Canon PowerShot SX210IS 14.1 MP Digital Camera with 14x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3.0-Inch LCD (Purple)
- Powerful 14x optical zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer; improved Dynamic mode for enhanced image stabilization
- 14.1-megapixel resolution for high-quality prints up to 16.5 x 23.4 inches
- 28mm wide-angle lens; 3.0-inch wide PureColor System LCD
- HD shooting capability at 720p with stereo sound plus HDMI output
- DIGIC 4 Image Processor with evolved Face Detection Technology; new scene modes
Canon PowerShot SX210 IS Point & Shoot Digital Camera – 14.1 Megapixel – 3″ Active Matrix TFT Color LCD – Purple 4247B001 Digital Cameras
List Price: $ 299.99
Price: $ 299.99
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My thoughts on SX210 + update,
First off – background on me and what I was looking for: I would classify myself as an intermediate photographer. I own a Nikon DSLR which I use primarily for low light situations having learned the hardway at my son’s 18th birthday that my old point-and-shoot did a lousy job of photos in low light situations. I am planning a trip to Europe in the fall and simply did not want to lug my Nikon camera around with me along with all the other stuff – like map, dictionary, travel guide – that I would have to take with me as I wandered around whatever town I was in. So I started my search for a really good PNS camera. What was I looking for in the PNS ? My goal in picture taking is to have a terrific photo of what I actually saw. So when I got home and looked at the photo, I would say: Yes, that’s exactly what it looked like when I was there. So onto my criteria: First size. I wanted it to be small enough to fit comfortably in a pocket. Second, confidence that it would take good to great photos under normal (not low-light) conditions. Third, I liked the idea of HD videos of my trip, so I wanted that capability. Fourth and finally, at least decent performance in low light conditions as I expected to frequently want to take photos inside a museum or art gallery.
The search turned out to be much more difficult than I had expected. Frustratingly difficult I will add. No one camera is loved by all reviewers. So those of you reading this review, who are still searching, I feel your pain. I came to the conclusion that currently there is no perfect PNS that does it all. I would do hours of research on the web and then go to the local camera store to actually play with the PNS cameras that had caught my interest. In the end I concluded that there are 3 or 4 reasonably good PNS cameras out there, but all of them required me to compromise on something I wanted. So figure out what your must-haves are and sort through the available cameras accordingly.
Obviously I chose the Canon SX210. I have had it about 3 weeks now and have taken about 200 photos and about 6 HD movies. My comments in no particular order:
1. the Canon does a good but not outstanding job of taking photos under normal daylight conditions. I did play with several photos on my computer and kept zooming in on a particular point to see when the picture would deteriorate. Of course it did eventually, but again, since 8.5 x 11 is the max size I expect for any enlargement, I do not see any problem with the picture quality.
2. the HD video capability is more fun than I had expected. Again as already noted, the mic’s are located on the top of the camera. Great for recording my commentary, but not so good for recording sounds coming from whatever you are videoing. One other point: the Canon allows you to zoom in while taking an HD video. That’s great, but with 14X optical zoom, the more you zoom, the more susceptible the camera and the video you are taking is to shaking. If you zoom all the way to 14X, I found it impossible to avoid shaking when holding the camera in my hand. At no zoom, there is no problem with shake when taking a video. Bottom line: limit your zooming in when taking a video.
3. I agree with everyone else that placement of the pop-up flash and the telephoto zoom in-and-out mechanism is NUTS. What were the Canon engineers thinking ? However both are annoyances rather than deal-breakers.
4. the battery life is reasonable but not outstanding. I never ran out of battery life during a day of shooting photos and the battery re-charges in about 2-3 hours. Not bad.
5. Speed – I bought 2 Sandisk Extreme III 4 GB Class 6 SD disks. I agree with the suggestions that you have to step up to a Class 6 disk to avoid serious delays when writing the photo to the disk. I also decided against one 8GB disk since I did not want all my pics on one disk. Back to speed – I also turned off the automatic review after each photo taken, and found that improved the speed of the picture taking noticeably. You can also turn on continuous picture taking and take a “burst” of photos if so desired. Bottom Line: speed is fast enough for my needs.
6. Definitely buy a plastic shield (or cover?) to protect the 3″ LCD screen on the back. The Apple Store has them if you can’t find them cheaper any place else.
7. The camera feels surprisingly heavy to me. But solid. I guess 14X optical zoom does create some weight.
8. I set the camera on 9MP pictures since 14MP is overkill for me. I would never enlarge a photo to more than 8.5 x 11 anyway. I left the movie on HD settings however. Dumming down the photos to 9MP also improves the write-to-disk speed BTW.
9. Expect a serious learning curve with this camera. I printed out the manual from the PDF file and it is 180 pages. Not all was relevant to me and my interests, but still I have spent…
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|It’s all about the zoom,
This is a very fun compact camera. I don’t believe they upgraded the sensor from previous Powershot cameras so the picture quality isn’t a miracle or anything. What is really cool about the sx 210 is the zoom lens. I get shots with this camera that just wouldn’t have been possible with my old Elf. There is such a huge difference between using the true optical zoom on this or the digital zoom of my old camera. In that way, there is sort of an increase in picture quality because I can get in close on my subject and not have to crop my pictures and lose resolution later.
The video function is also a plus. The sound from the stereo mic is decent and, again, the zoom lens really comes into play in terms of the shots you can get. I’ve shot videos of my kids on stage, clear across a large hall, and really come up with some nice clips.
I haven’t used the manual settings on this camera as much as I thought I would. I’ve found it difficult to focus accurately or quickly enough with the little wheel. I play with it sometimes for macro shots and such but, primarily, I’ve used the automatic function to good effect. Someone who wants to spend the time and play with the various functions and gimmicks will probably enjoy this quite a bit. I tend to have my hands full these days and it has been very useful as a point and shoot, enhanced significantly by the ability to zoom in close.
The pop-up flash takes some getting used to but over time I’ve come to like that feature. There are a lot of times I don’t want the flash to fire and it’s nice to be able to just snap it shut or hold it shut as you turn on the camera. It becomes second nature eventually.
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|An Amazing Compact Camera,
Customer Video Review Length:: 1:33 Mins
Update 5/31/2011 You may want to consider the new SX230. It has a faster CMOS chip which will give you better low light picture quality. This was my biggest complaint with the SX210is.
Update: 7-19-2010 The video that I posted today is to answer questions about the camera’s cycle rate. It is not an overall camera review but a demonstration of how long it takes the shutter to fire and a demonstration of the “wicked fast” continuous mode. I posted the continuous mode photos on my Google Picasa account which can be viewed by going to my Amazon profile page.
I am a professional motion picture camera assistant and an advanced hobby photographer. I own a Nikon D90 and several other compact cameras. There are times that I wanted to bring a decent camera but didn’t want to haul my SLR kit around with me. I have always felt like I had to make a big compromise until now. This camera captures amazing images for such a compact device. If wanted it also allows for full control of all aspects of your shots including ASA, shutter time and aperture. The HD video it captures is fantastic and it does this without the need to hand focus like my D90.
The first thing that you will notice when you get the camera is that it is very small. It is the size camera you can put in a belt case and forget you have it with you.
Controls – I am use to more direct access to the controls but anyone who is familiar with SLR photography can easily navigate the controls without a manual. Amateurs or those unfamiliar with SLR controls have two great options, Auto or EZ mode. You can put this camera into the hands of an inexperienced photographer and if they can compose a shot, and have fundamental consideration of lighting, they can get technically great pictures.
Colors are accurate with excellent black detail for this price range camera. This camera achieves a level of image quality that was available only from professional SLR cameras a few years ago.
Once you turn on the camera, you are going to be impressed with the wide end of this cameras lens. For vista shots, it does not show wide lens distortion. For close wide shots, it does show an acceptable amount distortion that is fun to shoot with. When I took this camera on a family trip, I was easily able to hold the camera myself and get all 4 of us in the shot. The only issue that I have with this wide mode is that it will not fully translate in a standard 4X6 print. You will loose the sides of the pictures when you print. I hope that the 16X9 HD ratio will become a standard for future photo prints. Of course you can set the camera to shoot a standard 4X6 print
The long end of the zoom is equally amazing. The image stabilization seems as good as Nikon’s VR system.
The SX210is focuses almost as quickly as my SLR Nikon D90 in still mode.
Contunuous Mode- The camera can record 2 FPS in continuous mode. It is a lot of fun to record action sequences or take a series of photos if you have the need to grab a lot of shots in a short time. I posted a few series of shots on my Google Picasa site that can be viewed through my profile page, or paste:
[…]
Movie Mode – The camera really shines in video mode, it focuses quickly and tracks action well. This Canon camera can continuously focus the image rather than having to press the button halfway to activate focus.
In video mode, the exposure shifts in steps rather than gradual transitions. In other words, the exposure could be good for a particular scene and as it transitions to a different lighting scenario the exposure clicks to the proper exposure. Dedicated video cameras transition more smoothly between different lighting conditions than still camera shooting in video mode.
It shoots 720p movies that rival a dedicated video camera. The optical 14X zoom is amazing. This camera could take the place of a stand-alone video camera for many people. The audio quality is good but not fantastic. You can notice the steady shot while shooting videos. It works well until you get to long end of the lens where you will notice that the image jumps around when you try to hold a steady frame. In reality, you would never want to shoot zoomed in all the way.
Con’s- I’m getting picky here but you should know…
I would have liked a viewfinder. Shooting in bright sunlight can be difficult with the LCD screen. I also find that resting the camera against your head helps steady shots.
I wasn’t really crazy about the exposed LCD screen. The screen is made of glass rather than plastic, which is nice. If placed LCD side down it does not rest flat on the screen. It instead rests on the mode rotary dial and the opposite corner of the camera. I wish manufactures would engineer a slightly raised screen…
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