Canon PowerShot SD600 6MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom (OLD MODEL)

Funny how this camera seems to be tested in Boston. I bought this camera specifically for a trip to Boston. I thought my brother's SD450 was the best digital camera I've ever used, until I got the SD600. I took TONS of pictures in different lighting and all turned out great. I shot everything from plates of food inches away to soccer games with players clear across the field. Certain settings worked better than others for different lighting situations. It really just depends on what color tones you prefer. I prefer warmer tones and the camera worked really well. For the basic point-and-shoot shots with the setting on automatic and flash, I thought the colors were very true to life. The video feature is really great as well. Playback is amazing on the large LCD screen. The newer version of this camera (SD630) has a larger display of 3inches but I actually prefer my 2.5inch screen. THis is because when I tried out the SD630, I'd get finger prints on the screen just trying to manuever the buttons. I don't have this problem w/ the SD600. I am able to avoid touching the screen while changing the settings on my camera. The best thing about this camera is that it is ready almost instantly after you turn it on. No waiting for an annoying flash to warm up. It also takes a picture right away when you press the button. Hardly a delay compared to other digital cameras. I don't have much else to add to this review that hasn't been already addressed. This camera with its numerous settings is far better than any old point-and-shoot camera. I think it's a great compromise between a professional camera and a point-and-shoot. It's quite versatile for those who like to play around with settings and effects. For the price, this camera rocks. 3 people have already been convinced into buying this camera after seeing me use it.

Even though my SD110 seemed indestructible, it couldn't match the size and nimbleness of the new generation of Elves, so it was time for a replacement. With under a hundred bucks separating the first five models, a consumer might well be in a minor dither about which to get. Currently most Amazon consumers are bucking the adage "newer is better" and going with the SD600 (which the tech people at Cnet support, giving it a rating identical to or higher than the slightly larger and heavier SD700 and recent SD800 and SD900, both with Digic III processors). Perhaps their thinking is like mine: first, its dimensions (width, depth, and height) are smaller and its weight (under 5 oz) lighter than the other six models (the 500's are the largest, and the 630, in fact, is a bit of an oxymoron: a bigger screen to accommodate failing eyes but tighter and tinier controls for those same eyes to locate and navigate); second, the 600 is the only one of the seven that maintains the original Canon Elph aesthetic of perfectly square angles at all corners of the camera (the contoured look that Canon is beginning to introduce is, I confess, a slight offense to my eye). Finally, in the category of set-up time for the first and each subsequent shot, the 600 is comparable in speed with the other models, rated a nano-second behind the 800 but better than the 900. Moreover, the price at this time is right (though don't expect this model to be around much longer). If you can live with a "mere" 6 megapixels and shoot with a sufficiently steady hand to ignore the absence of the 700's image stabilizer feature this may very well be "the one" for you. (Not for an eternity, but in our world of rapidly changing technology even an "extended honeymoon" of several years has to be considered equivalent to a lasting marriage.) If it needs a further recommendation, my botanist son-in-law, who owns an SD500, is about to order a supply of the smaller and lighter 600's to put in the hands of his students in the field. Postscript: Contrary to a later reviewer's claim, this camera does not have an "anti-shake" feature like the SD700. I've never had a problem with shaky pictures, but should you observe jittery images, try shooting through the viewfinder for a firmer grip (which is lacking, by the way on the SD630). As for a 6 megapixel lens vs. a higher number, only the sharpest eye would detect any difference in quality of resolution--and even then it would have to be an image blown up to wallpaper size. Finally, the cost of SD memory cards has come down by 50% in just the past several months, so it makes sense to go for the larger (1 GB) card. Also, I would spend the extra fifteen bucks for the faster speed of the Sandisk Ultra II card. (If you like to check the results of a shot the instant after exposure or if you transfer large numbers of shots to your computer at the same time, you'll notice a difference). If you're content with a conventional SD card and want to save a few additional bucks, go with Kingston (as good as Sandisk, in my experience, though I'd stay clear of Lexar, which has given me trouble).

Even though it states it twice, this item does not come with a charger or SD card. I reached out the the seller and was told thats just the way it is and that its amazons fault, they then gave me $15. I have purchased numerous SD cards and none work! I got a faulty camera! I think the slot where the SD card goes is oxidized, cause even when I unlock the SD card it still comes up as locked.

I bought this camera several months ago and have shot hundreds of photos with it. Photo quality is good. Ease of use is adequate, but a bit complicated. The controls are not intuitive and require considerable learning. The biggest problem is downloading to my computer, which is almost impossible. The Canon software is terrible and doesn't work worth a darn. The program constantly refuses to download, and often terminates itself with a cryptic message. It's too bad the software is so bad, because the camera is really nice in many other ways.

This is one of the last good cameras that Canon made before it decided to move onto plastic bodies and a more rounded shape such as their SD750, SD630. The SD1000 is the SD600 successor but is boxier with respect to the 600. I like the 600 because it has a sturdy body and is compact. I bought the leather case that goes with the camera and the case fits like a glove on the camera protecting it in case I drop it. The screen is a decent size and this camera is one of the few I liked which still had an optical viewfinder instead of just the LCD showing what I was going to take a picture of. Picture quality is 4/5. I had a Sony 5MP camera before I bought this Canon one and the Sony one just had a crisp clearer picture. Canon has decent image quality nonetheless and accepts SD which is less proprietary than Sony's Memory Stick and less expensive of course. Canon also is known for the different modes in which pictures can be shot, with color especially. It's nifty if you want to play with the functions (because it has so many) and if you're hanging out with your friends and want fun pictures. Indoor shots are decent and the pictures don't tend to be blurry even when taken with an unsteady hand. With a 2GB memory card, you can snap around 1100 pictures in 6MP format. Also the multiple snapshot function works well when you're taking candid pictures of people and at parties. You can always delete the ones you don't like later when you transfer them to the computer via a card reader or USB. Video recording is a bit on the rough side when it comes to recording a show because the image will blur in and out. One of the bad things about the camera/video/play switch is that sometimes you mean to take a picture and you end up recording a movie which is kind of cumbersome because you miss a really great picture moment. It's not the slimmest camera out there like the Sony T7 but it can definitely compete in the other departments like different modes and a more widely accepted memory format. If you're looking for a fashionable camera and it has to be compact as well, I would definitely recommend this camera among the others. Battery life is 5/5. (Lithium ion battery is much better than the rechargeable AAA batteries.) Image quality 4/5 Functionality 4/5 (buttons are a bit squished) Cost-Benefit 5/5

I bought this camera on Amazon two weeks ago and am very impressed. I was searching for a small camera with manual features and this camera was a perfect fit. Aside from the manual features (shutter speed, white balance etc) this camera has a lot of surprising bonuses. Things that are not mentioned in most of these reviews. A few of those include... While viewing your pictures, or sharing with friends, you can view them as a slide show (you even have the ability to include transition fades and wipes). This feature it nice so your friends don't have to bump around, searching for the right keys. Or if you want to share them with a group of friends, you can use the AV cable included to hook straight into your tv. Movies can also be edited and cropped down before uploading onto your computer. Another feature I appreciated was that you can upload images to your windows xp without using their program (though there is a photo program included). I liked having the choice not to install yet another application. My favorite feature is how fast the camera is. As soon as you hit the button the camera is on. Also, I've used a lot of digital cameras that are slow to display images, or have the fuzzy then becomes clear thing. This camera lets you toggle quickly between pictures and the images are crisp. Also, in response to the reviews that complain there is no steady-hand feature. All you need to do is apply the setting HighISO for a quick shutterspeed. Moving items can be caught without the motion streaking. The only cons I have discovered are... that I need to buy a larger memory card. The pics are so high res, you can't fit a lot, however you can change the quality to fit more pictures on the 16mb card. The one other thing is that I wish there was a manual button to retract the lens. The lense retracts after a minute of disuse, but sometimes I want to view right away and I find it uncomfortable viewing with the lense sticking out. I have had many good experiences with canon. I had always found brilliant color and dependable machinery.

After doing a lot of reading and browsing I finally settled on the SD600 mainly 'cos of the reviews. It's nothing less than a great camera for the person who is not much into adjusting the blah-blah-blah for getting that perfect photo! Just switch it on and click. The zoom is sufficient and the clarity is real good. I have tried almost all the options except the "manual" and the photos are just great with foliage and night shots being the highlight. The foliage shots had a good depth of the colors and the night shots were clear. The only problem I found with night shots was that the flash "whitenend" the subject when the subject was less than 10 feet(approximately) away from the lens. Otherwise it was good. Also the photo tends to be "shaken" in low light conditions. If you are going to do a lot of shooting in low light conditions, either you need to have one/a pair of steady hands (I try to hold my camera in both my hands for better stabity) or go for one with IS. The battery life is satisfactory and charges pretty fast. Lack of a battery indicator is a sore point. The camera is compact and fits inside almost any pocket on your attire. With an ultra SD card, the snapping is quick. By the way, the SD card that shipped with the camera was a waste. It carries no more than 10 photos at the most. Order a larger SD card along with the camera. To summarize, here are the reasons why you should go for this... - compact and fits palm of your hand - Simple and easy to use - Offers some preset settings to explore and saves you time and effort to adjust a lot of things if you were to use the manual option - And with all these... gives you great pictures Reduced the 1 star from the rating 'cos... - no battery indicator. I would not know until its completely dead. - an IS option would have been better - sometimes I feel it is too compact that I have put in effort to grip it tight and hold it steadily (my fingers ache) Overall, go for the camera if you need it for snapping on the go.. ur kids, travel, holidays, events etc. If you are a serious photographer with an "eye" for details, this is not the camera for you. I would suggest the S* IS series.

I have to say it is a bit confusing when looking for a digital camera. I found it helpful to go out and see how the cameras work and see how you like the feel. It came down to a few models for me - the sony w50, canon a630 and a540 or a530 and the canon sd630 and Nikon L4. The a530 and a540 I liked but didn't care for the fact they only used 2 AA batteries as they didn't seem they would last too long with the size of the camera and I wanted something that would take better low light shots and maybe something a bit smaller as well. I liked the price on the nikon L4 but everybody told me to avoid it so I did. The one I liked the best was the canon a630 but I came to the conclusion that a small 'carry with you everywhere camera' was more the direction I wanted to go so I hesitantly moved my search to the sony w50 and canon sd600. The sony is a slick camera and pictures were ok but I liked the image quality and feel of the canon better. I didn't like having to buy the sony duo pro type memory over the sd cards, although people do love the sony and it seems to be a dependable camera. The sd630 is a nice camera too but I wanted the viewfinder and have already found it usefull and I liked the larger controls on the sd600. Sooo here I am. I was surprised how fast the camera booted up, almost instantaneous. I bought a 2 gb kingston sd memory card and it performs flawlessly. I have never downloaded pictures to my computer before but this was a snap, didn't load software just plugged it in and easy from there. I have windows xp. Movie mode is amazing and I can zoom in and out which I didn't know I could. Took some pictures of furniture I wanted to sell on craigs list and came out excellent. I didn't use a flash and just have to have some good outside light in the room and good angle. The flash is a bit strong and wish there was a message board for people who own this camera as we could give each other some shooting tips. Anyway am just beginning to discover all the shooting modes and unique features of this camera and so far I am surprised at the quality of the images and the camera itself when I have had a chance to use it. Will update after some more extensive use. If you're looking for a camera you can put in your pocket and take anywhere, then I don't think you can go wrong with this one.