Canon PowerShot SX120IS 10MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Images Stabilized Zoom and 3 inch LCD
– 10.0 Megapixels- 10x optical zoom with optical image stabilizer-3.0 LCD- DIGIC(R) 4 image processor-Smart auto intelligently selects the proper setting for the camera based on 22 predefined shooting situations-Easy mode takes the guess work out of the equation by determining the right shooting mode for the situation- Requires AA batteries
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Fantastic Camera for all Users
A wonderful camera, despite the user’s skill level.
Because of the size and weight, the portability isn’t exactly optimized, but it’s far better than carrying around a full size professional SLR.
Pictures are of amazing quality- don’t bother spending an extra $50-$75 for two more mega pixels! The zoom is wonderful- it’s a great camera. I’m very happy with it, and recently bought it to take it with me to a 5 week study abroad trip in London. It never let me down!
Another great feature is that the camera has a setting where the front display tells you how many pictures it has left on the memory card based on what setting you’re using.
IMAGE STABILIZATION is a life saver- especially for a traveller- and nearly guarantees a great picture every time. Easy to use camera- you turn it on and within seconds you know how to use it.
3 Stars Very pleased with picture quality – until it broke!
This camera produced some beautiful pictures for me…but then it broke after less than two weeks of heavy use. So it gets three stars.
Despite it’s early demise, this camera and I took about 600 pictures at different settings and got to know each other quite well.
Dislikes:
- Bulky and heavy. There is no way to comfortable carry this camera around and still have it readily available, unless you hang a case around your neck or on you belt. Compared to other digital cameras, this puppy is huge!
- No decent dynamic range compensation. If you’re background is very bright, don’t try to take pictures of dark subjects. Also, I found it impossible to take good pictures of people wearing baseball-style hats in bright sunlight, because the camera either the face was too shadowed to recognize or the highlights were completely blown out.
- In program mode, the camera always defaults back to the ‘center averaged’ exposure control setting, which sucked when taking high-contrast photos. Using ‘spot metering’ was the only way I could get acceptable shots of people and bright backgrounds.
- No zoom during video. I’ve owned other a-series before, and this has always been an annoyance. I was able to take some good video of a helicopter as it landed, but it took about six tries. Also, camera shake is pretty bad during the video without having some kind of object to stabalize your hand on.
- No wide angle lens. Really missed this during group shots.
- Durability. After less than a month of ownership, the camera simply froze. I couldn’t get the screen to turn on or the lens to retract. This is the second time a canon has done this to me, and the last time I will be buying one for the foreseeable future. To be fair, it did experience some hot and dusty conditions, but my Panasonic has been through similar conditions and three years later still works just fine.
Likes:
- At its best, this camera took pictures to rival a DSLR. Seriously, I took pictures alongside another person with a Canon Rebel, and our pictures came out very similar. We even switched cameras for a bit and the only real improvement I noticed was the almost instantaneous focusing speed of the rebel. Reviewing the images, I also noticed that the rebel produced a very nice background blur for portrait shots, while the background remained sharp for the A120IS. But at a $800 price difference, I was very happy with my camera. Also, its smaller size meant that I caught more spontaneous shots than her because I could carry my camera with me everywhere.
- AA batteries. I spent two weeks with no electricity and never had to worry. This camera ate a set of batteries every day and a half, but I brought about a million AA’s so it wasn’t a problem. It also accounts for most of the bulk of the camera, but it was worth it to be able to take as many pictures as I wanted.
- Fast. From sitting in my helmet on the ground, to taking a very nice picture of a fire truck speeding by was just a few seconds. I never missed a shot because the camera wasn’t fast enough.
- Long zoom. With the lens fully extended, this camera picked up on slightly more details than I could see with my naked eye. There was also no distortion at all.
- Decent low-light photography. This camera had a hard time with multiple fast-moving subjects under florescent lights, but that is very forgivable. Otherwise, it performed relatively well in dim lighting conditions.
Overall, I was very happy with this camera. For a very low price, it took some gorgeous pictures. It’s definitely fighting above it’s weight class. Yes, you make some trade offs, but if you’re looking for something cheap, AA battery powered that still takes good pictures, I would highly recommend this camera to you.
I would say this camera’s ideal use is as a back-up camera or as a vacation camera. Just don’t expect it to last.
5 Stars I LOVE THIS CAMERA!!!!!
I just received this yesterday. Was out yesterday and today testing it out. Replaced it with an old canon s400 which was great so I figured Canon was the way to go. The Zoom works great and the pictures in high resolution are lifelike. Can’t comment on battery life yet but I have taken a couple hundred pictures at least on the original batteries that came with camera. Went and bought the Sanyo Eneloop 4 Pack AA NiMH Pre-Charged Rechargable Batteries w/ Charger from amazon since battery life seemed to be lacking from previous reviews. All I can really say is this is the best camera I have ever used and I thank God that I was born at a time of such great technological advances.
3 Stars Doesn’t replace Powershot S2 IS
I purchased this PowerShoot SX120IS to replace my Powershot S2 IS, which functioned very well for me but started using batteries at a prodigious rate. The “upgrade” was less than satisfactory.
1) Shape & size: The shape and smaller size of the SX120 do not allow me to get a firm and comfortable grasp of the camera with my left hand.
2) Weight: I prefer the additional weight of the S2, suspecting that I had less camera shake.
3) Viewfinder: I have never had a camera until now without a viewfinder. I thought I could adjust to its lack in the SX120, but this is like waking up in the morning with my right arm missing. Well, perhaps a touch of hyperbole.
4) LCD monitor. The larger LCD monitor on the SX120 is fun, and makes messages easy to read. The monitor on the S2, however, could swing out and swivel up or down, making it ideal for shots in a crowd with the camera above the head or a horizontal shot in the wetlands at ground level.
5) Neck strap: The S2 had two eyelets for a neckstrap, which was ideal for the way I used the camera–hands free until I needed the camera, but the camara immediately accessible. The SX120 has only one eyelet for a small hand strap, requiring one hand to hold the camera, or requiring the camera to be tucked into a case.
6) User manual: I referred to the substantial user manual for the S2 often enough that I packed it in the camera case. The user manual for the SX120 is only online.
The functions for the two cameras are similar but not identical, and the ways of accessing them are sufficiently alike that the transition from the S2 to the SX120 was smooth. The Easy mode of the SX120 is a handy way for another family member to use the camera without giving detailed instructions.
I’ll get along with this camera, but for things that are important to me, this is a downgrade. I wish that I had researched this purchase more thoroughly.
5 Stars Canon PowerShot SX120IS 10MP Digital Camera
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September 28, 2010 5:53 pm | 
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