In an era when compact digital cameras are on the wane, Canon today introduced four new compact digital cameras and relaunched one ultracompact that they hope will pull users back from their smart phones. The Canon PowerShot G16, Canon PowerShot S120, Canon PowerShot SX510 HS and Canon PowerShot SX170 IS aim to show users not only that compact digital cameras are still relevant, but that they offer creative picture-taking features and capabilities that are far beyond the limited abilities of smart phone cameras.
Note: The Canon PowerShot G16, Canon PowerShot S120, Canon PowerShot SX510 and HS and Canon PowerShot SX170 IS are available for pre-order now at Adorama. Orders will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Credit cards will not be charged until orders are shipped.
Canon PowerShot G16: A Faster Posh Compact
Leading the pack is the Canon PowerShot G16, a premium compact camera that is the latest in the G series, a popular choice among experienced photographers seeking a small, versatile camera with familiar manual as well as automatic controls. It replaces the G15, which was introduced last year, and looks almost identical to its predecessor. New to the G16 are a new, faster DIGIC 6 image processor and built-in Wi-Fi connectivity. Canon is also claiming improvements in autofocus.
The Canon G16’s 12MP sensor and 24-140mm f/1.8-2.8 (35mm equivalent) zoom lens and 3-inch, 922k LCD monitor and optical viewfinder remain unchanged. Canon is now claiming a top burst rate of 9.3fps, down slightly from the G16’s 10fps spec. Canon claims the camera can capture up to 522 shots at 9.3fps without interruption when using high-speed memory cards.
Astrophotographers may be interested in the new Star Nightscape, Star Trails and Star Time-Lapse Movie capture modes. Also new are a series of artistic filters such as Art Bold and Art Vivid, and handheld HDR Scene mode automatically combines multiple shots of a scene at different exposures, merges them and creates a single image with improved detail from shadow to highlights.
Canon PowerShot G16 Key Features
- Built-in WiFi
- 12MP CMOS sensor
- New Digic 6 image processor
- ISO range up to 12800
- HD video up to 1080p/60fps
- 5x optical zoom, f/1.8-2.8 (28-140mm, 35mm equivalent)
- Optical viewfinder that zooms with lens
- High speed autofocus
- Burst rate up to 9.3fps
- Intelligent IS automatically chooses from six different stabilization modes
- RAW and JPEG image capture
- Compatible with Canon Speedlite flashes
- HDR Scene Mode
- New Star Shooting Mode for night sky photography
The Canon PowerShot G16 will be available at Adorama in October for $549.99 and can be pre-ordered now.
Canon PowerShot S120: Pocket Rocket
The predecessors of the Canon PowerShot S120 have gained a reputation as the pocket camera of choice for many professional photographers thanks to their high image quality and shirt pocketability. The S120 succeeds last year’s S110 with the same 12.1MP, 1/1.7-inch sensor. New is a re-tooled and slightly faster 24-120mm (35mm equivalent) f/1.8-2.8 lens, a revamped DIGIC 6 proessor, and virtually no shutter lag. The camera boasts a new Star Shooting mode and a Background Defocus mode, which adds blur to the background while keeping the subject in focus.
Popular features carried over from the S120 include a touch screen high-resolution LCD monitor, 6-way intelligent image stabilization, HDR scene mode, high-speed autofocus, 1080p HD video capture, and up to 9.4 fps burst rate.
Canon PowerShot S120 key features:
- 12MP CMOS sensor
- New DIGIC 6 image processor
- 24-120mm f/1.8-2.8 lens (35mm equivalent)
- 3-inch 922k dot touch screen LCD monitor
- Built-in Wi-Fi
- High-speed AF
- 9.4 fps burst mode
- Star Shooting mode
- Background defocus mode
- Shirt-poket sized
The Canon PowerShot S120 will be available from Adorama in October for $449 and can be pre-ordered now.
Canon PowerShot SX510 HS: Long Ranger
The Canon PowerShot SX510 HS is a powerzoom compact digital camera featuring a 30x zoom lens that starts at 24mm (35mm equivalent) which should appeal to travellers who need a versatile all-in-one camera. The sensor is the same 12.1MP CMOS sensor that can be found on the above models, but with the older DIGIC 4 image processor. The camera records 1080p full HD video. Canon claims improved autofocus speed and reduced shutter lag.
New features include built-in WiFi that works via Canon’s iMAGE GATEWAY, which includes an iOS and Android app. The SX510 has Zoom Framing AAssist, which Canon says maintains the correct distance from the subject’s face using face recognition to track and capture subjects.
The Canon PowerShot SX510 HS will be available from Adorama in September for $249.99.
Canon PowerShot SX170 IS: Budget Buster
The Canon PowerShot SX170 is the only budget-priced new camera annunced by Canon. Featuring a 16x optical zoom lens that starts at 28mm (35mm equivalent), it has optical image stabilization and Canon claims fast AF speed. The sensor is 16MP and captures 720p HD video. The camera is geared towards snapshooters, offering Smart Auto technology which automatically selects the best setting combination for the scene, using 32 predefined shooting situations as a reference. The camera has a 3-inch LCD monitor and is powered by a li-ion battery.
The Canon PowerShot SX170 IS will be available from Adorama in September for $179.99.
Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM Lens
Designed for use in Canon’s APS-sensor based DSLRs, the new Canon EF 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM telephoto zoom lens boasts especially quiet zoom operation, making it the sixth STM lens in the Canon line. STM lenses use the same STepping Motor, which is virtually silent and is therefore best suited for video capture. (A DSLR’s on-camera mic will pick up zoom sounds, which is why we generally recommend using an off-camera microphone.)
The new 55-250mm lens is a consumer-grade lens with one UD element that Canon says will reduce chromatic aberration, a 7-blade circular aperture, and focusing as close as 2.79 feet. The Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM Lens will be available by October from Adorama for $349.99.
The August Announcement
An interesting side note: Late August has traditionally been the time when Canon has announced a barrage of new products; it is no surprise that although Canon’s annual August announcement came as expected, the number of new products was greatly reduced. We can probably blame this on the growing popularity of smart phone cameras. Will Canon’s focus on a handful of more sophisticated, Wi-Fi equipped models change recent consumer habits? Time will tell.
