- Conclusion Get the lowdown
- Features How it compares
- Performance Real world benchmarks
- Differences Technical showdown
- Reviews Word on the street
- Competition Others to consider
- Discussion Answers and opinions
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS
- 8 MP
- 10x f/2.8
- 1/2.5" CCD
- 2.5" LCD
Released August, 2007
by DPReview (Dec, 2007)Just as other Canon Powershots we recently reviewed the image quality is good, the movies are very smooth and show very few compression artefacts.
Conclusion Check out the Canon PowerShot SX100 IS
First reviewed December, 2011
Features Key features of the Canon PowerShot SX100 IS
8 MP
1/2.5"
by DPReview (Dec, 2007)Having said that the macro mode is fun to play with and you can get some interesting results.
megapixels
| 0 MP | 20 MP    | 20 MP |
sensor size
PowerShot SX100 IS by amazon.com (Jun, 2008)The controls on the exterior are well designed, with ISO, macro mode, and flash options accessible from the outside.
PowerShot SX100 IS by pinktech (Oct, 2007)It has a large sensor, which means those pixels are bigger and hold more color information, giving you better pictures.
wide angle lens
PowerShot SX100 IS by TrustedReviews (Feb, 2011)The wide-angle end of the zoom is equivalent to 36mm, wider than average for a compact.
PowerShot SX100 IS by pinktech (Oct, 2007)My only gripe is that it doesn't start at 28mm (wide angle); that's not a deal killer, but for indoor, family shooting, I'd prefer Wide to 8x over Normal to 10x.
aperture size
PowerShot SX100 IS by TrustedReviews (Feb, 2011)Canon is describing it as a "family camera", but what it means is an 8MP camera with a high quality 10x zoom, f/2.8 - f/4.3 image-stabilised lens, a 2.5-inch wide-view monitor, with both automatic and manual exposure functions that will allow the more adventurous user to tackle more creative photography.
PowerShot SX100 IS by DPReview (Dec, 2007)Below the wheel you can find the exposure compensation button (also used to switch between aperture and shutter speed settings in manual mode and as a delete button in playback mode).
zoom range
| 0x | 20x   | 40x |
PowerShot SX100 IS by TrustedReviews (Feb, 2011)The telephoto end is equivalent to 360mm, great for zooming in on tiny details.
PowerShot SX100 IS by TrustedReviews (Feb, 2011)Alongside these are the PowerShot A-series, which range from sub-£100 budget models such as the 3x zoom A460 up to advanced models like the new 6x zoom A720 IS (review coming soon) or A650 IS costing nearly £300.
body size
109 x 71 x 47 mm
123 x 92 x 108 mm
96 x 56 x 19 mm
PowerShot SX100 IS by TrustedReviews (Feb, 2011)As well as its dominance of the digital SLR market, Canon maintains a strong position at the top of the digital compact camera market too, with four very successful lines of cameras.
PowerShot SX100 IS by W.-DeckWhether you are an experienced DSLR owner (as I am) looking for a compact second camera or you are someone looking to upgrade from your old point-and-shoot digital camera, the Canon PowerShot SX100IS is a well designed compact camera that has a lot of rich features at a very reasonable price.
Performance Real world tests of Canon PowerShot SX100 IS
battery life
140 photos
380 photos
350 photos
PowerShot SX100 IS by Julio-M.-Nunez-Jr. (Mar, 2008)The Camera has an excellent battery life, the 2Gb card holds thousands of pictures and the zoom is very satisfying.
PowerShot SX100 IS by DPReview (Dec, 2007)We found the battery life in general quite disappointing.
max continuous shooting
PowerShot SX100 IS by c|net (Oct, 2007)And burst shooting runs a mere 0.8 frame per second, which barely exceeds the single-shot shooting speed.
PowerShot SX100 IS by TrustedReviews (Feb, 2011)In single-shot mode the shot-to-shot cycle time is also just over two seconds, and in continuous shooting it can manage a consistent 1.3 seconds per shot, or 1.5 seconds per shot if it has to focus.
Our analysis How does it stack up against its top 10 competitors
pros
-
f/2.8 -
standard-def video -
10 mm -
1/2500 s
cons
-
1/2.5" -
36 mm -
2.5" -
Aug, 2007 -
standard-def video -
8 MP -
172 k dots -
10x -
1,900 ms -
1,600 ISO -
1.3 fps -
140 -
No automatic 3D -
No automatic stitching -
109 x 71 x 47 mm -
47 mm -
316 g -
No automatic HDR -
Lacks the ability to create slow motion video
Reviews Word on the street
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 | Rated by 54 users at amazon.com Rated 100% by by Hummingbirds (Dec, 2007)  Rated 100% by by J.-Witoszynski--Vidman (Apr, 2008) |
Lens
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 73% by by c|net (Oct, 2007)The new lens has better distortion characteristics-less distortion and more symmetry-and photos look sharp without looking oversharpened.
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 80% by by Elisabeth--food-writer-translatorCanon Power Shot SX 100 IS Digital Camera - Black with KitI needed a camera for food close ups and for traveling without having to carry too much bulk.
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 100% by by Hummingbirds (Dec, 2007)The 10x optical zoom is fantastic, and I just discovered the digital zoom goes all the way out to 40x!
Sensor
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 60% by by Diogenes-DogSnackIf you don't take a lot of pictures indoors this won't matter much, but I take a lot indoors and in environments like gym, theater etc and I often prefer high ISO with natural light to flash.
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | by DPReview (Dec, 2007)We've included studio comparisons at each camera's lowest ISO, ISO 400, ISO 800 and highest ISO.
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 80% by by Allison-M.-Perkel--I-drank-what (Dec, 2007)The camera's big points are great image quality at ISO 200 or less, IS for steady images all the way extended, a usable high ISO (not great, but usable - especially if you have something like noise ninja), light weight, AA batteries, and a video mode.
Zoom
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 100% by by Myron-R.-Grover-Jr. (Nov, 2007)I don't mind the increased size because I love the zoom.
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | by DPReview (Dec, 2007)This is perhaps a reflection of the less ambitious zoom range (the TZ3 has a much wider wideangle).
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 100% by by Alexander-Prikhojan (Feb, 2008)I use it to see whether anyone's eyes are closed on the picture - it's much faster than usual scrolling and zooming.
Iso
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | by DPReview (Dec, 2007)Overall it's good to see that while higher ISO settings are definitely not recommendable, at least ISO400 is perfectly usable on the latest generation of this type of camera - certainly for smaller prints.
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | by DPReview (Dec, 2007)At base ISO the output of the SX100 IS and DSC-H3 is remarkably similar, with the Sony applying a tad more sharpening.
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 80% by by Allison-Wist--Allie (Oct, 2007)The picture quality at higher ISOs is quite dissapointing, too.
Image quality
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 80% by by Cam-Harty--Cam (Dec, 2007)The picture quality is also very good - excellent color and very crisp.
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 100% by by E.G.In testing it out I've found that the camera's normal color saturation setting is a little lower than I like it to be, but you're able to adjust the color saturation to your own preference, so with Vivid, I'm producing lovely photos.
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS | Rated 80% by by Frank-J.-Romolo--Romz77 (Nov, 2007)This camera is a canon, so the picture quality is high as expected....Even auto mode produces photos of very high quality.
Competition What else you should consider
 | 1 | Nikon 1 J2 Fastest rapid fire mode Nikon 1 J2 vs Canon PowerShot SX100 IS |
 | 2 | Sony Cybershot DSC-RX100 Best image quality as rated by DXOMark Sony Cybershot DSC-RX100 vs Canon PowerShot SX100 IS |
 | 3 | Canon PowerShot G15 2-way tie: Fastest lens PowerShot G15 vs PowerShot SX100 IS |
 | 5 | Canon PowerShot SX260 HS OK benchmarked shot to shot times SX260 HS vs SX100 IS |
 | 6 | Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ7 2-way tie: Create realistic 3D images Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ7 vs Canon PowerShot SX100 IS |
 | 7 | Canon PowerShot SX130 IS 7-way tie: Largest screen SX130 IS vs SX100 IS |
New duel?
Let the battle continue or dare to compare.
