Canon Powershot S20 Zoom

Overall Rating
 3 of 5

Value Rating
 2 of 5

Used product for
2-5 years

Price Paid:  $300.00 from Ebay

Summary:
When I bought this digital cmaera I was moving up from a 1.5 megapixel camera so I was quite impressed by the clarity of the picture in comparison. It was easy to figure out how to use and a great camera to learn on. However now that I have owned it for a year I have come to see a lot of weaknesses with this camera compared to other cameras out there with the same megapixels, etc.

Strengths:
Pretty decent picture, comes with good software, easy to learn how to use.

Weaknesses:
Slow to take picture from the time you press the button. Fuzzier picture then the Fuji film camera I tried recently. Pictures need a lot of adjustment when you transfer them to computer.

Similar Products Used:
Fuji Film same megapixels.

Customer Service:
Never have used the customer service support as the camera is pretty easy to use.

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
2 Months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5,
3 votes

Summary:
I've read a lot of reviews, especialy before purchasing. Some say it's great other say the image quality is not what a 3.3MP should be. If you can find them at under 400.00 go for it.

Strengths:
Of course the size. If you have a charger and extra battery like me it won't let you down. The image quality is great. Since some people have image quality issues, perhaps some of the CCD chips installed during manufacture were defective?

Weaknesses:
If you shoot in direct sunlight you will get purple fringe (chromatic aberation). The flash is weak but once you learn the limitations you can get great images inside.

Similar Products Used:
Coolpix 990. Great camera, but for the price I'll brag about my S20

Customer Service:
No need for them yet hardware wise, but the bundled Adobe Photo editor software won't work with Windows 2000 and there is no upgrade.

Overall Rating
 2 of 5

Used product for
6 Months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5,
1 votes

Summary:
I have been reading some of these reviews and thought I would tell potential purchasers why I sold my Canon S20. I agree with some of the reviews already written when they say that the colour is lacking in the photos. I took nearly 900 photos in the 6 months I had the camera and had to use Photoshop's Auto levels/Auto Contrast on almost all pictures that I wanted to print. The greens were the worst, often grass came out far too bright. If there was little or now sun, peoples faces looked pale and some were so bad that Auto Levels couldn't save them. To be honest the colours problem was my main gripe with the camera because the detail was excellent. I also liked the way it fits in a pocket and you can therefore carry it everywhere. The power consumption wasn't as bad as some reviews have said, I used the rechargeable Lithium-ion that came with it (+ bought a spare) and it never let me down.I sold it because the colour wasn't as good as I wanted and I also wanted a larger zoom - so I bought a Fuji Finepix 6900 which is brilliant, but that's another story.

Strengths:
Small, Compact, easy to use, good detail in pics

Weaknesses:
Total lack of realistic colour, fairly slow to write large files to the card.

Similar Products Used:
Fuji Finepix 6900, Kodak DC210+, Kodak 240i

Customer Service:
Not Used

Overall Rating
 2 of 5

Used product for
1 Week

Summary:
Hi all, I was a hesitant purchaser of the s20. I had started reading reviews, but had never really considered the s20 until I saw it at the store. I fell for the fairly compact size, 3.3 Mp resolution and alluring styling, and was impressed with the included accessories (comes with charger, AC adapter, NiMH battery - in Canada). I decided to give it a try. Once I got home, of course, I came right to this site to read reviews, and I consulted www.imaging-resource.com as well. Imaging-resource really downplayed the image color shift, and I felt that the reviews here were really split down the middle, so I decided I had to make up my own mind. Well, after carting the camera around and taking numerous pictures in varying situations (indoor/outdoor), I finally realized - 1000+ $CDN is just too much to spend on a camera that doesn't take accurate pictures. The pictures all have an "ice cube" tinge, irrespective of the situation. You'll get better results with a point-and-shoot 35mm and a color scanner. I got sick of using PhotoShop's "AutoLevel" feature after about 4 days, and returned the camera. My new CoolPix 990 is worth every penny. I suggest that all interested parties make use of imaging-resource's image comparator - the pictures don't lie. Compare the s20 and cp 990 outdoor shot, you'll see what I mean... However, if you're looking for a compact package, and you don't really notice the color shift... I would still look at other small packages, the Fuji 4700 or maybe the Digital Elph (another Canon product, I'd watch out for color shift there too...).

Strengths:
small package retractable zoom lens included accessories (in Canada) good sharpness and resolution functional software

Weaknesses:
inaccurate color balance ("ice cube" effect) limited flash range (don't get too close - don't step away too far...)

Similar Products Used:
Nikon Coolpix 990

Customer Service:
not used

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
3 Months

Summary:
takes great pictures. takes a while to get real good with it as it has a lot of features, so you have to keep the owners manual close by. takes a very sharp picture. you can even do landscapes with it.

Strengths:
excellent photo's . size, you can put it in your shirt pocket so no excuse for not having it with you.

Weaknesses:
if any, it is not very user friendly at first. however if you are patient and work with it, you will be glad you bought it.

Similar Products Used:
Epson pro 700

Customer Service:
have not had to use them so far.