Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom Get it now!

I just bought this camera and took some shots. It's an excellent one. I am the owner of both S3 IS and EOS XSi, so I can easily judge the quality of the SX10 IS. For $400, it's definitely a good buy. It's bigger than S3 IS, almost the body size of Xsi.

Image quality is very good, correct color rendering (surely, not as good as Xsi, however, but its sharpness is better than Xsi).

The only thing I don't like is the EVF. When I move camera around, the view is not smooth, rather jumpy, make my eye uncomfortable. Again, for the price, what you get is a lot.

Get more detail about Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom.

Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom Buy Now

I bought this as an upgrade to my trusty old Canon S2. Based on 3 days experience, the photographic aspect of the camera is great - better than the S2 particularly the 28mm wide angle. However, I have a few little complains on the ergonomic side.

(1) The cammera is significantly larger and heavier than the S2. And it is bit of a pain since I cannot reuse my old S2 camera case.

(2) The SX10 comes with a clip-on lens cap which is pretty finicky to put on in comparison to the S2 plastic lens cap which I can easily and quickly slap on to the lens housing. Furthermore, while the S2 cap comes with a string to be attached to the camera body. That is not the case with the SX10. So I can see losing my lens cap pretty soon.

(3) The inside grip on the S2 is kind of sanded so it can be gripped firmly. The grip on the SX10 is smooth and a bit slippery. It does not offer me as firm and confident a grip as the S2, particularly when the camera is heavier. May be it will become less slippery with time.

Other than the above, good camera.Get more detail about Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom.

Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom Order Now

This camera replaced my old Olympus C2100, a formidable 10x zoom camera introduced 8 years ago that started the mega-zoom race. Have played with the SX10 IS for a week now and very happy with it.

Below are what I like:
-It uses regular "AA" batteries. Never buy a camera that uses specialized batteries no matter what people may tell you. Updated 6/27/09: this camera is so power efficient that it can take 600 photos on a single set of AA rechargeable batteries according to a leading consumer magazine (no other camera can even come close, non).
-It has a useful 28mm wide angle lens. This means you can include a whole group of people in a picture without standing too far back(such as in a small room). Most cameras (I say 90%) do not have lens this wide.
-You can zoom (optical & digital, with audio) while taking movies. Many cameras do not allow optical or audio during movie taking.
-It takes SD memory cards which is most popular (plentiful, cheap). Do not settle for cameras that take any other type of memory cards.
-It has a rotating LCD display.
-It is quick to take (and view) pictures and movies.
-Picture and movie quality (with stereo audio) is superbly competitive to any other high quality cameras.

Below are what I don't like:
-No grip: this is one slippery camera. I like its size and weight but its grip needs to be designed accordingly.
-The LCD display is very easily scratched. Do not wear this camera with a neck strap with the LCD facing out, because your shirt buttons will scratch the LCD. Immediately put a protective screen on this LCD first; there are several protective screen or tape products available.
-The lens has no thread so you can't put on a lens filter to protect it from smears and dust.
-The lens cap has no tether or tether hole so there is little you can do to attach the cap to the camera. Canon, what was you thinking?
-I wish it can record movies in widescreen 16:9 VGA. It does not have HD movie feature but I don't need HD, I only wish widescreen VGA.

Currently there are several 20x zoom cameras available, such as the Olympus SP-570UZ and SP-565UZ, Casio EX-FH20. I've tried all of them, and eventually chose the Canon SX10IS as I think it gives you superb features and quality for an unbelievable price.
Get more detail about Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom.

Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom Decide Now

I have been looking forward to the "S6 IS" coming out this year (after skipping out on the S3 and S5), and now it's out, with the name "SX10 IS". I think Canon wanted to show that this camera is a huge leap forward from the S5 IS, and it certainly is given the new specs.

Compared to the S2 through S5, the zoom is now 20x optical starting at 28mm instead of 12x starting at 35mm (much wider shots), as well as a 10MP sensor, up from 5-8MP, and Digic IV (instead of Digic II and III) for improved shots.

I tried out the demo model in the store, and some differences I noticed were:
- The camera is much taller and deeper to accommodate the huge lens, and does not feel as good in my hands as even the S5
- The body of the camera is very smooth compared to previous models, but it feels bulky compared to the S5
- The button layout is COMPLETELY different, there are no buttons on the front of the camera, MF and macro buttons are located in the back, you now press a button to turn the camera on and off (instead of turning a jog dial), the 4-way directional pad has been replaced with a clickable scroll wheel, also to enter playback mode you must press a button instead. I do not like this layout, but it does offer the advantage of being able to enter macro and MF mode using your right hand only.
- After taking a shot, you can view very detailed information about the shot (ISO, aperture, histogram, etc) which is a nice add-on
- The lens is marked on the top with approximate zoom levels and focal lengths
- Unlike the S5, the battery compartment is again separated from the SD-card slot, which is good
- The picture quality is better, thanks to improved high-ISO quality, so the pictures come out less blurry than on the S5. The sharpness and auto-focus at 20x is very good, with no visible distortion at any zoom level

I did not see the intervalometer function in the menu, so I assume it is still gone as it was removed in the S5, also no RAW support, and there is no custom firmware available for the SX10 (since it is Digic IV), look for that in the future. Movies are in .MOV format instead of .AVI, still 480p, and still one of the best "camcorders" around.

The MSRP is also $100 lower than the S5 was at launch, making this a terrific bargain for a 20x superzoom with Canon's great quality. My only concerns are with the size of the camera and the button layout. However, the huge zoom lens makes up for it, and the fact is it is still much smaller and lighter than a D-SLR plus wide-angle and telephoto lens. Overall, you can't go wrong with this camera, the quality is superb.Get more detail about Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom.