Canon PowerShot S90 Digital Camera (10 Megapixel, 3.8 Optical Zoom) 3.0 inch LCD

Product Information

The almost 4-year gap between the S80 and the S90, compared with intervals of 6 months to 1 year between prior versions, led to the line being popularly considered discontinued, and thus the S90 as a revival, rather than a strict successor.

However, the technical performance of your camera should be put in context. Indeed, depending on the type of photography you are interested in, each individual camera feature can impact your pictures to a different extent. This is the reason why we developed the iCamRank. iCamRank has been designed to weight all the individual technical specifications of each camera in the camerarace database, depending on different shooting conditions. Thus, here is what we suggest, depending on the photography type you like most: The lens and sensor work well together to produce tons of sharp detail, and the low compression makes sure it’s clearly visible. The Canon PowerShot S90 is a superb high-spec compact camera with the emphasis on image quality and controllable versatility. The range of features, build quality and results are excellent, although the fiddly controls and slightly sluggish performance are minor disadvantages. The only real problem is the extremely high price compared to rival models. The Canon boasts standard focusing, an ok macro function that can focus in as close as 5cm and manual focusing. This mode will pop up a window in the middle of the monitor that shows an enlarged version of the centre of the frame. In natural light I found it's best to use the preset white-balance modes because the camera will get it slightly out from time to time and it's difficult to work out when it will or won't. Daylight was the most accurate giving a balanced reading in auto on most occasions but in cloudy conditions, the auto setting gave a slightly magenta cast which was unfortunate.

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Landscape - Great, score 32, ranks in the best 22% of its category. Canon PowerShot S90 is perfect for Landscape photography, one of the best in its class. The Powershot S90 copes really well in most exposure conditions. In diverse lighting, the camera managed to get detail from shadow areas and prevent too much burn out on the highlights although there was some.

Auto (including Face Detection WB), Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Flash, Underwater, Custom. Canon’s autofocus systems have always been among the best available, and the S90’s system appears to be the same as Canon’s other recent compacts such as the IXUS 110 IS or the 990 IS. It is fast and accurate in all lighting conditions, and thanks to a very bright AF assist lamp it can focus in darkness at a range of several metres. There was only very mild chromatic aberration on high contrast areas showing as a thin purple or green line.Inevitably some pixel fringing is in evidence between areas of high contrast in outdoor shots, but it's kept well within acceptable levels and wouldn't be noticed unless zooming in to scrutinize detail like we were. The Canon Powershot S90's maximum shutter speed is 15 seconds, which is great news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 1/20th second at ISO 800. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like. The popularity of such a seemingly exclusive camera must have come as a bit of a revelation to rival Canon, who had previously been the undisputed king of advanced compacts with its long-running and highly successful PowerShot G series. The LX3 put a dent in the sales of the PowerShot G10, so it comes as no big surprise that Canon’s new Autumn line-up includes not just the impressive new PowerShot G11, but also today’s review camera, the PowerShot S90. It’s a welcome return for Canon’s long-dormant S-series of advanced compacts. The S90’s most recent predecessor was the PowerShot S80 launched in 2005.

In the centre of the control pad we find a function/set button. Press this, and as we're used to from recent Canon compacts a toolbar appears down the left hand side of the screen, options highlighted or de-selected dependant on whether the user is in auto capture or one of the more fully featured creative capture modes. Using the batteries and memory card format supplied with the camera (where included), except where indicated.For what appears at first glance to be a point-and-shoot camera with bells on, the S90 offers a level of sophistication that few can match - now our only worry is the price. If you already own a DSLR, and possibly also a bridge camera, ownership of the S90 - more portable and with nearly as much on-board sophistication - starts to make a little more sense. Or perhaps if you view the S90 as the one and only compact you're ever going to buy or need. Everyday - Great, score 59, ranks in the best 15% of its category. Canon PowerShot S90 is perfect for everyday photography, one of the best in its class.

The command dial on the top is small and firm. If you ask me, it's a bit too firm and so far is the only thing going against a thoroughly enjoyable little camera.Optical 3.8x. Digital approx. 4x (with Digital Tele-Converter approx. 1.4x or 2.3x and Safety Zoom¹)². Combined approx. 15x