Compared to... Canon SD700 IS (IXUS 800 IS)

Below you will find a studio comparison between the Canon SD 800 IS (IXUS 850 IS) and the Canon SD 700 IS (IXUS 800 IS) at ISO 400.

Studio scene comparison (@ ISO 400)

• Canon SD800 IS (IXUS 850 IS): Program mode, ISO 400 , Default Image Parameters,
  Manual white balance, +0.67 EV compensation
   
• Canon SD700 IS (IXUS 800 IS): Program mode, ISO 400 , Default Image Parameters,
  Manual white balance, +0.67 EV compensation
   
• Lighting: Daylight simulation, >98% CRI

Canon SD 800 IS (IXUS 850 IS)	Canon SD 700 IS (IXUS 800 IS)
ISO 400, 1/320 sec, F4.5	ISO 400, 1/400 sec, F4
3,028 KB JPEG	1,903 KB JPEG

As ever the differences at ISO 400 are less distinct, but differences there are. Again the lower level of sharpening applied to the SD800 image does it no favors at 100%, but even after tweaking away there's no escaping from the conclusion that - despite claims for a big noise reduction improvement with DIGIC III - the 6MP SD700 IS is producing the better image, even if it does look a little grainier. Once again for the typical user of this type of camera the output is going to be perfectly fine - for smaller prints and reduced size viewing on-screen (on most screens you're unlikely to be viewing at even 50%). But for pixel peepers, anyone wanting to crop or enlarge significantly, there's a limit to what you can expect.

Canon's new noise reduction appears to be stronger than before, producing images at ISO 400 that have a distinct 'watercolor' appearance when viewed at a pixel level. The difference is even more pronounced at ISO 800, where the SD700 IS looks noisy, the SD 800 IS looks blurry.