Canon PowerShot A590IS 8MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
by Canon
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Our Price: $379.00 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $65.00 (click here) Category: Digital Camera See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Canon PowerShot A590IS 8MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
Customer Review: A nice, affordable camera with a diversity of options
Summary: 5 Stars
If you are looking for an affordable camera (in the $100-ish range) that can do a lot, then this unit may be for you.
When our last digital camera bit the dust after a long and productive life (an earlier generation Canon) we started looking for a replacement, and were extremely pleased to find this camera.
This is what I was looking for:
1) A camera with enough megapixels to be able to produce high quality images (this one has 8MP)
2) A camera with a viewfinder. Many cameras lack that feature, but I do much better by using a viewfinder than by using a digital display. The reason I prefer a viewfinder is that I have continuous focus lenses in my glasses, and it's tough for me to look at a digital display and simultaneously at my subject, but with a viewfinder that's not an issue. This camera has a good viewfinder.
3)I wanted a camera with a range of features. This one, of course, has several photo capabilities, plus video capabilities.
4) I wanted a camera that uses a standard sized battery so I can get replacement batteries wherever I go. This camera uses two AA batteries - so no problem there.
5) I wanted a camera that uses a standard SD card to store images, and this one does. That makes it EASY to upload images to my computer, and even to remove the SD card and plug that card directly into a digital photo frame, or into my TV which has a slot for an SD card.
6) I wanted a camera I could grip - and the shape of the camera allows that.
All in all, this is a great camera for family's and my camera needs.
Lest you think that this camera is the end all be all of cameras, it has are a few shortcomings. One such shortcoming is that the viewfinder does not have framing guides in it, so you have to guess at where the edges of the image will be. When you use the viewfinder the image captured will have more space around the edges than you can see through the viewfinder, especially if you happen to wear glasses, which make it more difficult to get your eye close to the viewfinder.
All in all, though, I think that this is definitely a 5-star camera for this price range. I don't think you will go wrong if you choose this camera for your snapshot photo needs.
Thanks Cannon! 5 stars all the way!
Customer Review: Super Easy to Use, Movie and Still Capability, NTSC Out
Summary: 5 Stars
This has got to be the easiest to use digital camera I have ever used. It does use regular AA batteries, which is a real plus when traveling. Cameras with special batteries can be a pain if you forget the charger, or run out of power in the middle of an event. It is very hard on those AA's, so I would budget in an AC adapter if you do indoor shooting. I have used the camera both for work projects to photo-document machines and testing, as well as fun events like car shows. It comes with optical and digital zoom, as well as the cool Macro mode (I keep calling it Flower Mode since that's the symbol on the button) which I use a lot in my work. An unusual COOL feature is the 1/8" phono jack which continuously outputs an NTSC signal which can be viewed on any standard TV with an RCA video input jack. You can go directly to VHS tape if you wanted to, or have a monitor running during your work to simplify aiming and shooting. I've not seen other cameras with that ability. The video capability is nice to have as well to make small movies. My favorite feature is the memory card. I upgraded to a high-speed SanDisk Ultra II 2GB card with 15MB/second rate to capture movies. Remember that not all SD cards are created equally. Think of it as the difference between USB 1 and USB 2. For video, it is best to get a high data rate card. The supplied SD card is very tiny at 32MB and slow. Be sure to budget in for a new SD card and possibly the AC adapter. The great thing about the card is that most Dell laptops now have an SD reader. I have one also in my desktop at home, so accessing photos IS A BREEZE!! NO SOFTWARE REQUIRED!! When they created these memory devices as "drives," that simplifies so much. It comes with software if you want it, but in my high-stress work environment, I need the pics and I NEED THEM NOW. Opening an explorer window is perfect. I can preview them as I scan down the list. I also recommend using the 640x480 size for easy drop-in into WORD documents. So many people leave the cameras on their default settings wihtout realizing that the huge file sizes clot up WORD documents without improving image quality. This is a great product; I'm very satisfied with it and it was very economical with a lot of features.Customer Review: Great camera for beginners as well as those with experience.
Summary: 5 Stars
I had a Nokia digital camera for a couple of years. I don't have much knowledge and wanted a camera where I could easily use the auto mode. Well, the pictures always came out too dark even when a flash was used. Luckily I dropped the camera and broke the lens for it made me do in depth research before I purchased this little gem of a camera.
I needed a workable camera for a New York City trip and I heard good things about Canon as well as this camera in particular. I am thrilled with my purchase. It is a small camera that is also very sturdy and an excellent piece of equipment. Many electronic items now come with cds to read the manual. This one actually came with many manuals and they were lenghthy and definitely user friendly. Everything is described in full detail from first set up of the camera to the great enhancement features this camera possesses.
But luckily for me I was able to go to New York and use the camera in the auto mode and it took amazing puctures whether it be day or night, cloudy or sunny. The detail is amazing and color is crisp. Whem I the pictures to mt computer again there were easy to follow instructions provided. Everything about this camera is A+ and I can't wait to explore the more advanced enhacements it has. No item is perfect and people are complaining about the battery life with the camera. I have had no such problem. I own a 4 AA battery rechargeable kit and I put freshly charged batteries into the camera and went 5 days, taking over 200 pictures without the batteries needing to be changed. Now 2 more weeks have gone by and those same batteries are running strong.
With so many oprtions out there with electronics it is very important to go by others experience using the item and really read their opinions to see what applies to you. For me this camera receives the highest grade. I can use the auto mode as I desire for perfect pictures and there are many great additional features to utilize as I progress as a photographer. I now also trust Canon and learned my lesson about Nokia. Canon is reliable and this product comes well packaged with all the instructions you need.
Highly recommend this superb digital camera.
Customer Review: More than your money's worth!
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this camera as a gift for my girlfriend because it satisfied my two main requirements: 1) it could be operated by someone who is not interested in learning the basics of camera design and features, and still produce reliable, quality photographs and 2) be capable of doing much more if one should so desire.
Apparently, the model one step down (the 580, I believe) is void of manual override controls, so for a small amount more one can get that capability in the 590. After using the camera for a few weeks I have determined that it actually does produce very sharp, nicely color toned pictures if you simply put it on AUTO or P, point, remember to hold the shutter half way down for a second to focus, and shoot. Perhaps learning when to force the flash to provide fill would be a handy, not too complicated step to learn, one which would greatly improve most backlit shots. I'm still trying to teach that :-) (it's only one button, hey!!)but I think I will eventually succeed. All in all, you can carry it anywhere and use it quickly and easily and without any real knowledge or skill manage to eke out a decent (if not really lovely) exposure.
If you understand something about how modern cameras are programmed, the manual controllability of this little demon will delight you. In bright light situations, it's a good thing to be able to use the traditional viewfinder which is not always provided these days in many other point and shoots. And if you wanted a quality shot, understanding how to use the many features intelligently, I think you will be amazed that the file produces such a high quality photograph. Five years ago it would have cost many hundreds more to achieve this quality, and now it's available for a pittance. Progress.
I haven't delved into the technical aspects of this camera here because I am assuming that most people who are looking for this kind of one would not be that interested. Suffice to say, this little camera does lots of stuff and it does it all with ease and grace and for a low price. Sounded good to me, and I'm glad I bought it. You could do different for the price, but not, I don't think, better. Highly recommended.
Customer Review: Great for What it Is
Summary: 5 Stars
This camera is a really cool cross-over device. It bridges the gap between a point and shoot camera and a DSLR camera. This is good for someone interested in photography, but not sure that it will become a passion. It allows you to shoot with an incredibly simple mode for quick snapshots of friends and family, but you can switch to the more advanced modes (including fully manual) for taking specific photographs. I often use the camera in "easy" mode for general picture taking, but then I switch it over to "manual" for shooting serious photographs.
Using the camera in "manual" mode is a bit annoying, because manual focus, aperture and shutter speeds need to be changed individually with the arrow buttons. This is fine when taking the time to compose photographs, but annoying when trying to capture carefully composed photos on the fly.
Having used this camera for about a year and a half at this point, I now have a much better understanding of what all the different factors of a photo are, and I have a very good idea of what I need in a higher-end camera when I upgrade in the future.
This camera is a bit bulky, but not nearly as bad as a full-sized DSLR. It's a good compromise for carrying manual features when you might not use them, such as hanging out with friends and not wanting to miss the chance for a great photo. I carry mine with a Gorrilla Pod, but the smallest size is really too small for this camera. It makes a really good (nearly) fully featured camera in a small package.
Battery life is dramatically improved (it becomes great!) by using rechargeable batteries instead of disposables. Otherwise, battery life bites.
Interface with a Mac is a bit annoying, but not an issue at all. You just have to do "image capture" under applications, and it will pull up a folder to transfer the pictures. You can also set it up to download straight into iPhoto without any problems. Windows the camera just pops up like any additional drive.
This camera is really a cool camera, and you can upgrade it with various add-on lenses. I highly recommend it if it does what you need.