I had a set of these I used in a classroom environment, so they got a lot of wear and tear by teenagers. Of the ten I bought a few years ago, only one is still functional, and part of that is broken. What I like: It's not just point and shoot. You can manually set aperture, shutter speed, and ISO - it's a great camera to learn on for that reason. What I don't like: these cameras ate several of our SD cards. It's possible the cards malfunctioned on their own, but it seemed like these particular cameras were the cause of the problems. Also, a number of them just completely stopped working, and the one we have left that's still in circulation - the end of the lens broke off. These definitely weren't as durable as I had hoped. The image quality is okay considering how old this model is, but if I were buying a camera today I would want more pixels. I do like that the batteries are double A's - no need for expensive proprietary ones.

Jakejake2

Sterling Heights, MI

The Powershot A520 is a 4.0 mega pixel camera with very many features for the amount I payed for it. Its a little bulky in comparison to most cameras nowadays but would I would still recommend it. Check out the entire Powershot series for some amazing cameras.

akathedrummer

Beverly Hills, CA

This camera was recommended to me by a friend who does amateur photography.  I wanted an easy to use digital camera that gives quality pics.  This camera fills the bill.  Simple point and shoot use, as well as takes short videos.  I've used this camera alot during our house hunting. 

svgdairy

East Berlin, PA

I think Canon has made a niche in Digital cameras. CanonA 520  has a very good picture quality with 5x optical zoom. The LCD screen is also very good. The different picture options and function to adjust the lightning conditions are some great features. The menu is simple and its easy to transfer photos to computer for future storage. The battery life is also good compared to other digital cameras I have used before.I am also impressed with its video quality. Ofcourse not  as good as of a camcorder but very good compared to other digital cameras I have seen or used before.

ashuatweb

Houston, TX

The camera is small and light weight. Easy to use. Is durable. Worth the money spent. It does have delay in taking the picture which is not always good. But the camera itself is a good buy. The pictures normally turn out clear. Comes with software that helps you create a picture album. It is only 4.0 megapixels though. All I could afford at the time.

bpaeharris

Oklahoma City, OK

I love this camera, it can take beautiful still shots or catch something in action. Many options for picture taking. Easy reading and easy to understand and use. I wouldn't buy another camera.  I use it to take pictures of my family, my pets and nature. Its great to stick in my pocket book to take with me for whenever a need arises for pictures to be taken such as Birthday party's, special occasions or spontaneous events.  I honestly thought that because I didn't pay alot for my camera that my pictures would not be as good but I was wrong. You can also do short video's with sound with the built in microphone.  I had no problems just picking the camera out of the box and using it before using the manual which is unusual for me. There is also two manuals one for fast usage and the other for advance. I love the fact I can upload all my pictures to my PC and use on-line or print out on my own.

babs1966

Glens Falls, NY

- It's been a reliable camera that takes clear pics. Just point, focus and shoot.  It has many options that makes it easier to take pics. - It also takes AVI video but it's limited to (3) minutes. - Pics and video are stored on SD cards.  When one fills up, slide in another one. - Take it with you anywhere so you won't get caught saying " I wish I had a camera! "

Salsero

Vancouver, WA

I have had this camera for about 5 years now. I was so happy to receive it as a gift from my husband as I never had a digital camera before. I have used it quite often, on every vacation we've been on and it takes great photos. Canon is the only camera brand I have owned and I do like it. The only thing that I don't care for AT ALL is the battery life; the batteries seem to die after about 12 pictures. I constantly have to change them. Other than that, the camera is easy to use. Didn't take me long to figure out how. It is easy to upload my pictures to my computer. The quality is also pretty good. It is getting to be a bit outdated now, only 6 megapixels, so maybe time for a new one. All in all, it has been a great first digital camera for me and I would definetly reccomend to anyone that was looking for a simple digital camera.

myview79

Atco, NJ

This is the first digital camera I ever owned and it definitely did the trick. After being very dissappointed with our film camera at the birth of our first child we very quickly switched over. It's definitely handy when you have kids who move around a lot because you can never get that perfect picture on the first shot. Now I can so easily delete the ones I don't want and that way I'm only left with the good ones. Now if you're not into photography then this one has all the options you'll ever need. I usually stick with the basics but there's plenty to choose from if you're taking moving shots or outside or want to switch to black and white it's all there. I also like it because the batteries don't need to be changed every week. And then if you have rechargables that's even better. It's also nice and small so you can easily take it with you where ever you go and not have to carry a huge bag with. Overall it's small, easy to use and affordable.

dream2183

Walhalla, ND

The powershot A250 is a good quality camera for those of us that aren't serious enough in photography to get a DSLR. It's a little pricey, especially nowadays, when electronics are getting cheaper and cheaper, but I recieved mine years ago and it's still going strong. The battery life is one major issue that I have, however. This thing eats batteries like crazy! It takes two double A batteries, which also make it rather heavy. There is also a delay when you switch from camera-mode to gallery view mode, though I do like how you can look through all of the pictures taken previously. There are many modes on this camera including a self-timer, nighttime, macro (not the best), and it can take very short movies. You can switch to any of these settings by turning the wheel at the top and selecting one of the modes on the screen. It's very simple to use, and the display screen, while small, does its job well.

Emmery

Raleigh, NC