Canon PowerShot SD800 IS 7.1MP Digital Elph Camera with 3.8x Wide Angle Image-Stabilized Optical Zoom
by Canon
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List Price: Buy Used: from $60.00 (click here) Category: Digital Camera See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Canon PowerShot SD800 IS 7.1MP Digital Elph Camera with 3.8x Wide Angle Image-Stabilized Optical Zoom
Customer Review: A remarkable little camera
Summary: 5 Stars
This is my third Canon Powershot (the others are the 110 and the 260). I like all three of them and have been very satisfied with the image quality and the reliability of the older two, which played a large role in choosing this model. Digital camera technology has advanced so rapidly that this model has capabilities far beyond those of the earlier two.
Pros:
Image stabilization: works well, makes it possible to take hand-held photos of still subjects in low light without flash.
Autofocus on faces: I thought this would turn out to be a useless gimmick, but (surprisingly) it actually works. When enabled, the camera looks for faces and draws rectangles on the LCD viewfinder around those it finds; it then focuses on those portions of the image.
Excellent 30 fps 640x480 movies, which can be as long as memory allows.
Can also film 60 fps at 320x240, for slow-motion playback.
Truly pocket-sized ("the best camera is the one in your pocket, not the one you left at home")
Replaceable rechargable battery with compact multivoltage charger included.
Larger-than-usual zoom range, including medium-wide angle.
Long exposures possible for nighttime photography (not long enough for most astronomical photography, though).
Fast boot time, unnoticeable shutter latency, short recycle time -- the first digital camera I've had that doesn't keep me waiting.
Cons:
No raw mode (JPEG stills and AVI movies only).
Battery and charger are not compatible with older Canon Powershot cameras.
Controls are small and a bit awkward for adult-sized fingers. The very lucky kid who gets one of these would probably not have a problem.
I would love to see a compact digital camera with a bounce flash ... the flash on this camera (like others) produces harsh, flat light and red eye and has a very limited range. A wireless slave flash is available but (according to what I've read) only works when the builtin flash is on.
An underwater housing (Canon WP-DC9) will be available soon (yay!) but at a price not much below that of the camera (boo!). I would love to see a rainproof compact digital camera that could survive an occasional dunking, without an expensive and bulky housing.
Most of the case is metal, but one end (including the battery/flash card cover) is plastic, and in my judgement, this will require careful handling to avoid breakage. This is a step back from the earlier Powershots I've used, which have robust metal cases that can tolerate occasional clumsiness.
Customer Review: Best Digital Point and Shoot I've EVER Used
Summary: 5 Stars
I've owned this little guy for about 4 days now and it is the most fun I've had with a digital point and shoot! I did some research before my purchase and was primarily interested in the Image Stabilization.
OH MY GOD!
All point and shoots should have this awesome Canon IS lens! I've taken over 700 pics so far and it's a rare case to have a blurry image. I can press the shutter button down half way to autofocus and then do the full step to take a picture and then release the button only half way to maintain the previous focus. Doing this, I can take almost 2 pictures a second! I've read about some people getting 'dust' or 'ghosts' with some high ISO shots, but so far I haven't noticed anything but incredibly clear pics. Night shots are just GORGEOUS. If you set it up on a little $10 tabletop tripod and aim it almost anything at night outside, then set it for 3 to 8 seconds of exposure, the PICTURES WILL LOOK FANTASTIC! Such a big aperture on this camera. Sounds great, yeah? Well, there's more! Canon's newest Digic III processor will boot this camera up and allow you to take a picture in about 1 second (I had my gf time it with a stop watch and it's factual). That is just amazing to me! My old Canon S45 took at least 5 seconds. When you aim at someone's face and the face detect is 'ON', it's really cool to watch, because it puts the subject's face in brackets so you KNOW that its working (up to 7 faces!). This is a quality product and I'm looking forward to capturing important memories on my trip to Holland in a week. When you do get this camera (not if!), you MUST get a case. And it MUST be hard or semi hard and leather.. well, its just a personal preference really. You also MUST get a screen protector. NOT OPTIONAL.
OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS:
I am going to Holland in a week with my GF, so I got some extra SD cards for it: Transcend 4 GB 150X, Corsair 2 GB 133X, 3 Kingston 2 GB (not sure of the speed). With the Kingston cards, I can take almost 2 pictures a second without flash. NO JOKE. Same thing with the other cards, too, but I'm still in awe with how well this camera performs. I also ordered some extra chinese LN-B5's and they seem to work OK so far. I didn't want to chance it, though, so I also ordered the Tekkeon MP3300 and the Tekkeon MP1500, WOW! You could hook the 1500 up to your cell and get almost 6 hours of TALK TIME! Literally! IT USES 4 AA's! Look it up! If you're into digiscoping, you'll have to get a universal mounting bracket, cuz the SD800 doesn't have a thread mount yet (as far as I know).
I hope you get this camera, because you'll have a lot of fun! Your GF will like it, too!
Customer Review: Amazon customer service is stellar!
Summary: 5 Stars
The purpose of my review is not for this product itself, but for Amazon's stellar customer service. I just felt it necessary to post a testimony. I'm just an average online consumer who occasionally orders products online. I have no affiliation with Amazon; nor do I know anyone who works for them. I have enough experience with online shopping to see differences in customer service.
With Amazon, I've ordered products ranging from books, electronics, small appliances, and "other". I've never had a problem with security with my credit card. And all the products that I've ordered from Amazon, whether direct from them, or, was forwarded to an associate of theirs, arrived on my doorstep on time or rather, more typically, ahead of the estimated delivery dates INCLUDING DURING THE MAD RUSH OF THE HOLIDAYS!
For the products that I have ordered through Amazon, I have also experienced the value (cost savings). I can state that fact because I have performed in-depth research on the products that I have purchased before I hit the "OK" button.
After I order my items, Amazon emails "status" notifications. I can also log in and check the status of my order anytime that I want.
Only once, I needed to return an item to Amazon at no fault of theirs; I had ordered the wrong item. I returned the item unopened, completely in the same condition as they had sent it to me, and then ordered the item that I really wanted. Amazon credited my account within 3 business days of receipt of my returned item. And, I was delighted they credited me back the cost that I paid out of my pocket for shipping the item back to them. There was a minor hiccup with the return where initially Amazon thought that I had used one of their prepaid labels to ship the item to them. When I emailed them explaining the mixup, within 24 hours, they emailed me a formal apology and adjusted my account.
I realize that each circumstance is looked at by Amazon, as they do have return policies in place. And perhaps as you read my testimony you are muttering something different. I can only account for my experience with them.
If you are in doubt of ordering anything online through Amazon, you can be sure that they are stellar in customer service. In my experience of dealing with various online and various in-store customer service, I honestly thought this particular Amazon "return" experience was going to be a nightmare. They made it so easy. Amazon should be an icon and an example for other companies on what customer service is about.
Customer Review: Great Camera!
Summary: 5 Stars
I have had this camera for about two weeks and i have definitely put it through a thorough test. The day i got it, i went to a party and took over 200 pictures.
Picture Quality = Awesome! Most of my pictures were indoor pictures for the first night with NO lights on except orange "christmas" lights. Let me say, the quality was awesome for the amount of light it had to work with. Another person there had a fuji film camera and it didn't even come close to the quality of these pictures. Outside pictures taken the next day came out so crisp. You RARELY have to retake a photo.
Image Stablization = Again, Awesome! I did a lot of research between this camera and the SD700 and i eventually picked this one b/c of the image stablization. Boy am i glad i did. Of the 200 photos, i think maybe 5 were blurry. I was so impressed.
Wide Angle Lens = Good! Yes, there are blurry edges once in a while when you are taking pictures with no zoom. I probably would have never noticed it, but sometimes when you are viewing it 100% you notice them. The blurriness is such a small thing, the great things about this camera outweigh it.
Video = Awesome! It does a great job. I have not noticed any feedback from the microphone either.
Time Between Photos = Great! As soon as you turn this camera on, it is ready to go. I am taking pictures in literally a second. After you take a picture, i think the longest thing, is displaying the picture for two seconds. I think it is like 2 seconds betweeen taking pictures, literally. That is such a great improvement over my old nikon camera.
Construction = Good! What can i say, its a small camera. If you want easy to use buttons and a more durable frame, get a bigger camera. If you want a camera this small, you are going to have to make some sacrifices. The design of this camera is definitely not a deal breaker.
Overall = I am glad i made the choice i did! I am so glad i got this one versus the SD700 or another brand. The pictures are great and the small quirks about the camera are not enough to outweight the great things about it. If you want an easy camera to use that works when you need it, you will not be disappointed with this one. Don't get me wrong, you still need to read the manual b/c it has cool stuff like "scenes" modes that you can use to improve your pictures even more. But after you know how to use it, this camera does all the work for you; you just worry about taking pictures!
Customer Review: Super little camera!
Summary: 5 Stars
I've had this camera for 2 years now, and it looks and works just like new, no complaints at all, never a problem with it. The positives are that aside from taking absolutely superb photos (you do NOT really need 12 mp in spite of what the manufacturers like to pretend), and even though I later bought the SD960 which has the 12 mp, I didn't really see any noticeable improvement from the 7 mp of this one. In fact, after I got the 960, I decided I preferred the 800 for several reasons. Above all, the 800 has a VIEWFINDER, something I found I really really missed on my 960. Later Canons have dispensed with the viewfinder entirely, which I think is a mistake. If you try to shoot any camera in bright light, around snow or the beach, the LCD has so much reflection you just can't see much as you compose the photo. While the viewfinder on this 800 isn't exact (parallax), you can at least get a better idea what you are shooting in bright light if you are unable to see anything on the LCD screen. Second, the buttons/dials on the 800 are marked with icons indicating function and overall, I find it easy and intuitive to navigate and find the settings I want. Another nice feature is that it has wide angle and zooms from 28-105.
The 800 is a bit square rather than having the rounded edges of the later Canon models, and this square shape makes it much easier to hold without it slipping through your fingers. My 960 is a bear to use and hold, and I don't have especially large hands, either. This 800 is only very slightly larger than later models, not enough to matter. There is also a video mode, which can be useful for short clips (not HD, if that matters to you). However, if I wanted to shoot real video, I'd get a real video camera and not depend on a P&S like this. For me, the video is just a little bonus I might use here and there. We've used it on the ski slopes to film our technique, so video from such a small camera is great in that situation.
Battery life is great, and it charges quite quickly on its little charger with a fold-away plug. You can take a LOT of photos before needing a charge. On a trip to Hawaii, my initial battery charge never did run out in 11 days of shooting photos! Downloading of photos is a snap.
Too bad this model isn't made any more, it really is an excellent camera. If you can find a good used one for a reasonable cost, it's a great camera and I'd recommend it over some of the later Canon models which followed it.