Canon PowerShot SD890 IS (Digital IXUS 970 IS / IXY Digital 820 IS)

Opinion: Canon Ixus 970 IS ('SD890 IS "in the U.S.) was my first Canon.
The 2-year warranty expired in June 2011.

I carry this camera always in my backpack to the office and other places where I take my DSLR.
It's been a good camera, small, sturdy, good image quality, so-so movie.
Good for times when you do not have DSLR equipment with you, quick photos in the street etc.
It's good for social events, but be prepared for some grains, red eyes, etc.
Not good for photos in low light or action shots, for that you have to go for a DSLR.
If you just see the pictures on your PC screen, then this is a good camera. If you want to print some photos, be prepared to see grain in prints, starting at 10x15cm ... more in indoor photos with flash ...

Last week (SET2011) I bought on Ebay a "DiCAPac 310" so I can take some pictures when I'm at the beach snorkelling. Two days later, a colleague in the office said, "get to this window and look at pigeons drinking pee from neighbor's dog." I took the camera out, pressed it on, lens extended, it suddenly started making a strange noise - like trying to focus, dark screen, make two or three beeps and came canon logo and message "Lens error, restart camera."

I tried various tricks (http:camerarepair.blogspot.com/2007/12/fixing-lens-error-on-digital-camera.html), compressed air and even disassembling the camera (only partial, I am not a technician), always the same message: "Lens Error, restart camera.". From what I've read, the repair is more expensive then buying a new, and more modern, camera .

Thank you Canon!
Had several Olympus / Nikon / Yashica before (film and digital), never had a problem!

Next compact is going to be a Casio H-5 , Canon never again!.... or not so soon ...

Opinion: Best combination of pocketable, 5X tele, MP, adjustments possible, with OPTICAL VIEWFINDER, that was a non-negotiable feature, due to my vision limitations. Problems (see below) but decision to repair this time was forced by there not being another camera out there with features I need for my "always with me" camera. I use an DSLR for most of my work. I carry a cell-phone too, with camera, but photos generally are U/S.

Opinion: I got this camera for my daughter to take on a summer assignment in Italy. It did a good job for her but she had problems with it shutting down during use. I'm sure Canon would have replaced it if she had bothered to pursue the warranty, so I'll give them a pass on that. I've been puttering with it and a change of memory card brands seems to at least have temporarily caused that problem to go away. It's a good little camera.

Opinion: I have used this camera for more than a year now. It has never let me down and I'am very satisfied with it. I like it more than the Ixus 860 that I'am using also. Better in use and sharper pictures. Of course it is not as good as de 5D I'am using as a professional but under 400 iso the noise is not so bad and the lens distortotion is acceptable. With 80 till 100 iso you make beautiful photos.

Opinion: This camera's image quality is suprisingly good for a point-n-shoot camera. Corner contrast and sharpness are excelent (for a medium-priced point-n-shoot camera). Even with the whole stupid megapixel-race, the resolution of this camera is better than the SD700-IS it's replacing. However the grip and construction doesn't fit my hand as well as the SD700-IS.

The LCD is good, but the top edge of the display has uneven lighting (minor light splotches are visible on the very top edge of the display). This is such a minor issue in any case.

Opinion: A great ultra compact.

Though its build is not as good as my SD700IS, the image quality of the SD890IS is on par with it, ie: excellent. Features have been added or improved over the SD700.

I particularly like the control wheel, though it takes some getting used to. I use Exposure Compensation a lot, so it's nice that I can assign the Print/Share button to EC.

If you love the image quality and features of the SD700IS as I do, you'll love the SD890IS even more.

Opinion: I've had this camera for just over a month now, and I'm really pleased with it. It's recently been on holiday to Norway with me and I've managed to get some lovely scenic shots from it. If, like me, you need a camera that is small and portable, with a better than average zoom, and that produces decent quality pictures I'd definitely recommend it. Outdoor 'scenic' shots come out particularly well.

Opinion: test

Opinion: I have had 2 SD890s --- in my experience, the image quality of both was very bad --- almost all my shots needed extensive sharpening, tweaking, etc. in Picasa or iPhoto afterwards...very disappointing. Just about images were very "soft" in appearance and needed varying amounts of tweaking (especially sharpening) in Picasa or iPhoto to produce even marginally acceptable shots.

I checked the point of focus (which the camera will capture and display for you) just to make sure I had not aimed incorrectly, and that as not the case.
The link attached below will take you to an earlier forum discussion about my early experiences with the SD890.

Your mileage may differ (and I hope it does), but I could not recommend the SD890 to anyone.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1010&message=27631106