed.

What's in the Box

• PowerShot SX130 IS Camera body
• AA-size Alkaline Battery (x2)
• Wrist Strap WS-800
• AV Cable AVC-DC400ST
• USB Interface Cable IFC-400PCU
• Digital Camera Solution CD-ROM

Product Description

Canon's 4345B001 PowerShot SX130 IS 12.1 MP Compact Digital Camera is the perfect companion to all your good times. Now you can capture every detail of special moments in crisp, stunning 720p HD even while using the high-powered 12x wide-angle optical zoom. You'll record in stereo sound, then play back your videos instantly on you computer. The SX130 IS all about creativity, with fun new scene modes like Miniature Effect for Movies, and Fisheye Effect for artistically distorted stills. While you're having fun creating, the camera's Smart Flash Exposure and advanced Smart AUTO systems are ensuring that every image is the best it can be. Add the DIGIC 4 Image Processor, 12.1 megapixels and Optical Image Stabilizer, and you've got the ideal camera for making the good times last.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

716 of 725 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Fantastic Compact Zoom Choice December 12, 2010

By J. Whiteside

Amazon Verified Purchase

I'll start by saying that I'm a Canon fan. Three out of four of my current digital cameras, including both my DSLR's, are Canon. When I was looking to upgrade my compact zoom, this unit caught my eye for both its price point and its feature set. For a sub-$200 compact zoom, this camera definitely leads the pack.

Pros:
* 12 megapixel image capture
* Very good image quality
* Full 720P HD video capture
* Excellent low light performance for its class
* Excellent image stabilization capability
* Full manual control, including Av, Tv and full manual modes
* Great zoom range, especially at the wide end
* Excellent, fast and intuitive performance
* Reasonable battery performance with rechargables (a MUST!)
* Works with convenient AA batteries
* Excellent flash for its class
* Excellent color fidelity with no detectable image artifacts
* Fast continuous shooting for a compact camera
* Perfect size for a compact zoom, fits in a large pocket
* Fantastic price/performance ratio

Cons:
* No CCD cleaner that I've found
* No flash shoe for an external flash
* No external audio inputs for video capture
* 10 minute video capture limit
* No RAW image support
* Terrible support for HD video codec
* No optical/digital viewfinder / LCD display only
* My unit got a speck of dust inside the lens, creating a spot on images/video for awhile

It's been a couple years since I've purchased a camera and I was a bit surprised to see how far the feature sets have come, especially on the lower-end compacts. I've now put this camera through the paces in many different situations and overall, I'm very pleased with everything about it so far....

My criteria for this camera purchase was fairly simple. I wanted a compact zoom with decent optical range, AA battery support, excellent color fidelity, reasonable low light performance and a unit that provided full manual control. I'm an amateur/semi-pro photographer and I expect a lot from my cameras. After reviewing the options out there, this one was a clear winner.

First, I'll speak to the image quality and zoom. I've been very impressed with both its color fidelity and the overall image quality. Images are sharp and its ability to provide vivid color and great dynamic range within images is fantastic. With the unit's lack of RAW support, this was very important to me. At the low end of the zoom, there is a bit of the wide-angle effect...but I really appreciate how wide this camera is able to go. At the far end of the zoom, the optical quality is still great and I haven't detected any weak spots within the optical range. I've never been impressed with digital zoom, and I nearly always avoid it...but as is typical with digital zoom, you'll get artifacts at the furthest end of the spectrum. For a compact, the macro mode is also quite functional, allowing a very short focus range of less than 1/2" - and the 2" focus minimum for normal mode is also quite impressive.

Aperture performance was up to my expectations for a camera lens of this quality, if not even a little better than I expected. The range is from f/3.4 to f/8.0 in aperture priority mode, and I typically would want more on the far end, but as far as I'm concerned, this camera produces f/22 and above quality in landscapes. You're not going to get beautiful bokeh effects at the low end (f/3.4) but this is typical of compact cameras with inexpensive lenses. With that said, though, I was surprised to see any bokeh whatsoever...and it is possible to get a little.

Low light performance is important to me as this is one of my strongest interests in photography. Up to ISO800, there is very little noise in the captured images and I've found that my noise filters will clean up what little there is quite well. ISO1600 starts to introduce a fairly strong noise characteristic, but I expected as much. There is no ISO3200 support, but personally, I feel like this is a waste in a camera at this price point as there's no way you're going to get good performance at such extremes. The image stabilization works well, especially when you're right on the edge of needing a tripod. The camera features an auto focus assist beam, which is a welcome addition within a camera at this price point. Low-light video performance was quite good, although it does take a performance hit in the noise department...but I was still very impressed that it performs as well as it does by producing very watchable low-light video results.

The overall feature set for a relatively inexpensive compact is just staggering to me. All of the basic features are there for a person who appreciates some creative control, including full Tv, Av and manual modes. The automatic modes are great for those times when I don't want to put effort in and P-mode (full auto, except for control over ISO) was an absolute necessity for me. The time-to-live is quick and from an off-state, I can capture an image in less than 3 seconds. I've tested some of the newer, fancier features and I have to say, they're quite impressive. The smile detection blew my mind because it actually worked! The ability to auto-shoot portraits when new people enter the scene is also pretty amazing to me. Blink detection? I would have never thought of that, but it's actually worked for me in a couple of cases. The HD-video is a great addition to my camera lineup and I've started playing with it fairly extensively. I have noticed a bit of discrepancy between the image stability on the LCD screen and the actual result in the produced video, but then again, if I wanted super-stable video, I'd use a tripod. There is a 10 minute limit to video capture, which could be a deal breaker for some, but for my purposes it's just fine. It picks up audio quite well, which was surprising to me - although you're not going to get movie studio quality out of the thing.

Physically speaking, the camera is very comfortable to hold and all of the buttons are conveniently placed. Anyone who's used a Canon camera will feel quite at home with it...and even if you're not, I wouldn't anticipate much difficulty. I haven't had any notable difficulty with the button placement, but have inadvertently turned off the camera when I was trying to capture a picture in a hurried situation. It's not exactly a sub-compact, but for a compact zoom, the size is perfect and exceeds my expectations. (It fits in a large pocket quite easily, but not well in smaller ones, such as most rear pockets.) The lens retraction is very nice and the lens portion only sticks out about 3/4" from the body when fully retracted.

Battery performance met my expectations, for the most part. The use of rechargeable batteries is a must for any digital camera - it's no secret that ALL digital cameras suck up a lot of juice. (This is WHY most of cameras use proprietary NiMH batteries!) For me, I'm fairly heavily invested into NiMH AA batteries, so it was very important for this purchase to support them. I don't get the rated performance, but I never trust those values and I can certainly squeak 200+ images out of a set of 2300mAh batteries, without flash usage. Video use does suck up the juice, but I've still been surprisingly impressed with its performance as I expected a lot less. I wouldn't really consider using standard alkaline batteries in a digital camera for all but a pinch situation and if you expect good performance on alkaline batteries, you're not going to get it. I did find the camera did not like a couple of my sets of 2700mAh batteries, and wouldn't even turn on...and while that bugged me, it wasn't a deal breaker as it does work with 90% of my batteries. A quality battery charger/tester goes a long way, as you won't get good performance if your batteries aren't up to snuff and aren't properly matched according to actual capacity.

I really only have a couple of complaints. Somehow my unit got a fairly large spec of dust inside the lens, and for awhile, all my images/video had a blurry spot on them - particularly in images with fairly strong light/midrange backgrounds. I'm a little concern about the seal and its ability to prevent dust from entering into the lens. Eventually, this speck of dust went away and my images are back to normal - but it's frustrating when you can't do anything about something like this. Additionally, the HD video codec that is used by this camera (H.264/Apple Quicktime MOV) is very frustrating to work with on a computer. It's just not well supported yet and takes a LONG time to open on my computer, even within Apple's quicktime application. (My machine is a quad-core 3.2Ghz proc, 4GB RAM...fast, for all intents and purposes - perhaps I have an issue with my computer's video codecs and I am willing to concede that possibility.) With that said though, I've found it best to convert it to a different format for editing...a step that I would rather avoid. These two issues prevented me from giving the product a full five-star rating.

Overall, though, I'm impressed with this camera and it fit the bill perfectly for me. I hope you've found this review helpful! Read more ›

528 of 541 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing Straight From The Box August 31, 2010

By jenmt

Amazon Verified Purchase

I first heard about the SX130is on August 19th- the same day I had decided that my final purchase decision would be the SX120is. After reading a few reviews, it had me convinced that this would be worth waiting for. I received my SX130is late this morning- and have to say, right from the box it was just amazing. Every time in the past when purchasing a new camera, it takes some adjusting and "breaking in" before fully great-quality pictures come, but with this one, literally from the first shot it has been wonderful. The HD video also records wonderfuly, and the sound is great as well- even with using all of the 48x digital zoom! The one "downside" to the video mode is that the image doesn't auto-focus as you zoom in, at times you have to re-focus using the shutter just as you normally would when taking a picture, but I personally didn't find that too annoying once I figured it out. The miniature and fisheye modes are a blast to use, and the smart-shutter mode (takes the photo when a smile is detected, without using the shutter) is neat too. The LCD is a nice big size, and has an auto-rotate for images in the playback mode, as well as an option to scroll through them when selecting. A fun fact which I also noticed is that it has a "screensaver," which displays the time to save the screen (as a computer would). Although some might consider it a bit "bulky" compared to most compact point and shoots, the size is perfect for someone like me who has bigger hands, allowing for a decent grip and non-clumsy hold. Overall, I just absolutely LOVE this camera (which I why I already give it 5 stars, hands down). Definitely recomend this to anyone; is well worth the money!...

***Updated on 9/24***
After finally getting some Rayovac recharcable NiMH batteries, I can finally say that this camera is well worth the money. If you use regular AA (nonrechargeable) batteries, it will blow through them like crazy, so I learned the hard way. But the NiMH last much, much longer, plus are rechargeable. If you plan on purchasing this camera, I would highly recommend also getting the batteries- it is well worth the extra money. Read more ›

235 of 238 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Superb mini all-rounder November 1, 2010

By Clint

Amazon Verified Purchase

I bought this camera mainly because it was reviewed as having good pic and video quality, it has HD video, and it takes AA batteries. So far it's been superb all round.

The AA batteries bit is a really big deal for me. I so nearly bit the bullet and got a camera that uses a proprietary battery pack -- as, tragically, they almost all do now -- only to discover, when trying to get 2 spare packs, that they're basically unobtainable! This makes such a camera useless for me, as on a long trip (e.g. weekend hike), once the battery is dead, you're stuffed until you find a 110v outlet to charge from.

I understand that AAs are more bulky for a given charge, and presumably that's why the SX130 only takes two. I'd personally take a larger handgrip to make room for two more batteries, but the bottom line is, it doesn't really matter. Just take along spares, and change them out as needed. Use NiMH batteries for best life (conventional batteries like Duracells simply can't handle the loads of a digital camera), but in a pinch, you know that more charge is almost always going to be easily available. And when rechargables wear out, getting new ones is a snap.

So anyhow... I basically love the camera. It's compact and light, and easily fits in a jacket pocket, so it's always handy for a snapshot. It takes great pictures, and superb clear 720p movies. The stereo sound is good, but with built-in mics, wind noise will always be a problem if there is much wind at all. You can zoom while filming, but the noise is quite audible on the soundtrack (though subtle enough not to be really annoying, mostly). I've started using a separate sound recorder for projects where I care about the live sound....

The reason for dinging one star is the one niggly point I've found to date: video capture is limited to 9 mins 59 seconds per clip. This is a hard and consistent limit; I guess it's to avoid the 2GB file size limit. It's never been a problem for me so far, but I could see where it could become an issue for some types of filming.

Battery life isn't great, but like I said, just carry two or three (or ten!) sets of spares, easy. For the record, here's what I got on a single set of Eneloops, taking continuous 10-minute video clips until it died: battery warning came on at 80 minutes; batteries died at 110 minutes. One 16GB memory card stored 85 minutes of video, averaging 186 MB per minute. I'm using a 32GB card now (class 10), and it works great.

In case you're wondering what it records in the .MOV files it captures, ffmpeg tells me that the video format is:

Video: h264, yuv420p, 1280x720, 22301 kb/s, 29.97 fps
Audio: pcm, 48000 Hz, 2 channels, s16, 1536 kb/s

So overall, great. I do wish there was more choice of cameras taking standard batteries; but this one fits the bill nicely. Read more ›