The Canon PowerShot SD1100IS is the smallest in their latest line of optical stabalized digital camera.
The SD1100IS is really very small. It's equal to the size of my SD450 which came out 3-4 years ago. It's basically the same camera as that, but now with optical stabilization for clearer images, and some changes to the camera's body.
Like most Canon PowerShot Elphs from the past 3 years or so, they all come with basically the same features and functions. Once you know how to use one of them, you can pretty much figure out any other Canon Elph in a few minutes. After playing with the two other camreas I wish they would update their setup a bit and add more features.
Specs
- 8 megapixel sensor
- DIGIC III image processor
- 2.5" LCD
- 3x optical zoom lens with 35mm equivalent to 38-114mm
- Small and light weight - weights only 125g without battery
- Optical Image Stabilization (IS)
- Comes in 5 different colors - Rhythm & Blue, Swing Silver, Pink Melody, Bohemian Brown and Golden Tone.
In the Box
- Canon PowerShot SD1100IS
- NB-4L Lithium Ion Battery
- Wall Charger
- 32MB SD Card
- Wrist Strap
- USB Cable
- AV Cable
- Manuals and Software
Camera
I'm very used to using a Canon camera. My family has had an S230, G5, A85, and Canon SD450. Aside from the G5, all of them are pretty much the same to use as this camera. The functionality and ease of use has been great for the past 6 years, and it has changed. The menus are easy to go through, all the buttons are useful (except for maybe the direct print button). Like I said earlier, the PowerShot SD1100IS is an IS version of my SD450 - oh, and it also has the ability to use SDHC cards. It uses the same battery, the NB-4L which I'm happy with, so I don't have to go out and buy extra batteries. It's basically the same size and weight, and has the same zoom. Another upgrade is that there is a slight curve on the right of the camera for your finger. It feels more ergonomic. Like all the other Elphs, the lens is placed so your fingers won't get in the way of your shots. And of course, if you just want to preview pictures, you can just slide the selector to Preview, and you can view your pictures without the lens extending. Nikon please learn from this.
There are slight differences with the camera. For one, the zoom nub is a little bit smaller. The one thing I hate about this camera is that the buttons are flush with the cameras body. It makes people with fatter or bigger fingers have a hard time pressing the buttons.
I also like how the USB and AV cable are separate - and have different slots. I found it harder to plug in the other cables on the Nikon and Sony because you can't easily tell which way to plug in the cable. With this USB you can easily see from the shape which way to put it in. You also won't have a spare cable hanging off.
Functionality
There really isn't any ground breaking functionality on this camera. If you've owned a Canon PowerShot digital Elph - you pretty much get the same exact features. The one bonus is that you get an Optically stabilized lens for clearer pictures. It basically reduced the effect of camera shake, when your camera is hand held. This is a great feature especially because of how you hold a digital point and shoot. You normally hold it an arms length away from your body and look through the LCD. It's hard to be very still.
What you get with this camera are the basics. No super high ISO, that doesn't really matter. You get a bunch of scene modes. The ability to use Color Swap where you can make everything that is Red turn, say, blue. You have Color Accent where you can take a black and white picture, and only the Reds appear (you can choose which ever color you like). You get Photo Stitch where you can take panaromic shots. Sadly, you can only go left and right, and the reference points are solid - which makes it a bit more difficult to line up, but at least it has this feature. Then you have burst mode - which claims to be 1.3 FPS, but seems slower
Sadly, it is the same camera as before. I wish Canon would come up with something new. Although, it does take great features. And if you're not one to use a lot of different funcitons and you just like to point and shoot, this is a great camera.
Pros
- Very small and light weight
- Comes in a variety of colors. The pink really isn't that bright
- Optical IS
- Easy to use - especially if you've owned a Canon PowerShot Elph before
- 3 Level Battery Meter
Cons
- Same old camera - virtually no upgrades
- Buttons are harder to press
- Not a very wide lens
- Only 3x zoom
If you already own an Canon SD camera from the past year or two I wouldn't recommend getting this camera. The real advantage of this camera is that it is VERY small, and it also has optical image stabilization. But, for another $250 I wouldn't recommend it. It's not that much of an upgrade. It just doesn't have enough features to differentiate it from the other models. It has the minimal 3x zoom. Isn't that wide. A 2.5" screen. It is the base Canon SD camera though, so I guess I shouldn't expect too much out of it.
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