Canon PowerShot SX1 IS
Manufacturer: Canon USA Part number: 2664B001
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Exp. date: 12/31/2009
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- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Accessories
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- A top megazoom option, the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS offers a 20x zoom lens and HD video, which you can't get in a similarly priced dSLR, and delivers more features and slightly better performance and photo quality than the cheaper SX10 IS.
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CNET editors' review
Canon PowerShot SX1 IS price range: $514.00 - $599.99
- Reviewed by: Lori Grunin
- Reviewed on: 04/27/2009
- Released on: 03/15/2009
The good: Relatively fast; good HD video; raw file support.
The bad: Big; quirky interface; some image artifacts.
The bottom line: A top megazoom option, the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS offers a 20x zoom lens and HD video, which you can't get in a similarly priced dSLR, and delivers more features and slightly better performance and photo quality than the cheaper SX10 IS.
Would you pay as much for a megazoom as you would for a dSLR? That's the question you need to answer before plunking down the same amount of cash for the Canon PowerShot SX1 as you would for the EOS Rebel XS or the Nikon D60 with their 18-55mm lenses. Packing some higher-end features over its brother, the SX10 IS, including a CMOS sensor (albeit the same 1/2.3-inch size and 10-megapixel resolution), 30fps 1080p HD movie capture, and support for raw files, the SX1 delivers slightly better performance and image quality as well.
Physically, it's almost identical to the SX10, including the same 20x 28-560mm equivalent lens. It's equally comfortable to hold and shoot, retaining perks like the articulated LCD and four AA-powered operation. It's a little heavier, 1.5 pounds, which makes it feel like a dSLR, but the big grip gives you plenty of holding room. A button to jump into review mode sits near the indented thumb rest on the back, joined by the exposure compensation and focus area selection buttons. Because the SX1's body is matte black plastic, rather than the reflective graphite of the SX10, the light blue labels are easier to see.
On the right side of the back is a dial concentric to a four-way navigation switch with the function button in the middle. Although I generally like the controls, the dial feels too mushy; like the SX10's, it doesn't respond appropriately, as if it needs to spin too far or not as far for any given operation. As a result, for example, I frequently overshot desired shutter speeds. It really feels like it needs better tactile feedback. The zoom switch didn't feel terribly exact, either. This is a typical problem with stepped zooms (these lenses don't really cover a continuous zoom range, instead stopping at a series of preset distances).
Of course, the flip-and-twistable LCD remains a user favorite, and the SX1's is a wide-aspect 2.8-inch model compared with the 4:3 aspect 2.5-incher on the SX10. Keep in mind that when you're shooting photos at full resolution in 4:3 aspect, the effective image size of the LCD is as if it were a 2.5-inch model. Canon does use the extra area on the sides for displaying some information. Unfortunately, the electronic viewfinder isn't particularly great. It updates slowly and looks pretty coarse.
More annoyingly, the camera lacks a dedicated toggle between the LCD and EVF. Instead, you have to cycle through the four display settings: low-info LCD, detailed LCD, low-info EVF, detailed EVF. That makes it nearly impossible to quickly jump back and forth. Similarly, though there's a dedicated movie record button, moving between capturing HD movies and standard 4:3 stills can get confusing. You have to press a button to toggle between the two aspect ratio modes, and the camera captures in whatever your indicated settings are for that aspect ratio: press button for 16:9, start movie record, stop movie record, press aspect button, press shutter for photos. It sounds simple, but I frequently forgot to toggle the aspect ratio back after shooting a movie, and ended up shooting lower-resolution, wide-aspect stills. And raw isn't available in 16:9 mode, which can complicate mistakes like that. You should be able to set a movie size and only have to worry about pressing record. A final annoyance: it remembers all your settings when you power off except the current metering mode. None of these seriously detract from the overall usability of the camera, but forgetful shooters (like me) or infrequent ones might find themselves having a few more settings accidents than they'd like.
Though a movie mode remains on the dial, it's become rather superfluous; in addition to the dedicated button, Canon integrated the movie resolution settings into the function menu along with the standard white balance, color adjustment, exposure bracketing, flash compensation, metering, and still size and quality controls.
Some of the more novel features include a Face Self-timer, which shoots a specified number of seconds after a face is detected, and a custom timer, which lets you also specify the number of shots to take (sort of a limited intervalometer, since you can only take up to 10 shots). As with the SX10, this camera introduces Canon's Servo AF, the company's AF tracking mode. With this camera, since the continuous shooting is so slow, I find the Servo AF has too much time to get confused, and since EVFs black out when a shot's taken, you can't verify that it's focusing on the right thing; I have lots of in-focus fences and out of focus people in my test shots. (And lest you suggest I should have used the Face Detect AF, that doesn't work unless you're shooting faces looking at you, not moving crowd shots.) I find the Servo AF less than useful since EVFs black out when a shot's taken so you can't verify that it's focusing on the right thing. The rest of the capabilities, for the most part, are the same as the competition. These include PASM, full auto, and a handful of scene modes; my favorites are a custom setting slot on the mode dial and 3.9-inch macro and zero(!)-inch Super Macro modes. (Need more details about the standard feature set? Check out the PDF manual.)
Overall, the SX1 delivers excellent performance, especially for a category notable for sluggish products. It wakes and shoots in 1.4 seconds, and under optimal focusing circumstances can lock and shoot in 0.4 second. Even under harder to focus, low-contrast conditions, it takes only 0.6 second. Shot-to-shot JPEGs typically take 2.8 seconds, and raw is even faster at 2 seconds. While its 2.9 frames-per-second burst can't beat the ultra-high-speed continuous shooting of models like the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX1 or the Casio Exilim EX-FH20, it's still very good for its class. And it can burst raw at about 1.5fps. My only caveat about the camera's performance is from a repeated, but unfortunately not repeatable, problem with the AF system I experienced, in which it would indicate focus had been locked even though the scene was completely out of focus.
Generally, photo quality tends to be the weakest aspect of megazooms, but so far the SX1 seems to deliver the best for its class. While its colors aren't quite as good as the SX10's--oranges, yellows, reds, and purples are slightly off, though you probably couldn't tell without a side-by-side comparison--it has a better tonal range with less contouring in shadow areas. It has a better noise profile, with lower noise at all ISO levels, and without the blue channel artifacts I noticed in the SX10's photos. However, as with most models at this level, detail becomes visibly degraded at ISO 400 and beyond. It's pretty sharp, but by the numbers it fares worse than the SX10 for sharpness; I attribute this to some visible haloing in the blue channel I saw in the test charts.
The camera retains the separated stereo mics of its ancestors and can zoom--pretty quietly--during recording. And the video quality is quite nice--relatively sharp and saturated, with fast refocusing and exposure adjustment--especially played back on a large TV.
Though it's as big as and priced like a cheap dSLR, the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS delivers similar performance plus a 20x zoom lens and HD video that those can't provide. And while it's relatively expensive for its class and has some interface quirks, as long as you don't need ultra-high-speed burst shooting, it's probably the best megazoom option we've tested thus far.
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
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Time to first shot | |
Typical shot-to-shot time | |
Shutter lag (dim) | |
Shutter lag (typical) |
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
User reviews
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Lots of bang for your buck.
Pros: Lots of manual controls, RAW, Fantastic Videos
Cons: Should try not to use ISO over 400 if possible, gets a little grainy.
Summary: I bought this camera about one month ago at BUYDIG.com before Costco had it in stock. I extensively researched and checked all other website reviews. This camera was rated ...
Summary: I bought this camera about one month ago at BUYDIG.com before Costco had it in stock. I extensively researched and checked all other website reviews. This camera was rated at or near the top for superzooms everywhere I looked. I have had a few other digital cameras prior to this one, and by far this camera blows away the others. Outside in daylight the pictures are crisp, sharp, and colorful. Once in a while the focus is off, but you can usually see that before taking the picture, and re-focus. I really put this camera to the test when I took pictures at the Paul McCartney concert at Citi-Field at night. From about two hundred yards away, in the low light, using a combination of manual and pre set settings, I was able to take over a hundred pictures that were nothing short of amazing. The 20X zoom is phenomenal. When I printed some of my pictures and cropped them, I was able to see the bands faces close up as if I were sitting in the first few rows. I tried not to use over ISO 400 as most of the reviews discussed at higher ISO?s the pictures become a little to grainy. I will agree with that review. But if I was able to take the pictures at this concert at ISO 400 and under and get the results I did, I don?t see that being a problem. The amount of manual control you have with this camera is tremendous, and at the same time you can put it in auto and ?point and shoot?. And another thing, last year I spent one thousand dollars on a Sony hard drive HD video Camera with six megapixel photo capability. After seeing the video (HD and regular) this camera can take, I will be putting my video up for sale on Craig?s list in the near future. No more carrying two cameras around anymore. OH and Did I mention that while you are taking a video, if you happen to see a must have picture, you can take a still picture at the SAME time as the video is running?WOW!!
Before this purchase I was thinking of getting a digital SLR, but after reading the reviews and now seeing for myself what this camera is capable of, I cannot see why anyone other than a true professional photographer, would need any other camera but this one.4 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Bad CMOS design flaw
by biffer1 on August 12, 2009
Pros: Nice HD video, that is about all.
Cons: POOR still images all modes. Canon is still selling this camera with flaws as many CMOS drivers have failed on a brand new camera.
Summary: I returned my camera to the vendor as I will not tolerate a sub standard product that is a known issue especially from Canon who will not admt the SX1 ...
Summary: I returned my camera to the vendor as I will not tolerate a sub standard product that is a known issue especially from Canon who will not admt the SX1 IS needs to be removed from the shelf due to failing parts.
Lousy design with the CMOS drivers...BEWARE.
Updated on Aug 12, 20092 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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It's a Point & Shoot...
by irocjbl on August 6, 2009
Pros: Macro, Super Macro, HD video.
Cons: Image Quality isn't up to par but it is a Point & Shoot. I guess I'm expecting too much from it. I have a Canon 5D and the images from that are outstanding but it also a DSLR.
Summary: Want some quick killer HD video then this is and camera for you. If you are looking for excellent image quality you will be disappointed. I hate shooting in auto ...
Summary: Want some quick killer HD video then this is and camera for you. If you are looking for excellent image quality you will be disappointed. I hate shooting in auto mode but with this camera you basically have to to get a good image.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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ALL-IN-ONE HD 10MP 20X SPECTACULAR CAMERA by Canon USA!
by marudas101 on May 17, 2009
Pros: This camera does everything: click auto or go deep into its broad menu, including face detection, raw, hd video, image stabilizer, custom, hot shoe, 80x total zoom (crazy and pure focused) WOW!!! and much more! Lightning fast at all aspects!
Cons: NONE......................
Summary: ALL-IN-ONE HD 10MP 20X SPECTACULAR CLEAR, FAST CAMERA by Canon USA !
Summary: ALL-IN-ONE HD 10MP 20X SPECTACULAR CLEAR, FAST CAMERA by Canon USA !
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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The best price class for quality
by Cremandon on April 26, 2009
Pros: not heavy, very compact size. Unbeatable price.
Cons: Opening digital / HDMI small cover. Too small for me.
Summary: Settings are very easy and clear comparing to many other digital cameras. I've been anti-Canon for long time. I was wrong. I used to have Sony before this one. ...
Summary: Settings are very easy and clear comparing to many other digital cameras. I've been anti-Canon for long time. I was wrong. I used to have Sony before this one. This was my best-ever-purchase to change to Canon. Price, quality, functions all happily married. Highly recommended.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Outstanding all-purpose still & video camera
by middlebass on September 18, 2009
Pros: Incredible flexibility in tough shooting situations. Love the powerful zoom combined with great image stabilization, for both stills and video
Cons: Would like a manual zoom. The power zoom controls aren't sensitive enough, especially when I want to zoom slowly or just a little bit. Also, image is unexpectedly coarse at even moderately high ISOs.
Summary: As a fairly serious amateur photographer, this camera is what I have with me when I don't have my EOS 5D. I bought it mostly for stills, planning to ...
Summary: As a fairly serious amateur photographer, this camera is what I have with me when I don't have my EOS 5D. I bought it mostly for stills, planning to use t only occasionally for videos, but having a great video camera built in has allowed me capture wonderful moments that I wasn't expecting to. I shoot stills only in RAW, and wish Adobe camera Raw would finnaly support this camera!!! The next update probably will.
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seems to be Gorgeous
by onhario on September 4, 2009
Pros: well as i see it is supplied with most needed functions including CANON quality
full HD by the way is good optionCons: thinking what to add, well may be uncomfortable design as CANON rarely pays attention to design but keeps quality
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I am going to keep the camera for years to come.
by silversr4 on August 8, 2009
Pros: love the 20X Zoom, HD video and all the exposure options.
Cons: If you have big hands or thick big fingers give it a trial at your favorite camera store and make sure you can operate the camera with ease
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Great camera for the money
Pros: 20X with IS, Full HD res., CMOS, 2.8" LCD screen, image quality is great + RAW capable, IS function works well, f/2.8-5.7 max, nicely built
Cons: + AA batteries (even no rechargeable batteries included, just one-time use ones)
+ No HDMI cable provided
+ Raw not available in 16:9 imageSummary: In brief, 4.5 stars given - Canon should listen much more from users
by hcongthanh@...
+/- US$ 500 for this nice camera is worth
Updated on Jul 3, 2009Summary: In brief, 4.5 stars given - Canon should listen much more from users
by hcongthanh@yahoo.com
+/- US$ 500 for this nice camera is worth
Updated on Jul 3, 2009 -
BEST SUPER ZOOM CAM ON THE MARKET
by PhillyDog1958 on June 30, 2009
Pros: HD video recording, Powerful lens (wide angle to zoom) and runs off AA batteries, which are easy to find.
Cons: Very pricey . . .
Summary: I recently purchased hti camera for an upcoming Jamaica trip. I've always been a Canon guy. I owned the old AE-1 and I owned an SX1, which is an ...
Summary: I recently purchased hti camera for an upcoming Jamaica trip. I've always been a Canon guy. I owned the old AE-1 and I owned an SX1, which is an earlier version of this this model. I also own a Canon, Delphi, which I carry in my brief case for work purposes. II trust the Canon name and afer this purchase, I continue to trust Canon. The camera is currently only available at specific small camera shops that Canon is allowing to carry. Best Buy and some of the larger electronic stores do not have it as of the time of this writing. At $599, you're right there within the price range of some DSLR's. What hooked me was trhe HD video capability. I suggest you read the many reviews on the SX1 is and possibly go to Canon's website to find a dealer who has it in stock. before buying, go pay them a visit and test it.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Canon USA
- Part number: 2664B001
- Bottom Line: A top megazoom option, the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS offers a 20x zoom lens and HD video, which you can't get in a similarly priced dSLR, and delivers more features and slightly better performance and photo quality than the cheaper SX10 IS.
General
- Product Type Digital camera - Compact
- Width 5 in
- Depth 3.5 in
- Height 3.5 in
- Weight 1.3 lbs
Main Features
- Resolution 10 megapixels
- Color Support Color
- Optical Sensor Type CMOS
- Total Pixels 11,600,000 pixels
- Effective Sensor Resolution 10,000,000 pixels
- Light Sensitivity ISO 80, ISO 100, ISO 200, ISO 400, ISO 800, ISO 1600, ISO auto, ISO 3200 (2Mpix)
- Digital Zoom 4 x
- Shooting Modes Frame movie mode
- Shooting Programs Snow, Beach, Macro, Indoor, Sunset, Foliage, Aquarium, Fireworks, Landscape, Color swap, Night scene, Sports mode, Color accent, Slow shutter, Portrait mode, Stitch assist, Night snapshot, High sensitivity
- Special Effects Sepia, Vivid, Neutral, Vivid Red, Vivid Blue, Vivid Green, Black & White, Custom Effect, Positive Film, Darker Skin Tone, Lighter Skin Tone
- Image Stabilizer Optical
- Image stabilizer feature Optical stabilization helps prevent blurry pictures, especially for handheld cameras at slow shutter speeds or when using high optical zoom.
- Max Shutter Speed 1/3200 sec
- Min Shutter Speed 15 sec
- Exposure Metering Spot, Evaluative, Center-weighted
- Exposure Modes Manual, Program, Automatic, Shutter-priority, Aperture-priority
- Exposure Compensation ±2 EV range, in 1/3 EV steps
- Auto Exposure Bracketing 3 steps in 1/3 EV step
- AE/AF Control FlexiZone
- Face Detection Yes
- White Balance Custom, Presets, Automatic
- White Balance Presets Flash, Cloudy, Daylight, Fluorescent, Tungsten light, Fluorescent light (warm white)
- Digital Video Format H.264
- Still Image Format JPEG
- Remote Control Camera remote control - Infrared
- TV Tuner None
- Video Capture H.264 - 1920 x 1080, H.264 - 640 x 480, H.264 - 320 x 240
Memory / Storage
- Supported Flash Memory MultiMediaCard, SD Memory Card
- Floppy Drive None
- Digital Storage Media None
- Image Storage Normal, Fine JPEG 3648 x 2736, Super-fine JPEG 2816 x 2112, RAW JPEG 2272 x 1704, JPEG 1600 x 1200, JPEG 640 x 480, JPEG 3840 x 2160, JPEG 1920 x 1080
Camera Flash
- Camera Flash Pop-up flash
- Flash Modes Auto mode, Fill-in mode, Slow synchro, Flash OFF mode, Rear curtain sync, Red-eye reduction
- Red Eye Reduction Yes
- Effective Flash Range 1.6 ft - 15.7 ft
- Features AF illuminator, Flash +/- compensation
Lens System
- Type Zoom lens - 5 mm - 100 mm - F/2.8-5.7
- Focal Length 5 mm - 100 mm
- Focal Length Equivalent to 35mm Camera 28 - 560 mm
- Focus Adjustment Manual, Automatic
- Auto Focus TTL contrast detection
- Min Focus Range 19.7 in
- Macro Focus Range 0-50cm
- Lens Aperture F/2.8-5.7
- Optical Zoom 20 x
- Zoom Adjustment Motorized drive
- Lens Construction 11 group(s) / 13 element(s)
- Lens Manufacturer Canon
- Features UD glass, Aspherical lens, Ultrasonic Motor (USM)
Additional Features
- Self Timer Yes
- Self Timer Delay 2 sec, 10 sec
- Flash Terminal Hot shoe
- Additional Features Safety zoom, DPOF support, Direct print, Face detection, Audio recording, Focus bracketing, Cropping an image, Histogram display, Resizing an image, Diopter adjustment, Exif Print support, PictBridge support, 16:9 widescreen mode, In-camera red-eye fix, USB 2.0 compatibility, Digital image rotation, Digital tele-converter, Digital noise reduction, RGB primary color filter, Display brightness control, Motion Detection Technology, Camera orientation detection
Viewfinder
- Viewfinder Type LCD
- Viewfinder Color Support Color
- Viewfinder Diagonal Size 0.4 in
- Viewfinder Resolution 148,000 pixels
Display
- Type LCD display - TFT active matrix - 2.8 in - Color
- Display Form Factor Rotating
- Display Format 230,000 pixels
Digital Player (Recorder)
- Type None
Microphone
- Type Microphone - Built-in
- Microphone Operation Mode Stereo
Connections
- Connector Type 1 x USB, 1 x HDMI, 1 x Composite video/audio output
- Expansion Slot(s) 1 x SD Memory Card
Software
- Software Canon PhotoStitch, Canon ImageBrowser, Drivers & Utilities, Canon ZoomBrowser EX
System Requirements for PC Connection
- Operating System Support MS Windows Vista, MS Windows XP SP2, Apple Mac OS X 10.4 or later
- Peripheral Devices USB port, XGA monitor, CD-ROM drive
- System Requirements Details Windows XP SP2 - Pentium - 256 MB, Windows Vista - Pentium - 512 MB, MacOS X 10.4 - PowerPC G4 - 256 MB, MacOS X 10.5 - PowerPC G4 - 512 MB
Miscellaneous
- Included Accessories Lens cap, Lens hood, Neck strap
- Cables Included 1, 1 x A/V cable, USB cable
Battery
- Supported Battery AA
- Supported Battery 4 x AA Alkaline battery ( Included ), 4 x AA NiMH rechargeable battery ( Optional )
Manufacturer Warranty
- Service & Support 1 year warranty
Environmental Parameters
- Min Operating Temperature 32 °F
- Max Operating Temperature 104 °F
- Humidity Range Operating 10 - 90%
Accessories
Manufacturer info
- Canon USA
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Canon USA products on Shopper.com
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- Website: http://estore.usa.canon.com/
- Address:
One Canon Plaza, Lake Success, NY 11042 - Phone: 516-328-5000
- Email: mediacontact@cusa.canon.com
