Canon PowerShot SD3500IS 14.1 MP Digital Camera with 3.5-Inch Touch Panel LCD and 5x Ultra Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Black)

This camera is awesome.I have a Nikon SLR that I love but I get tired of lugging it around everywhere so I decided to look for a compact full featured point and shoot. Being a Nikon fan I was having a tough time deciding between the Nikon S8000 (which has 10x zoom and a 3.0 inch non-touch screen) and the Canon SD3500IS (because it was slightly more compact at the cost of a lower 5x zoom but it had a bigger 3.5 inch screen touch screen). It reminded me of trying to decided between a Honda(Nikon) and a Toyota(Canon), both are quality japanese products where you really can't lose either way, the honda feels more sporty but the toyota is more refined. Needless to say I went with the Canon SD3500IS because although a 10x zoom on a point and shoot would be nice my top priority was a compact camera with a proven track record. The Canon SD line has has been around a lot longer than the Nikon Cool Pix line so I feel Canon has much more refinement and experience in the point and shoot category. I think both are really good cameras but for my needs the Canon won out by a slim margin. I've had it for a few days now and here is what I've noticed so far. Pros: 5x optical zoom, 3.5 inch screen, image stabilization (which seems to be standard now on most point and shoots), really good Auto mode (automatically detects the best out of 20 settings based on the current shooting conditions, save yourself the time of spinning a dial and trying to choose the best macro mode, just put it in auto and be convinced you picture will come out right), touch auto focus(touch what you want to focus on the screen and the camera will lock on the target even if you move the camera around), 24mm wide lens(everything fits in the screen). Cons: I'm not sure if this is really a con but with the screen being so big and the camera so compact your thumb will definitely get all over the right side of the screen because there is not much extra space on the right to hold it, so make sure you get a screen protector! At the time I write this review the camera has only been out for about a week so I have yet to find a website listing screen protectors for the SD3500IS. Summary: Great camera but you will want to be careful with the screen.

Alright, so the basic features of this camera (minus the tilt shift and fish eye, and the resolution) are pretty much the same as a previous model i owned. I knew what to expect from this camera but with only a few slight improvements. It was the exact same cost as the model I had before (which thoroughly impressed me), so I had no problem switching it out for this one. The full touch screen made two-handed menu navigation much easier to get through versus having to use buttons with the right and thumb on the left. basically you can safely hold the camera and use both thumbs (or even fingers depending on how you hold it) to use the screen. I dig the fluff features like tapping the side to navigate the photos and clicking (think iphone/ipod touch). One piece that I will touch on here is the quality of the presets. While there are certain scene settings you would use for certain situations (snow fireworks, etc) they do not do a thorough or specific enough job explaining when you'd want to use this versus the "P" (program). The low light scene setting is the most disappointing. You can't simply flip it on and expect fantastic pictures as if you had a good natural light source. The flash is a default with this, so if you're trying to get something close-up in a darker setting, beware. Otherwise, the setting is OK with a flash, so long as you are not right up on the subject or trying to capture something reflective. I simply have personal presets that I picked out to avoid using the flash at all. Generally for low light settings, I opted to program my own so I can choose the ISO that fits it the best. Just know that the higher you set the ISO, the grainer you pictures will become. This is something that is a universal thing, not just specific to this camera. The same goes with digital zoom. This is a point/shoot camera so it DOES have limitations; I'm well aware of that, so if I need something i know it can't do, I just use my highzoom Fuji or DSLR NikonD3000. You can't have a single camera that is going to be able to do everything perfectly. But I will say that unlike some other reviewers I found the quality that comes from this model in generalized scene settings or even auto is actually quite good compared to other cameras i've used over the years. As for the HD video. I have to agree on that point. There was more that could have been done with it. But you know what? People forget this is a still-shot camera FIRST, and a VIDEO camera SECOND. Video recording is an feature, not a function. You will have less options and control with it. same goes for video cameras that take still shots. Often the MPs are lower, and the quality leaves a lot to be desired. The only exceptions are some of the DSLRs with video features, but smooth zooming is often a problem for most people with those. Solution? If you want great HD video recording, get a video camera. There's nothing easier than that. Battery life is acceptable and about average compared to other model cameras, but if you plan on taking out for an entire day, I suggest picking up a second battery as a back-up. Being forced to use the LCD screen for everything drains the battery fast, but it does have an auto shut-off to conserve energy. While some people don't use it, i will would have liked to have had a view finder, however the lack of one in now way kept me from buying this camera. Be weary of putting a screen protector on the back. Unless you get one from Canon meant for this model camera, or from an authorized Canon dealer, you can damage the screen. Having a screen protector can interfere with the touch-screen interface. This isn't the Magic Hat of cameras. Everyone is going to have their own personal view on it and find things they love or hate. My suggestion is if you can find a retail store with a working display, go look at it in person first. That's the best way to judge if its going to suit your needs or not. Or if you know someone who happens to have one, even better. I've already gotten some beautiful 16x20 prints, and 18x24 is pretty good too (however at this size, you need to make sure your picture quality is top notch). If you're using a high ISO setting, or a longer shutter speed, use a tripod- the slightest shake in your shake WILL blur/ghost the image; again, that is something that happens to all cameras. They sell a variety of smaller tripod (the grypton ones are fun and versatile). Perhaps in the future these limitations will be eliminated, but that remains to be seen. All in all, I knew what I was getting from this camera. The price is exceptionally reasonable considering all you get. I'm not disappointed by any means, because I figured out very quickly how to manipulate the settings to get better picture than the scene settings could produce. It definitely suits my needs for this category of camera; I really just needed this guy to take around the town and on nights out, because who really wants to tote a DSLR with telephoto lenses or a clunky highzoom to a bar ;)

This is a great camera and it replaces my SD 980 IS which I bought last year to use when I don't want to carry my Canon 5D Mark II around. Because of its size and weight it fits well in your shirt or pants pocket and as it suited for carrying all day long. You may even forget you have it. The 3.5" touch screen interface is sharp and bright. The menus are self explanatory and easy to use. The only physical controls are your shutter, on / off and playback buttons. A three position switch sets the auto, program, and movie mode. An easy to use dial around the shutter button adjusts the zoom level. The HD video (1280 x 720) is a great option and you can record 10 minute clips that use about 2GB's of memory. Two standard definition video formats are also available. (640 x 480 and 320 x 240) Image quality is good, and suitable for large prints. Camera body color options are black, silver and pink. If you are looking for an easy to use point and shoot, compact camera that is very light weight also shoots great video I think you will be happy with the SD3500.

I purchased this camera recently from Amazon. When I bought it I paid roughly U$ 270, which was a very good price when the same camera was advertised by other vendors at over U$ 300. For the money I paid, this camera is awsome. I am personally not too fond of touchscreens (I am more into the "analog" and "buttons" designs.. call me old fashioned), but this camera blew my mind. The touch screen is so intuitive you can get to every corner of the menu in seconds. It has nice futures as touching an area of the picture to select where to focus. Other things it has are creative effects, like selecting one particular color and leaving the rest of the image in black and white: this creates very nice artistic images whan you want a particular item to stand out in the picture. You can even select any color in the image and swap (in real time) for another... I tried taking a shot at the swimming pool, which locked pale and white, and swapped for an aquamarine turquoise which really enhanced the picture without making it cheesy or fake-looking... It's like working with Photoshop in real time.. The camera is really small and practical. As I had read in other reviews, the batery/SD lid is quite flimsy, built of a thin plastic which doesen't look very promising. The lids on the HDMI and USB connections also look like they'll break before the camera's first birthday. However, this is not a tough-built, rugged camera to take under the rain or on the trail, so provided you serve its intended use (parties, home, theatre, and anywhere where you'd take reasonable good care of a high quality optic instrument!), you should be fine. It doesen't require silk gloves... just don't fumble with the lids too often. The quality of the pictures is good but not outstanding, at least in auto modes indoors (I have an Olympus 570UZ which I think handles white balance more nicely). The HDMI is superb, and the real plus is the 24mm equivalent widescreen, which is great for indoor group pictures where little space would usually require everyone to huddle up so as to fit in the picture.. I would purchase this again.

Canon has a good reputation in digicams and I have been wanting a Canon ultra-compact P&S for some time. Looked at the SD980 first, but heard some negative comments on its LCD. So I grabbed the SD3500. The best way to test it is to compare with my other digicams. Under a table light, I tried to shoot a toy solar bug with the SD3500 and ZS3. Both failed to focus. I then took out the LX2. It focused and took a clear picture. I then got a bad feeling that the SD3500 was to disappoint due to its small sensor, because what I am looking for are low light capability and fast AF. So I took the camera out to shoot some moving objects. The IS is worse than expected and many pictures are blurred. AF is slow even in a well lit department store. In general its picture quality and low light performance are similar to those of the ZS3. I mostly used the auto mode because that is what I use these cameras for. The ZS3 has 12x optical zoom and is $100 cheaper right now. Therefore even the 3.5" touch screen LCD is very nice and there are some other good features, the SD3500 is not a keeper. Besides there are other problems with this camera. A few of the pictures have two distinct color tones divided by a straight line, either vertical or horizontal. This may be a problem with the Adata SDHC class 10 8GB memory card which was also newly bought. I first posted a review on Canon's website under this camera (giving 3 stars too). But Canon does not display my review. So I would think three times when I would ever buy Canon again.

This camera is great! The new DIGIC 4 processor for the camera provides many features not found on older generations of Canon Cameras. Before buying this camera my two choices were the Canon SD3500 IS and the Nikon s8000. Both looked intriguing in different ways. The SD3500is had the 3.5 inch touch screen while the Nikon had the 10x zoom. I settled on the Canon because of past experience with their previous cameras and with their great customer service. I may be biased, but I feel Canon makes a better camera and Nikon makes a better binocular, but I digress. The simplicity and intuitive controls are a major plus. I was a bit worried about the screen but it is made of reinforced glass and has quite a solid feel throughout. You can even use the camera with gloves on which is a major plus if you are outside and it is cold (my first real test of the camera was in Barrow, AK at -20F). The only real downside I have for the camera is the battery/sd card door is a bit flimsy feeling when not closed, but it hasn't given me any issues to date. The only other downside, which isn't really a downside, is that many of the features of the camera may seem novelty to some such as the ability to change all the bright lights in a room into heart or star shapes. I certainly don't have much of a reason to use it unless I want to get cheesy with my girlfriend. I bought a Sandisk Ultra II 16 gig class 4 card for the camera and everything works real smooth with it. I am able to hold over 4,000 photos at 14.1 mp or 1.5 hours of HD video. The class 6 cards may be a little overboard for this camera and a class 2 may or may not be enough for the HD video to run smoothly, but I haven't been able to test those ideas. If you really want a nice camera with all kinds of fun and useful features and new age touch screen coolness then I highly recommend this camera. -Update 5/4/2011 So far this camera has been phenomenal for all my picture taking. It even went through some hard times and came out shining. It was left on top of my car and slid down my front window onto my hood as I was driving down the highway. Needless to say it has a dent in it, but the camera works just as well as before and the glass is not scratched at all (I don't use those protective glass covers either) I had intended on using it for low activity days but I have quickly found out that it was actually very rugged. I take it out hiking, snowshoeing or whatever. It slides easily down into my pocket and even when it is raining I don't worry about it. Also, on the picture quality. It is very good. It all depends on how you use the camera. The Foliage setting on the camera really brings out great colors for plants and the point and touch focus is HUGE for focusing in on what you want. There might be better cameras (haven't really researched since purchasing the SD3500is) out there now but if the price is right on this camera I would buy it again. -Update 8/12/2012 Camera has been working wonderfully since I purchased it two years ago. I take it outside for hikes mostly and it never fails. I did manage to crack the screen on it 6 months ago, but I was able to replace the touch screen. Works just like new. The battery on the camera is awesome. Honestly I almost never have to think about charting the battery. I can think of only 3 times that I have ever seen the low battery warning.

My last camera was pretty ancient - a Canon SD630. I bought it some years ago, and it was top of the line. It still takes really good pics for a camera its size. But, I felt it was time to upgrade. When I took my first SD3500 picture, the first thing I noticed was that it did a great job with the colors, even with the flash at close quarters. My second impression was that the photo looked a tad soft compared to my SD630, so I fired up an image editor to look at the quality. The SD3500 *seems* to favor color quality and accuracy over sharpness. My SD630 seems to prefer sharpness at the expense of color quality. I did a fair test by setting both cameras' flashes off and doing a timed tripod shot of the same subject. The SD3500 produced noticeably sharper images, so my fears that the optics weren't there were allayed. I think if there is softness, it comes from image processing and not from the actual optics. Auto mode is really, really good. I truly feel confident in leaving it in that mode as it seems to find its footing every time. And when the flash goes off, though I expect to see a whitewashed foreground and a darkened background, I get a very color-rich and white-balanced image. Again, auto mode really works. Video quality was good, not great. I can get pretty clear 720p video, but it's nothing that will astound anyone. Zoom during shooting is definitely digital, so pre-optical zoom before shooting. All of my testing tonight has been in low light, so that could also explain some lack of sharpness. Can't wait to try this in the sun. The touch screen is responsive enough, though I find the photo swiping and pan scrolling gestures to be a bit slow and laggy. Other gestures and button presses work pretty well. Not iPhone quality UI, but not bad at all. Photos and videos look really great as the screen res is very high and colors are very saturated. Build quality - well, Canon always does a great job. The SD3500 feels to me just a hair lighter than it looks, which is a good thing I think. I like the less gawdy design than some of Canon's other designs. Is this camera better than the SD980? I honestly don't know as my upgrade isn't from that camera. I do know that I really like this camera. Pros: - Seems to focus on color quality over sharpness - Auto mode always produces good to great results - Touch interface works great, overall, and the side tapping is useful - Touch to focus, smile detector, blink detection, and all that stuff actually does work well. - Image Stabilizer is not overdone, and still gives you responsiveness. - The various shooting modes are fun to play with - Great build quality Cons: - Some aspects of the touch interface could be more responsive - No optical zoom during video shooting - No high frame rate video modes - HDMI and USB doors are a little hard to get open - Mini HDMI cable is not included. Cmon Canon, it's like $2 from Amazon. - Well, er, seems to focus on color quality over sharpness.

Although I've only had this camera a few days, I am very pleased with it so far! I wanted to buy a camera that could not only take great photos but great video as well. This camera does both. The day after I received the camera I took it to my daughter's play. As you may know flash photography in a theater is a big "no-no". In the past when I have tried to take pictures without flash, the pictures turned out blurry. Not with this camera. I was shooting away and almost all of the photos were very clear regardless of lighting. I came to realize that the few pictures that were blurry were due to motion. At the time, I hadn't learned how to take pictures in the "kids and pets" setting for motion yet. When my daughter began to sing her only song in the play I definately wanted to capture that so I switched to video mode. I am so impressed with the video. The sound quality was good and the picture quality was phenomenal! The video was very sharp with bright, vivid colors unlike the grainy videos I have taken with other cameras. My only complaint is that the camera came with very basic, "quick start" directions. I had to play around with the camera to figure where to find and how to use a lot of its features. This camera takes great quality photos and videos with the convenience of a compact, easy to take along camera. 2-in-1. I'm really happy with this purchase and I would definately recommend this camera to others.

I like the big touch screen on this camera. Works well. I think it was the first of its kind and many other cameras followed. Still works well after a few years. I use it for mostly personal and occassional business needs.