Canon PowerShot S5 IS Canon Powershot S5is Review, July 2007Simon Joinson

The enduring popularity of Canons big zoom range began on the day the original PowerShot S1 IS was announced back at the start of 2004, heralding a return to a sector of the market many believed the photo giant had abandoned when the Pro 90 IS was discontinued a few years earlier. Since then it has been rare for there not to be an S series big zoom PowerShot in our top 10 most popular cameras (measured by clicks) despite stiff competition from Panasonic (responsible for the reinvigoration of the whole superzoom sector), Sony and a handful of other players. Perhaps this is why Canon has been loathe to tinker too much with the formula established in the original model for subsequent generations. Sure, the S2 IS was a much-needed upgrade (bigger lens, big performance boost), but since then Canon has pretty much left well alone with fairly predictable upgrades to the sensor and screen, and minor feature tweaks.And so we arrive at the camera on test here, the PowerShot S5 IS, another incremental upgrade to its predecessor that adds a couple of welcome (and some would say long overdue) features but, for the most part, doesnt mess too much with what made its predecessors some of the most appealing cameras in their class. The extra two million pixels and bigger, better screen were inevitable, the flash hot shoe a welcome surprise. Surprising too is that Canon avoided the temptation to go for a longer zoom range (now that 15x and 18x optics are becoming commonplace) - the S5 IS has exactly the same lens as the S3 IS and S2 IS before it, meaning you still dont get a true wideangle unless you attach the large optional lens converter. There is also still no raw mode (perhaps the most requested feature from serious S3 IS users) - it would now seem certain that Canon has abandoned raw capture in non-SLR models.Powershot S5IS vs Powershot S3IS - key changesHigher resolution sensor (8MP vs 6MP)Digic III processor (S3 IS was Digic II)Larger, higher resolution LCD screen (2.5 inches vs 2.0 inches)Hot shoe flash connectorHigher top ISO sensitivity (1600 vs 800)Increased movie clip limit (was 1.0 GB, now 4.0 GB)Couple of new features (including red-eye removal, face detection AF)Reduced continuous shooting (burst) speedSlightly heavier

 Canon Powershot S5isCanon Powershot S3isSensorMaximum Image SizeProcessorMovie clip limitSensitivityAutofocus modesScene modesLCD screenContinuous shootingBattery life (CIPA standard with Ni-MH cells, using LCD)Weight (no batteries)Other

3264 x 2448	2816 x 2112
Digic III	Digic II
4 GB (around 30 mins VGA/30fps)	1GB (around 8 mins VGA/30fps)
• Auto• Hi-ISO Auto• ISO 80-1600	• Auto• Hi-ISO Auto• ISO 80-800
	• Flexizone AF• Center AF
• Custom • Portrait • Landscape • Night Scene • Sports • Stitch Assist • Foliage • Snow • Beach • Fireworks • Aquarium • Indoor • Night Snapshot • Color Accent • Color Swap	• Custom • Portrait • Landscape • Night Scene • Sports • Stitch Assist • Foliage • Snow • Beach • Fireworks • Indoor• Night Snapshot• Color Accent• Color Swap
• Vari-angle 2.5-inch Low Temp P-Si TFT• 207,000 pixels• Adjustable Brightness• 100% coverage	• Vari-angle 2.0-inch Low Temp P-Si TFT• 115,000 pixels• Adjustable Brightness• 100% coverage
max 1.5 fps	max 2.3 fps
450	550
450g (15.9 oz)	410g (14.5 oz)
• Playback red-eye correction• LP movie mode

Canon Powershot S5isspecificationsStreet priceBody MaterialSensorImage sizesMovie clipsFile formatsLensImage stabilizationConversion lensesDigital zoomFocusAF area modesAF assist lampFocus distanceMeteringISO sensitivityExposure compensationExposure bracketingShutter speedApertureModesScene modesWhite balanceSelf timerContinuous shootingImage parametersFlashHot-shoeViewfinderLCD monitorConnectivityPrint complianceStoragePowerWeight (inc batt)Dimensions

US: $471UK: £285

Plastic & Metal

• Still: JPEG (Exif 2.2)• Movie: AVI (Motion JPEG compression)

Yes (Lens shift-type)

Yes

up to 4x (48x total)

• AF: Single, Continuous• Manual• Focus bracket

• AiAF (Face Detection / 9-point)• 1-point AF (Fixed center)

Yes

• Normal: 50cm (19.7 in) minimum (W), 90cm (35.4 in) minimum (T)• Macro: 10cm (4 in) wide only• Super Macro: 0cm (0 in) wide only

• Evaluative (linked to Face Detection AF)• Center-weighted average• Spot

• Auto• High ISO Auto• ISO 80• ISO 100• ISO 200• ISO 400• ISO 800• ISO 1600

• +/-2EV• 1/3 EV steps

• 1/3-2EV• 1/3 stop increments

F2.7-8.0 (W) F3.5-8 (T)

• Indoor• Night Scene• Foliage• Snow• Beach• Aquarium• Fireworks• Color Accent• Color Swap

• 10 or 2 secs• Custom

Approx. 1.5 fps until card fills (0.9 fps with AF / Liveview)

My Colors (My Colors Off, Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, Black & White, Positive Film, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Vivid Blue, Vivid Green, Vivid Red, Custom Color)

• Canon Speedlites (220EX, 430EX, 580EX)• E-TTL with EX series Speedlites, Canons High Power Flash HF-DC1

• 0.33" EVF• 115,000 pixels

• Vari-angle 2.5-inch Low Temp P-Si TFT• 207,000 pixels• Adjustable Brightness

• USB 2.0 Hi-Speed• AV out (NTSC/PAL switchable, stereo audio)

• PictBridge• DPOF 1.1• EXIF 2.2• Canon SELPHY Compact Photo Printers and PIXMA Printers supporting PictBridge (ID Photo Print, Fixed Size Print and Movie Print supported on SELPHY CP & ES printers only)

• SD / SDHC / MMC compatible• 32 MB card supplied

• 4x AA Alkaline battery supplied or NiMH batteries• Optional AC adapter

450 g (15.9 oz)

117 x 80 x 78 mm (4.6 x 3.1 x 3.1 in)

Conclusion / Recommendation / Ratings are basedon the opinion of the reviewer, you should read the ENTIRE reviewbefore coming to your own conclusions.Images which can be viewedat a larger size have a small magnifying glass icon in the bottomright corner of the image, clicking on the image will display alarger (typically VGA) image in a new window.To navigate the review simplyuse the next / previous page buttons, to jump to a particular sectioneither pick the section from the drop down or select it from thenavigation bar at the top.DPReview calibrate theirmonitors using Color Vision OptiCal at the (fairly well accepted)PC normal gamma 2.2, this means that on our monitors we can makeout the difference between all of the (computer generated) grayscaleblocks below. We recommend to make the most of this review you shouldbe able to see the difference (at least) between X,Y and Z and ideallyA,B and C.

This article is Copyright 2007Simon Joinson / dpreview.com and the review in part or in whole may NOT be reproduced inany electronic or printed medium without prior permission from the author.For information on reproducing any part of this review (or any images)please contact: Phil Askey

Canon PowerShot S5 IS More INFO

Canon PowerShot S5 IS specifications

Like Canon PowerShot S5 IS

?Spread it by clicking below: