Canon PowerShot SD1100IS 8MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Gold)

I have had this camera for a few years now, and I'm not sure they even make this model anymore. That being said, it is still the best camera I have ever owned. I use it less now because I have an iPhone, but it still does quite a bit more than the iPhone. Namely, the zoom and the flexibility of the various settings. The iPhone is handy, but if I know I'm going to be taking photos, I take this camera. PROS 1. Size. It fits comfortably in my shirt pocket. Convenient to whip out when a photo op arises. Very important to me. 2. Easy to use and set up. With the auto flash, it is simply a point and shoot camera....after choosing the desired zoom. 3. Excellent image stabilization. Absolutely necessary after owning cameras that did not have it. 4. Surprisingly good photo quality for a compact point and shoot camera. Can't tell difference from my old SLR. 5. The biggest surprise of all was the excellent video quality. I remember paying over $1,000 for a VHS video camera many years ago, but this camera takes much better videos, with excellent sound to boot. Not to mention the huge increase in convenience. CONS 1. NONE. I strongly suggest getting a second battery. You'll be very upset if you don't have it when it's needed.....or wanted. I heartily recommend this camera.

After some delay by Amazon who never ship the extra battery which I bought together (Someone must be sleeping on duty!!!) and they took 8 days (instead of 2) for complete delivery with no compensation for delay. Why should I pay the school fees for Amazon's mistake (lesson)? Fortunately, the camera lives up to its expectation and the experiences is great so far. I have used many different cameras (Sony, Kodak SLR, Fujifilm etc) but needed a ultra-compact for daily job. First, I would like to highlight some weaknesses: 1) Mechanical Noise - whenever the button is pressed during photo taking, the motor starts working and there is some noise of adjustment inside. It is clearly audible if you are using the viewfinder. I wonder if it will shorten the lifespan of the camera? 2) Tower of light - when you try to take a shot at night with low visibility, you will notice vertical "tower of light" from bright road beam. Clearly, the ISO or IS cannot coordinate well. 3) The shutter lag - if you are taking shots between short intervals with flash, the waiting time may be significant if you are in a rush. 4) Weak flash - I simply cannot get a clear photo at night for a subject standing 10m away. 4m is reasonably ok. On the other hand, apply contrary thinking for battery life conversation 5) ISO 1600 - it is pushing to the limit and the noise level is too great to seriously put the photo into archive. ISO 800 is bad enough while 400 is ok. 6) Sensitive Mic - at night, the mic works perfectly but if there is 0.5m tailwind behind, you will hear hurricane during playback. Of course, I am asking for the moon. 7) 32MB - this is the joke for the day but without a memory card, you cannot even store 1 single shot. 8) Short battery life - common problem faced by other DSCs. 9) Face recognition - the menu describes chasing the faces by pressing the "print" button while depressing the button halfway. Hey, our fingers are flexible but they are not yoga trained (yet). On the features, I am impressed (besides the obvious DIS, slim and 8MB stories) with: 1) Stitch assist - this is wonderful but i have yet to try out piecing them back via software provided 2) Color switch - wonderful to highlight specific subject 3) Viewfinder - Yes, many are omitting this feature to cut cost. But this is the only way to make your battery lasts 2 times longer (in the event you forgot to take extra battery). 4) Video - Try it. This is one great reason to buy such ultra compact camera for carrying around. The video playback is excellent. 5) Reasonably priced - I bought at $213 but now it is $208. Are you waiting for $199? 6) Great for ladies.... On accessories, I strongly recommend the following: 1) Leather casing to protect knocking and scratches; 2) 4GB of memory (format using camera); 3) protective cover for the LCD; and 4) Photo bank with 80GB for video taking.

Pros: -compact and sturdy enough to hold and shoot without dropping. -Ideal for parents/elders who are not camera savvy -Excellent picture quality when compared to Nikon SD series and Sony coolpix series -looks stylish,esp. the gold color. -Image Stabilization really works! it is difficult to get a decent snap of my dog who never stays still and this time i got excellent shots with my cannon SD1100. -Lithium battery life is good and lasts for around 200+pics Cons: Flash setting are not accurate in certain light conditions. I ended up getting darker pics with flash on and vice-versa.(could have been my ignorance with the settings and I may have to read the manual again) -Battery/memory flap is very delicate,needs extra care while opening and closing. -takes more time to download the pics to the computer(I did not use the camera driver provided, I chose not to and it still worked) overall a good product for the money and the deal with the camera+memory worked out excellent

I currently own one 9 year old Olympus 3.75 MB digital camera (with an iffy macro), a Canon A620, but am now back to just the Canon S3 IS as my daily digital. However, I had a good experience with the S5 IS and so, when it came time to buy my wife her first camera (for her birthday) - even with 20 years' experience with Olympus SLRs and Zuiko lenses - I chose the Canon PowerShot SD1100IS 8MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Gold) , what I'm still calling an Elph. It's just easier. In showing her how to use it (the manual is twice the size of the one that came with my last computer), I fell in love with this little gem. It feels good. The LCD is big enough, but more important, the viewfinder is spot on. (It is not adjustable as is the S3 IS, but my wife doesn't need glasses.) 8MP is sufficient for casual photographers unless you're planning on printing billboard-size photos ... but then you wouldn't be a casual photographer. My wife wanted a camera to take picture of the grandkids and other family members (not that "other family members" become a secondary category once grandchildren arrive even though they do), but after taking a few picture of the dog, we went to San Francisco's Botanical Gardens. She took more than 200 pictures (ah, the difference between digital film) and, with no experience, came out with more than 40 fantastic shots including some macros that will certainly go into an album that she's now planning. I took another 100 photos around the local park and have posted them on my own "amateur" site where you can compare the four digital cameras I've now used for nature photography. The only feature that I would change IF it could be changed is to make the optical zoom 20x which, of course, is laughable in a tiny package such as this. The other features from macro to image stabilization are fantastic. There are many features which I'm sure my wife will never use, and there are some features the importance or value of which I've yet to figure out. Face detection is one, the print-share button (which gets you to buy a Canon printer, but also enables emailing photos), and to be honest, the LCD. Yes, when I got my Olympus in 2000, I loved the LCD. But within a month I found that, no matter how you set the display, about half the time you can't see the LCD clearly because of sunlight. But that's me. Most people I see using digital cameras use the LCD. All and all, this is just a great little camera with huge capabilities. If I wasn't afraid of missing a shot of a bird on my walks, I'd take my wife's camera instead of my S3. As I've said in all of my reviews of cameras, if you cannot focus, this camera will do that for you. If you cannot center a photo and come out with pictures of people without heads or other appendages, no camera will do that for you. Perhaps some people are born with composition and technique in their blood, and other just have a composition disability. If you fall into the latter category, read other reviews: maybe somebody has found the solution. Oh, and by the way, the gold SD1100IS takes much better pictures than the blue even though the blue is at times more expensive. Go figure.

I love this little camera!!! I have another one that is worn out. It goes to the snowy mountains, beach, camping, church, my garden...I've taken smashing photos with this indispensable little guy! Even landscapes in Glacier Nt.l park! Wish I could have an attachable long lens but it just does everything-Micro to mountains! Quality surpassing 5 other cameras! The best thing is it's size, it goes in a pocket with my cell phone and Nook, then I'm set to go anywhere. Having the charger and spare battery, and memory chip helps. I really like that you can change to sepia, B&W, and others. You can do videos, fast motion(kids and pets)portrait, night time and so many other things like F stops, and white balance in different situations. (I only wish it told me Before the battery was dead.) Buy it before they stop making it! Great lens.

One of the most unexpected, and awesome, features is its video capability. The camera puts out Motion JPEG (MJPG) videos at 640 x 480 resolution at 30 fps with a PCM S16 LE (araw) mono audio stream at a sample rate of 44100 Hz, 16 bits per sample. For a pocket-sized device, these videos are spectacular. I filmed two Rush concerts with it in addition to taking pictures and the audio was so good I ripped the tracks. Now I listen to them on my stereo. Another great part of this camera is its Digital Macro setting which takes high-quality close-ups 1.2 in (3 cm) from the lens. The snapshots taken with this quasi-microscopic setting are vivid and perfectly sharp. I have used the Digital Macro close-ups for artistic shots as well as practical applications, one of which was proving to an insurance company that a pipe burst in my home. The picture quality is already excellent on full auto, but the camera has a staggering number of options to customize your photographs. I read the manual cover to cover and I have never been unable to take the shot I want.

This is a great camera but after just 3 weeks of use the Lens Error, Start Camera message came up. It would not work after that. I love this camera but it's too expensive to be a disposable!

I own an Elph SD450 5MP, which I thought nothing could beat for the quality of pictures and movie clips it took. I ordered this one to update my camera and was not disappointed. Canon photos tend to be bluish or dark but that is easily corrected in the computer or with the camera settings. I was pleasantly surprised by the clarity of photos, particularly when using the standard zoom. I also like the movie mode which has been improved over my 450. I gave it 4 instead of 5 because I hoped it was more compact, but it is a tad thicker and bigger all around than the 450. Still, it's a great camera to keep in a purse or briefcase in case the perfect photo opportunity should present itself.