Canon Ixus 700 Digital Camera Review

The Ixus range of compact digital cameras by Canon, have long been the companies benchmark for style and convenience whilst still providing excellent image quality. The new Canon Ixus 700 has a lot to live up to, in this review I hope to discover whether it lives up to being the top of the range model in this well established series of cameras.

Specifications

• 7.1 Megapixels
• 3x optical zoom
• 2.0" Quick-bright/Night Display LCD
• VGA 30 fps movies
• DIGIC II/iSAPS/9-point AiAF/USB 2.0 Hi-Speed
• 14 shooting modes
  

Handling
The camera is sleek and compact, the curved shape, of the camera body fits perfectly in the palm. Plastic is used for most of body but the high quality finish makes the camera feel reassuringly sturdy.

The 2.0” TFT LCD display is very clear and bright enough to allow easy composition in even the brightest of sunlight, thanks in part to the anti-reflective nature of the screen.
The power switch is located on top of the camera by the shutter release and zoom controls, you have to hold the button down for a second or two to switch the camera on then the camera is ready to use in a further couple of seconds. Although this may not be the fastest start-up time in its class it is perfectly acceptable.

On the back of the camera are the controls for the different shooting modes, the display and the menu functions for the camera. The buttons are all very well laid out and spaced well enough from each other to make operation very easy indeed.

The control dial on the top right hand side of the camera switches between playback, movie recording and the three main shooting modes, Automatic, Manual and Scene Assist.
The automatic mode provides very quick point and shoot operation of the camera simple enough for anyone to use without consulting the cameras instruction manual.

In manual the user can compensate the exposure of the photograph, adjust the sensitivity of the camera, alter the white balance and choose from a short list of different saturation and tone settings. Unfortunately there is no control over shutter speed or aperture settings, if you need that level of control then Canons Powershot range is the answer.

Finally there is the scene assist mode. In this mode the user can choose from nine different camera presets suited for different shooting scenarios such as, Portrait, Foliage, Snow, Beach, Fireworks, Underwater, Indoor, Kids & Pets and Night Snapshot. These modes are especially useful for people who find the manual mode too complicated or inconvenient.

Generally I found the camera to be very responsive and quick to use, the nine-point Ai/AF ‘intelligent’ autofocus is swift and accurate plus once the camera is focussed there is very little noticeable shutter lag.

Image Quality
When looking at a camera that records such a large amount of information with each shot, you would expect the image quality to be excellent and this camera does not disappoint. Here are some examples:

In the100% cropped version of this image you can see a feint chromatic fringe where the white of the cap meets the darker background. On the whole chromatic aberrations are well controlled and will only effect larger prints when it does occur.

The camera has coped well with high contrast scene keeping good detail in both the lighter and darker areas of the image well. The 100% cropped version of this image illustrates just how much detail is captured by this camera.

Straight from the camera, images display impressive amounts of detail and sharpness. Colours straight from the camera are fairly muted, the auto white balance is impressive providing accurate colours in most conditions.	This picture perfectly illustrates the fast response of the camera. Unfortunately due to the camera not allowing control of shutter or aperture values, I could not choose a higher shutter speed to freeze the movement of the people in the image.

Verdict
The Canon Ixus 700 is capable of producing some stunning results. The images produced by this camera contain tons of detail, natural colour and a good tonal range. What little evidence of chromatic aberration there is is very well controlled, and will only be visible in the very largest prints.

If you are after a slim, compact camera that will provide great quality images with the minimum of fuss, then this is the camera for you.

In summary the main positive points of the Canon Ixus 700 are:
Images are sharp and full of detail
The camera is quick and responsive
Controls are very well designed
The screen is very clear, even in bright light
Build quality
The automatic white balance is very accurate
Very simple to operate

Negative points are:
No control over aperture or shutter values for the more advanced user
Start-up isn’t the quickest but is still acceptable

Test by Gary Wolstenholme