Canon PowerShot S200 (Digital IXUS v2)

Opinion: I have owned this camera since March 03. It has served me relentlessly well. Easy to learn. Beautiful pics for such a basic little camera. Colors are true. Flash is more than adequate. Super reliable. A joy to have and use.

Still going strong after all this time. I love it! Upgrading is proving hard. Returning the SD 890 IS I just got a couple of weeks ago, because it is very disappointing.

Opinion: I loved this camera and have had it for four years - bought it new in Dec 2002. However a month ago I accidentally knocked it from a desk to a carpeted floor, when the zoom was open, and after that any pictures taken with it had lines across them and were very washed out looking. I got a quote for repair [$294 AUST] and was willing to go ahead with that, but a few days later was told that the parts were unavailable [the zoom lens assembly or optical unit for that model is not made anymore]. Then I found thru Canon Australia that parts were available, but it would cost up to $400 to fix. I thought then that it might be better to buy a new one through insurance claim instead.

Opinion: strongly built little camera which I bought to take to work in my jacket pocket etc and wanted a metal small camera. Writes faster than my Nikon 5400 and the zoom works pretty well, but to get the best shots, switch to manual and use center zoom and kick the iso up to 200 to avoid low shutter camera shake. White balance ok, flash weak esp at lower iso. Images not as sharp as Nikon 2100, but that is a plastic camera

Opinion: First, this camera is not discontinued, the S100 is. I bought this camera to go to the Netherlands for sightseeing and to visit my daughter going to school there. That said, I think 95% of you can stop looking because this camera has all the features you will ever need. I looked at many cameras for months but knew I wanted an Elph for the size, it was just which one. I really wanted 3X zoom and 3 MEG but they don't make that combo. The S330 is discontinured (and larger) the S230 is too expensive for the features, so I got the S200 thinking I could trade it for the S400 if I was dissatisfied with the resolution. The guy at the store showed me 8X10s he had taken with the S200 that were awesome so I felt the S200 was a good gamble. I am so impressed with everything. I got the Canon Elph kit which has a high capacity battery, a high quality leather belt case and a well made shoulder bag. The belt case is no larger than a cell phone so the camera is always there to use... just what I wanted. Anything larger would have been a pain in the arse. I read the manual but the camera is really easy to use. You are never more than a few buttons away from getting the feature you want.
Impressions:
I wish I used the stitch feature more. It is flawless and you really get the feeling you are there again when you get that panoramic look. The camera walks you through the process perfectly and so does the software. Very cool!
While I could have used the 3X zoom a couple of times, the 2X was fine, no regrets.
The macro feature was great. I filled the screen with blooming tulips and all the flower parts were shown in great detail.
The orientation sensor is great. The picture is correct on the LCD and also in the Zoombrowser software when downloaded.
One charged battery lasted more than one day. I generally used the LCD and turning the camera on and off uses power to run the lens in and out. The battery is rechargeable so whining about battery life is nit picking. If you are shooting 10 rolls of film a day, then you probably want more battery but who are you going to show 700 pictures to when you get home?
I didn't use the movie feature because I was afraid I would fill up my 256 MEG card (I bought this separately). It was all I had and I had no way to download the 200+ images already on it. I will try it soon.
Every picture was perfectly focused. Even pictures in a very dark room which required flash.
I think the flash is just fine. For a camera of this size...again, quit whining.

Opinion: I purchased this camera 6 months ago and I love it! The small size makes it easy to take anywhere. It takes great photos and is easy to use (even for a 1st digital camera). I highly recommend this camera.

Opinion: I've just bought this camera and I found it a good camera for beginners like me. The resourses are good and the size is ideal for a pocket.

Opinion: Using a digicam as a work tool I have found the S200 to be
fairly easy to use but difficult to manipulate within Mac OSX..I
Photo does not " see" the S200 as I have initially set it
up.Size and construction are great as is the feature set of
this tiny camera. Having paid just USD 259 inclusive of
rechargeable and recharger at B and H I am not
complaining.My gut feel tho..my Sony DSC 30 is going to
last longer.

Opinion: This is a great little camera! All of my pictures have turned out well! It doesn't have high megapixels, but is more than sufficient for my needs! I love that you can take it everywhere easily, the panoramic shots are a piece of cake, and the short movie clips are a fun little bonus! The software more than meets my needs. All in all, I am very pleased with this camera!

A few "must haves" for this camera include an extra battery and at least a 128 CF! I also prefer a CF reader that is always plugged into my computer - saves the battery and was only $15!

Opinion: Not exactly a plug and play for me... I had some problems installing the WIA driver on my Windows ME system. Windows XP did the trick. Besides this problem, so far the pictures are looking great. The ISO settings can be adjusted when the camera is in manual mode which I really like (50-400).

I paid about $400 CND for this camera which is OK...could've gotten something else (say 3 MBP and 3x optical zoom) but Cannon has a good reputation for picture quality and the sleek design of the camera is value in itself. I really didn't want to spend any more money than than.