Canon - PowerShot SD800 IS / IXUS 850 IS Digital Camera Review

I bought my Canon SD800 iS at Staples for a trip to Texas that I took with my family. Before buying this camera I solely relied on disposables for all my pictures because I have no idea how to use film. I thought digital photography sounded like a dream come true.

Now I really wish I had gotten a digital camera sooner. For my first son I took him to the photo places and got pictures done with some regularity but I never had very many at home pictures of things that he did. When I got this camera he was about 18 months old and we were planning a vacation to southern Texas to visit his great grandparents. Never having visited Texas before I definitely wanted to have a nice camera to capture every moment.

I chose the Canon SD800 IS because it was very reasonably priced. It was the last one they had in stock so I got it for a little more than $100. I knew Canon was a good brand in cameras and I liked the large screen as well as the ease of use. It has many options that I still haven't discovered how to use, or even what they are for but I love that there is an auto mode that has face recognition so I get clear pictures every time. One of my favorite things is the zoom and even if you zoom in 15x and it looks like a big blur, once you take the picture you can see something miles away very clearly.

Now that I have my second child I rarely take him to photo places but I have a million pictures of both my boys stored tidily on my computer. I can print them from home for frames, albums or grandparents. I use my camera on a daily basis. Every time one of my kids does something cute or we go to an event or a vacation I am ready to make our memories last a lifetime.

This camera also has a video feature and can record short videos. I have a 2G memory card that held an entire graduationi ceremony, portions of concerts that we have seen, and my kids giggling on the swings at the park. I love being able to look back at those moments and relive them with the video feature.

The flash is optional and there is an automatic setting where the camera decides if it is necessary or not, or you can manually change it. There are also settings for more advanced photographers that I have not used, but they are there none the less.

On the bottom of the camera is a place to attach a tripod, there is a timer feature which allows you to set a timer for 10 seconds, 2 minutes, or customize it to whatever length of time you require. I have only used this a few times but do like it.

The only problem I have had with this camera is the lens stopped coming out all the way when it was turned on a few months after I bought it. Being it was still under warranty I just had to ship it back to Canon and they repaired it very quickly and for free, then returned it to me. The worst part was it was just before we went to Las Vegas so I had to borrow my sister's Kodak camera and was very disappointed with the pictures I got from it.

One other great thing about this camera is it comes with a square battery pack and outlet charger instead of using AA batteries. My battery pack has outlasted multiple sets of rechargeable AA batteries my friends and family use in their cameras. When fully charged, it is very easy for me to use up my 2G SD card before the batteries die.

All of the buttons on this camera are easily located and used. I really like the setup and the fact that I can use it without having to break out the instruction manual every time. It is also very easy to instruct others how to use it when they take our pictures or something like that.

Overall I would highly recommend this or any other Canon camera to anybody looking for a great digital camera. It is fairly small, though not as compact as others on the market, it fits nicely into a pocket. There is also a wrist strap to make it easy to take along. I love the pictures it takes, they are always clear and it clicks quickly so I don't miss a single moment.