Canon Powershot S50 Digital Camera [5MP 3xOptical]

Housed in a mostly metal casing, the Canon Powershot S50 is turned on via a sliding lens protector that in turn allows the 3x optical zoom to pop out and the large and clear 1.5 LCD monitor to fire into action. There are over 10 buttons on the back of the camera alone, allowing you to easily change everything from white balance to reviewing images.

The jog wheel on top gives access to the many options including Night Scene, Fast Shutter, Slow Sync and Program and shows how serious this camera is when it comes to taking pictures. Better still is the quick access function button on the rear of the camera that allows you to access White Balance, Drive Mode, ISO, Effect, Flash and image size settings all at the press of a button.

Power is delivered via a Li-ion Canon rechargeable battery pack and the camera is shipped with a 32 MB Compact Flash Card enabling you to store images. A 3x optical zoom offers 38-105 mm equivalent for a 35 mm camera and this added to the 4x digital zoom gives you plenty of scope. F range is F2.8--F4.9, and focusing is managed via a whole host of options: nine-point AiAF, one-point AF (any position), AF lock, Focus bracketing, AF assist beam (on/off) and Manual Focus.

Picture quality, as with all Canon cameras, is very strong, detailed and well balanced. You would expect this from a five-megapixel model, but everything here seems to gel. Colours are crisp, white's well defined and skin tones very clear. The host of focusing options only help in creating better pictures. While the pre-programmed settings get you out of trouble if you're not sure what to manually set up.

Overall this is a very good camera that's only let down by the positioning of the review button. The picture quality is very good and the functions that the camera offers are extensive. For this too really be treated as a high-end camera it should have a hot shoe function, but then that's what the G3 and new G5 are there for. If you are looking for a good field camera and are at that stage where you want all the functionality of a high-end camera without the size, then this certainly does the job. --Jason Denwood

Manufacturer's Description
Stylish, pocket size fully featured digital camera. With 13 flexible shooting modes and new Canon technologies, this is the ideal camera for taking photos in all situations. The PowerShot S50 is a versatile digital camera featuring a high quality 5.0-megapixel CCD and 3x optical zoom lens. Although stylish and compact, the features of this camera are aimed at advanced amateur users with 13 shooting modes and full manual controls for exposure and focusing.The PowerShot S50 incorporates a high resolution CCD sensor with 5.0 effective megapixels (approximately 5.3 megapixels in total). This sensor allows the camera to capture still images as large as 2592x 1944 pixels and movies as large as 320 x 240 pixels. The PowerShot S50 features a highly compact and sharp 3x optical zoom lens with a focal length of 35-105mm (35mm equivalent). The lens features a maximum aperture of f2.8 (wide angle) to f4.9 (telephoto). RAW mode allows you to obtain original image data, recording the image direct from the CCD without any image processing. The PowerShot S50 has 13 shooting modes, which can be selected from a mode dial on the top of the camera, including full manual controls, and a 'Custom' mode enabling you to set and save the camera parameters. The PowerShot S50 incorporates the DIGIC processor for even better color reproduction.The PowerShot S50 supports PTP, a standard protocol. This allows driver-less image communications with computers when combined with recent operating systems (Windows XP or Mac OS). A computer using this system will automatically select the correct drivers for the camera without needing to install them. On older operating systems a driver is still required to be installed. The PowerShot S50 is equipped with Direct Print which allows easy high-quality printing by simply connecting the camera via a cable to a CP-100 Card Photo printer or to the range of bubble jet direct printers. When the PowerShot S50 is connected to the CP-100, bordered or borderless prints can be selected and a trimming function allows a portion of a picture to be expanded and printed. Simple and quick direct printing is possible with the dedicated Card Photo Printers, producing images of 300 x 300 dpi on a credit card size or 4 x 6" print. The PowerShot S50 is compatible with Bubble Jet Direct Printers connecting direct via a cable and controlled by the camera through the direct print screen. Images can be printed onto A4 size paper to 6" x 4" sized paper.

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• Electronics & Photo > Photography > Digital Cameras > 5 to 5.9 Megapixel