Canon PowerShot SX10 IS is a refreshed, new model of an old and very popular Canon S5. The new model brings numerous updated and slightly changed design.
Introduction:
The new Canon PowerShot SX10 IS has a very powerful zoom, great manual controls and nice ‘Easy’ mode for newbies. Additionally, the camera has a rotating LDC and quite good movie mode so it might seem that the camera has everything it should have to assure its great success on the increasingly competitive market. But let’s have a look at Canon PowerShot SX10 IS in more detail to see if indeed it can become as popular as is predecessor.
Canon PowerShot SX10 IS pros:
+ 10 Megapixels (1/2.3-inch CCD)
+ Very good photo quality
+ Customizable menu, button, and spot on mode dial
+ 20X optical zoom lens, with a 28 – 560 mm range
+ Flip-out, rotating 2.5″ LCD display; good low light visibility
+ Hot shoe for external flash
+ Good optical image stabilization
+ Snappy performance
+ Full manual controls, with plenty of scene modes
+ Very good battery life
+ Nice self-time features
+ Good face detection
Canon PowerShot SX10 IS cons:
- Noise reduction visible at ISO 80; noticeable detail loss above ISO 200 in low light,
- Occasional purple fringing
- Low light focusing could be better
- Unlike its predecessor Canon PowerShot SX10 IS doesn’t support filters and conversion lenses
The design:
Canon PowerShot SX10 IS measures 124 x 88 x 87 mm and weighs 560 grams without batteries. In fact, the Canon PowerShot SX10 IS does not have a built-in battery and can work with regular batteries, but I suggest you use rechargeable batteries and a fast charger. The Canon PowerShot SX10 IS is made of very good quality plastic and metal and it shows – it looks really great. Also the plastic doors covering its ports are of high quality, which is rarely the case. The front of the Canon PowerShot SX10 IS is dominated by the 20x zoom lens above which you will find the pop-up flash. Maybe 20x zoom does not sound too impressive after I have reviewed Canon DC330 camcorder with 48x zoom, but camcorders use different lens types and so Canon PowerShot SX10 IS is a strong performer among digital cameras. At the back of the camera you will find the 2.5-inch screen with the resolution of 230,000 pixels. The screen works really well in all circumstances including sunny days and dark rooms where the display brightens. Above the rotating display is the viewfinder with 100% field-of-view and 235,000 pixels resolution. On the top of Canon PowerShot SX10 IS is the hot shoe fo attaching external flash should you need one, whereas at the bottom is the tripod mount, battery compartment and the ports.
Performance:
The new Canon PowerShot SX10 IS is really fast. It takes it less than 1.5 seconds to extend the lens on power up and the focus is fast as well. The camera has really good optical image stabilization system which works in still mode and in video recording. The Canon PowerShot SX10 features face detection and supports up to nine faces. The camcorder can select a face and then track it if it moves, moreover Canon has combined face detection with self timer which will take a photo when a new face appears in the scene.
The overall image quality is very good. As every camera the Canon PowerShot SX10 has some flaws, but they do not overshadow its good sides. The colors are rendered very well, sharpness is just as it should be and there is plenty of fine detail. As in every 10 megapixel camera there is sometimes too much noise reduction, yet that’s quite natural. The video mode is also very good and supports zoom, face detection and you can even take still photos while recording a clip. Thanks to the built-in stereo microphone you get good sound quality and as the films are recorded in 640 x 480 @ 30fps they also look good.
Menus / ease of use:
The new Canon PowerShot SX10 IS has a fairly traditional for Canon menu structure so if you have even used a Canon you will not have any difficulties with it. The menu structure is quite straightforward and as the camera has plenty of dedicated keys and ‘My menu’ you can customize it to suit your specific needs. Additionally the Canon PowerShot SX10 IS has an \Easy\ mode which disables some of the options and adjusts everything for you. So it is a camera good for everybody: more professional shooters will find good customization features and novices full automation. When you add to it the good image quality and reasonable price it turns out that indeed the Canon PowerShot SX10 IS is a very good digital camera.
Selected Canon PowerShot SX10 IS features and specifications:
Display
2.5 inches, 230K pixels
Touch: No
Features
Scene modes:
24
Continuous shooting:
1.4 fps
Formats:
JPEG, Up to 3648 x 2736 pixels
Sensor
10 Megapixels (1/2.3-inch CCD)
Lens
Optical zoom:
20x
Focal length:
28-560mm equivalent
Focusing range:
Normal: 1.6 ft./50cm-infinity (W), 3.3 ft./1m-infinity (T). Macro: 0.39 in.-1.6 ft./1-50cm (W). Super macro: 0-3.9 in./0-10cm (W)
Optical image stabilization:
Optical
Aperture and shutter
Aperture range:
f/2.8-5.7
Shutter speed: 15 – 1/3200 sec.
Exposure control
ISO sensitivity:
ISO 80 to 1600
Light metering:
Evaluative, Center-weighted, Spot
Exposure control method:
Manual, Program AE, Aperture Priority AE, Shutter Priority AE
White balance:
Auto, Preset (Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Flash), Custom
Flash
Built-in flash:
Auto, Auto w/ Red-eye Reduction, Flash On, Flash On w/ Red-eye Reduction, Flash Off
Flash range:
Up to 17 ft. (5.2m)
Software
Memory cards
SD, SDHC, MMC
Wi-Fi
No
Accessories
AA-size Alkaline Battery (x4), Neck strap, Lens hood, CD-ROM, USB cable, A/V cable
Other recently reviewed digital cameras:
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T77, Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1, Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ28, Nikon D90, Pentax K20D, Nikon Coolpix S610c, Olympus 570UZ.
Recently reviewed camcorders:
Sony HDR-CX12, Sony DCR-DVD910, Panasonic SDR-H60, Canon Vixia HF11, Samsung SC-HMX20, Panasonic HDC-HS100, Samsung TL34HD.