Silver or Champagne, Madam? (Canon Digital Ixus 750)

Member Name: lauricha

Product:	Canon Digital Ixus 750
Date:	26/05/06 (369 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Small, lightweight and simple to use!

Disadvantages: Expensive, but its worth it.

It’s about time I did a review on a camera seen as my husband is a senior camera technician so I am going to review one of his favourite cameras from a technicians point of view, and from a users view (with his help of course!)

______Cosmetic Appearance______

The Canon Ixus 750 has a sleek metal casing available in both silver and champagne (slightly gold, and in my opinion the sexier of the two!) colours. The casing is very solid and will withstand a beating, though scratches do show quite easily. The curve on the left hand side is a trademark of the “Canon style”. The shutter and zoom buttons are conveniently located on the top right of the camera which in my opinion is the best place for them, unlike most Nikon, Sony and Fuji digital cameras which have them in the rear casing and are more difficult to have access to.

All in all, it’s a trendy, stylish design that is fashionable, funky, very sexy and practical.

Rating: 9/10

______The Lens______

So why would I be writing about the lens first? Well, the better the lens, the better the pictures as you’ll see below! The lens on this camera is amazing. It is very similar to the previous versions (the Ixus 400, 430 and 500). Canon had a winning design and has stuck with it, which makes the camera not only up-to-date, but a tried and tested formula. The glass elements give superbly sharp results. It’s not all about megapixels as some people would have you believe. You could have a 20 megapixel camera with a rubbish lens and get poor photos, or a 2 megapixel with a great lens and have shockingly good results (don’t be fooled by the ‘Leica’ and ‘Carl Zeiss’ labels that Panasonic and Sony put on their cameras, they are literally just labels). With a 7.1 megapixel CCD and, in my opinion, the best lens in the compact digital camera range, the Ixus 750 has it all. And to top it off the lens barrel is equipped with 3x optical zoom, which does not reduce the quality at all.

It’s a tried and tested mechanism that gives superb results all the time.

Rating: 9/10

______The LCD______

The LCD is the viewing screen located on the rear of the camera. The Ixus 750 has one of the largest on the market (at the moment), boasting a 2.5” LCD screen which is not only large but also has a very good resolution. It’s so easy to see what you’re photographing, and has the bonus feature of being able to ‘zoom’ into the photo once taken, enabling you to read a newspaper from 10m away! There are several brightness levels to the backlight which are useful for varying light conditions and for saving the battery life.

A bright, pristine screen that’s clear and vivid, a definite winner!

Rating: 8/10

______The Battery & Charger______

The battery used in the Ixus 750 is the same as many other Ixus models such as the Ixus i. It is small and more lightweight than most which means you won’t get a dead arm while holding the camera (as the battery normally doubles the weight of a camera!). It is powerful enough to take a couple of hundred photos depending on the memory card’s capacity. If travelling, I would advise taking a spare battery with you as you can’t buy a disposable battery for this camera, unlike most Nikons. They can be bought from most photographic shops, but beware of imitations as they will die after a few months of use. Stick to the Canon brand. The charger is very small and user-friendly; it’s actually half the size of the camera. The battery is placed in the charger and charges within a couple of hours. If you have two batteries this enables you to charge one and still shoot with the other, which means you wont miss those all important shots!

Easy to use and fast charging makes this a superior package.

Rating: 7/10

______ The Features ______

Canon has had more experience in cameras than nearly every other rival company, and as such has perfected the functions and features in this camera. The shooting modes are extensive, including…

Auto
Manual
Digital Macro (close up work)
Special Scene mode (Portrait, Foliage, Snow, Beach, Fireworks, Underwater, Indoor, Kids & Pets, Night Snapshot, choose which best suits the situation, point and shoot!)
Movie…

…and more! There are enough modes to satisfy the camera enthusiast, and an all round ‘Auto’ mode that even the most inexperienced photographer can take amazing pictures with. The movie mode allows this camera to double up as a digital video camera, and with a 1 GB SD memory card up to 2 hours of video can be stored.

Easy to use, not so complicated a budding enthusiast will be put off, not so simple a professional will get bored. With more than enough settings and options to play with, stunning results are guaranteed.

Rating: 10/10

______ Accessories ______

The camera takes SD memory cards which can be purchased pretty much anywhere. The camera comes with:

SD 32MB Card,
Li-ion NB-3L battery,
Charger,
USB cable,
A/V cable,
Neck strap
and all the relevant software.

It’s worth getting a sturdy case, especially if you’re going travelling. Insurance and extended warranties are also advisable as cameras aren’t as sturdy as they used to be, for example the Canon A1! The camera comes with a USB cable which means the camera can be plugged into a computer or laptop to download the pictures and movies. The software means you’ll be able to print Snappy Snap quality pictures at home!

______ The Technician’s Opinion ______

Now here’s where Phil and all my training comes in! The camera is very well built, each component being attached to a solid metal frame and then enclosed in a metal casing. This means that if the camera is dropped or knocked the camera wont fall into a million pieces like some of its plastic counterparts! The lens barrel is sturdy although quite often needs major repairs carried out if it’s knocked or dropped while the lens barrel is open or the lens is extended. A down side of the 2.5” LCD screen is that it is easier to break if dropped or even crushed in a pocket or bag, and is not cheap to replace! Unfortunately, without the LCD the camera is pretty much useless. But if care is taken then this camera will last a good number of years.

Phil’s overall rating: 9½/10

______ My Opinion ______

Well, even though I worked in the camera shop, I wouldn’t call myself an expert. However, this camera is so easy and simple to use. It’s lightweight which is good for my tiny arms and I must say I've had some stunning photos printed which, if I may add, I'm quite pleased of! The only thing is, because it’s so sleek it’s easy to slip and drop it so I keep the wristband around my wrist all the time. The screen isn’t so good in the sunlight but the viewfinder works when the screen doesn’t. It’s not a bad little camera!


______ Where Can I Buy It From? ______

The camera can be bought from high street shops such as Dixons and Jessops, but often it’s best browsing the internet for the best prices.

Buyacamera.co.uk are currently selling the camera at £404.93 whereas dabs.com are selling the same thing for £211.98. So shop around and you’ll find a great deal! Beware of buying on EBay though; make sure your getting a working camera!

Summary: Brilliant results with this little camera, simple and sexy.

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