What the camera sacrifices in speed, however, it makes up for in photo quality. Perhaps it's just the result of an extra few months of tweaking since the S5 shipped, but the SX100's photo quality, especially at higher ISO sensitivity settings, clearly improves upon its siblings. At ISO 800, for example, there's far less of a mottled look in the SX100's shots, but with no increased loss of detail. The new lens has better distortion characteristics--less distortion and more symmetry--and photos look sharp without looking oversharpened. While there's a bit of magenta, yellow, and purple fringing, it's not nearly as severe in the SX100's photos as those of the S5 (or S3). Plus, the good aspects of those models' images--predominantly excellent exposure and color--highlight the SX100's photos, as well.
Despite its arguably best-in-class photo quality, the Canon PowerShot SX100's spotty performance, disappointing movie capture, and occasionally frustrating design keep it from earning a no-brainer recommendation.
(Smaller bars indicate better performance)
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Typical shot-to-shot time | |
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(Longer bars indicate better performance)
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Where to buy
Canon PowerShot SX100 IS (black):
$439.99
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Amazon.com Marketplace
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$439.99 | Yes |
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