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Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Based on 24 reviews

Excellent:

8
Good:

12
Average:

4
Bad:

0

Pros

Articulating LCD is liked by most, Good build quality, Wide-angle 20x optically stabilized lens, 720p HD movies, Dedicated Movie button, Programmable Shortcut button, Stereo microphones, Custom setting on mode dial, Generally good exposure accuracy, Ac...
Solid battery life; articulating LCD; comfortable shooting design; can zoom during movie capture; ; hot shoe; exceptionally close macro focus.
Great lens, 720p HD video
Massive 20x range with 28mm wide angle, Fully articulated 2.5in screen, 720p HD video with decent sound, Flash hotshoe and HDMI port.
Good image and color quality, Good HD video quality, Good shutter lag and AF acquisition times, Good range of userestablished settings for manual shooting modes.

Cons

Higher than average barrel distortion at wide-angle, Lots of chromatic aberration at both wide-angle and tele, but not unusual for a megazoom, Some soft corners, lens flare, Images look somewhat soft onscreen, Higher ISOs lose a lot of detail to noise ...
Slow burst mode (almost a second between shots)
Slower than its predecessor overall; no raw support; images soft and noisy as low as ISO 80.
Poor low light performance
Fringing around high contrast subjects, No RAW recording, Slow continuous shooting – just 1fps, Handy sound recorder of SX10 has gone.
Zoom is too jumpy, Zoom lever too small, Screen pops out toward the left, Some chromatic aberration and lens distortion
Lens is slower than competition at telephoto, Monitor smaller than competition, Provided user's manual useless for anything beyond full auto shooting.

By Digital Camera Buyer on July 18, 2010

Packed full of features, theres something for everyone onboard, although the price might be high these arguably justify...

80
By Digital Photography Review on July 06, 2010

Overall the SX20 IS is a very solid performer and deserves to be on your short list. Just make sure its dimensions and weight are right for you (it's noticeably bigger and heavier than most in the group) and that you're sure you can live without...

73
By Expert Reviews on June 08, 2010

A classy camera that puts in a solid performance, but lacks the stand-out features to push it into the lead...

80
By The Imaging Resource on March 31, 2010

Well built but awkward to handle, the Canon SX20 IS will nonetheless be popular with those already familiar with Canon long zoom cameras. There are certainly more external controls than most digicams offer, and the one-touch activation of Movie mode...

-
By PCWorld on January 25, 2010

The SX20 IS's image quality, powerful lens, battery life, and versatile features should satisfy most advanced photographers--except fast-action shooters....

90
By Amateur Photographer on January 01, 2010

Canon PowerShot SX20IS at a glance: 12.1-million-pixel CCD sensor 20x optical zoom (28-560mm equivalent) 2.5in LCD screen ISO 80-1600 Street price £360Rated: 3/5 Designed to ‘bridge’ the gap between a compact camera and an entry-level...

-
By Macworld UK on December 24, 2009

It’s easy for the current torrent of advanced compact digital cameras to blur into one – but as soon as we switched on Canon’s PowerShot SX20 IS, we had a hunch that this one would be real fun. And it was. The 12.1-megapixel PowerShot...

100
By cnet on December 15, 2009

The Canon PowerShot SX20 IS is a solid, but not standout, megazoom option for the money. Read full review See all...

74
By CIOL on December 08, 2009

Coming from a whole line of superzoom cameras with the 'IS' or image stabilization moniker, the SX20 IS includes a huge 20x image stabilized optical zoom, a 12 Megapixel CCD and the trademark flip-out-and-twist LCD monitor. Visually, there's...

80
By Cameras UK on December 01, 2009

The Canon Powershot SX20 IS is a fully featured super zoom digital camera. It has 12 megapixels and a wide angle 20x optical zoom lens. The zoom lens is fast to respond and is powered by an ultrasonic motor. As you would expect with this type of...

84