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Canon Powershot S90 Review Summary

10 Megapixels10 MegapixelsHigh ISO: ISO 1600 or more is available at full-resolution.High ISO: ISO 1600 or more is available at full-resolution.Stabilization: Compensates for tiny involuntary movements of the camera.Stabilization: Compensates for tiny involuntary movements of the camera.High-Quality Video: over 320x240 resolution but less than HD.High-Quality Video: over 320x240 resolution but less than HD.Manual Controls: Both fully-manual (M) and semi-automatic modes (T and V).Manual Controls: Both fully-manual (M) and semi-automatic modes (T and V).Custom White-Balance: Specifies exactly what should be white to the camera.Custom White-Balance: Specifies exactly what should be white to the camera.Action Photography: Shutter speeds of 1/1500 or more.Action Photography: Shutter speeds of 1/1500 or more.Night Photography: Reaches shutter-speeds longer than 4 seconds.Night Photography: Reaches shutter-speeds longer than 4 seconds.Spot MeteringSpot MeteringAccepts Secure Digital High Capacity (SDHC) and SD memory.Accepts Secure Digital High Capacity (SDHC) and SD memory.Neocamera detailed reviewNeocamera detailed review

Canon Powershot S90 Assessment

The Canon Powershot S90 is a unique ultra-compact to feature a full-range of manual controls including manual focusing, a bright stabilized wide-angle F2 lens and two control wheels for efficient controls. One control wheel is mounted around the 4-way control and the other is found around the lens. The behavior of the lens ring is highly customizable and can make the S90 the most efficient ultra-compact ever produced.

Clearly the S90 is built for the purpose of making digital photography enjoyable, but Canon did not forget about image quality either. The S90 is equipped with a larger 10 megapixels sensor than most ultra-compacts and performs remarkably well, with just the Fuji Finepix F-series generally performing better at the same ISO.

Choosing the S90 is easy. Even the G11 is considerably trumped by its lighter and slimsibling, particularly when considering that the G11's lens is a full-stop slower. This leaves the Fuji Finepix F200EXR, still the best fixed-lens camera in terms of image quality both because of its low noise sensor and extra dynamic range. Using the F200 though is far from being as efficient as the S90.

Neocamera detailed reviewNeocamera detailed review Read the full Canon Powershot S90 review.

PROS CONS
Better image noise than most ultra-compacts Slightly below average speed of operation
Fast F2 wide-angle lens Tendency to overexpose
Effective stabilization Auto-focus not so fast
Generally good lens sharpness Focus misses more frequent than average
Low optical distortion at telephoto Slight edge softness and more corner softness
Good automatic white-balance Noticeable distortion at wide-angle
Good color accuracy Limited dynamic range
Very efficient interface Short battery life
Highly customizable interface Difficult to hold securely and to use with gloves
Good LCD details and visibility Low-contrast display, prone to fingerprints
ExcellentExcellent Excellent
Pentax K-7
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Related Information

Sister Models
Canon Powershot G11 - 5X zoom with one-stop slower lens, Heavier and bulkier, Hot-shoe

Canon S90 Facts

Compact digital camera
10 Megapixels Fixed LensISO 80-3200
3.8X Wide Optical ZoomShutter 1/1600-15s
Built-in StabilizationFull manual controls, including Manual Focus
0.9 FPS Drive, Unlimited ImagesCustom white-balance with 2 axis fine-tuning
640x480 @ 30 FPS Video RecordingSpot-Metering
3" LCD 460K PixelsLithium-Ion
Secure Digital High Capacity
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