 "the A510 has never, ever failed me" | 2008-07-03 |
| - Reviewed By snowtea |
| I am an artist who takes a lot of carefully composed photographs. I chose the A510 as my first digital camera, five years ago after many hours of research and review reading. It has, up until very recently, been my main instrument, has never failed me in any way and for a point and shoot - low or higher end - it takes absolutely fantastic pictures in all conditions and has manual overrides for most features, which was an essential for me. I opted for the A series as opposed to the SD series, as image quality was reported to be (and is) better with the As. In addition, I shoot quite a bit in low light, so the fact that it is a little heavier than the SDs is good as it keeps steady. I have perfectly clear images of the night sky using the manual time exposure feature, handheld! The weight is mostly dues to the fact that the A510 uses AA batteries, which although I have to carry extras, it works out better for a traveler like me since I can always get AAs and can't always get an outlet to plug into. It is, however, quite compact and lightweight, enough that I literally always have it with me and never think of it as extra weight in my bag. As reported in many reviews, the A510 has better image quality than the A520, and has superior image quality for most cameras in its class. Prints look great up to 8x10. My only two complaints are the following. 1) The flash leaves a lot to be desired. I typically bounce the flash (when I use it, which is rarely) off of a neutral colored object to diminish washout. The flash is far too strong even on its lowest setting. and 2) The manual focus feature is weak. It works, but not very well. But really, what are you expecting from a lower end point and shoot? I personally was not surprised, nor do I care much. The fully functional macro feature more than makes up for the lack of manual focus. But those are my only complaints, and they rarely have ever affected the way I take pictures. I would consider the newer versions of this camera without hesitation. The A510 has an enormous number of features, all of which work amazingly well with those two small exceptions. After using it to capture nearly 20,000 pictures, I find that it still works just like new. For newer technologies, that is saying something. Nice work, Canon. |
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| "No disappointment" | 2008-05-21 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2XQW4TEK9FJL2 |
I've had this camera for about 5 years now and I've used it in all kinds of situations, including night clubs, traveling, day/night, carnivals, etc. I have to say I have never been disappointed in the picture quality that this camera offers. The zoom is pretty amazing and the pictures come out great when you use it. The colors are quite true and, if you are anything like me sometimes, it allows you to have somewhat of a shaky hand and still take a focused picture.
My boyfriend has a 'Nikon Coolpix S3' and when it comes to taking pictures at night, he just asks to use mine because his always come out blurry.
It's definitely a product that holds up as time passes by, and gives Canon a good name when it comes to the quality of their digital cameras. |
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 "Canon Powershot A510 negatives" | 2007-12-26 |
| - Reviewed By User: AS7WUYIMVTNQD |
| I bought the Canon Powershot A510 two years ago and was very happy with the quality of pictures. However, during the past several months I noticed that my battery charge was not lasting as long as it should. I first blamed it on my charger and bought a new one. Its not the batteries or the charger, its the camera. It completely drains the batteries within seconds. The camera is now unusable and I probably won't buy another Canon camera. |
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 "Later models improve, but this isn't bad at all" | 2007-06-28 |
| - Reviewed By User: A134KTZ5BGOOXA |
Let me start with the bad, and get the complaining out of the way.
First, the CCD is a little bit on the noisy side, especially in low light situations. That said, I'm still surprised at the number of low-light, no-flash pictures that can be salvaged in Photoshop.
Second, it has an artificial limit on video length - 30 seconds at 640x480 and 3 minutes at lower resolutions. I cannot see any good reason for this, as the A530 and A540 can record video until you run out of power or memory. Also, those later models will let you do "digital zoom" while shooting and this camera will not. The zoom ratio you start with is what you are stuck with for the entire video.
Third, the flash recycle time is longer than I would like. This is probably due to the choice of two AA batteries as a power source, and it does not seem to be any better on my mother's A530.
Fourth, the display is small. It's a small camera, deal with it. You can zoom in on a picture if you feel it's necessary to check it on the spot.
Finally, it has significant barrel distortion at the wide end of the zoom range. Most of the time you aren't going to notice, but it is visible and somewhat bothersome in architectural photos.
These flaws rule out a five-star rating, but the camera still has plenty going for it.
First, the optics are sharp, although I noted the distortion issue above. I do not get the purple fringing I have seen on some other cameras. I believe these optics went unchanged into the A530 and A540, which means they are probably overkill for a 3.2MP sensor. The f/2.6 maximum aperture is quite usable.
Second, the flash is surprisingly good. The red-eye reduction doesn't work particularly well, but it never does with a flash this close to the lens axis (and you can fix that in the bundled software). I noted the cycle time issue, but I can't complain about the amount of light generated once it does charge.
Third, it's not as hungry as some other cameras I've tried. I would tell you how long one set of NiMH AA batteries last, but I can't -- I've never been able to run them flat. I just pop in freshly charged batteries before every adventure and I'm good to go. The fact that it uses AA batteries also means you're never more than a trip to 7-11 away from a fresh charge, if the situation calls for it.
Fourth, it's very versatile. The "Auto" mode is dead simple to operate, enabling macro focusing is a single button press, the zoom is very intuitive, the pre-focusing behaves exactly like you would expect from a larger camera, and it does shoot video with sound. At the same time, it has manual mode, Av and Tv modes, a rear-curtain flash sync mode, and many other ways to bend it far beyond mere snapshots. Simple when you need it, complex when you want it -- perfect balance. The mode wheel is a good, old-fashioned click wheel, so once you memorize where your favorite click stops are, you don't even have to look. As you would expect from a Canon camera, it also has 2-second and 10-second self-timer modes, so you can line up a family photo and have time to sneak yourself into it. The camera sits quite stably, so you can usually improvise a platform to use if you don't carry a folding tripod.
Fifth, the included Windows software is pretty good. You don't absolutely have to use it, but if you don't want to, you pretty much have to use a card reader to transfer. Thus it's fairly important that the software is both easy to use and flexible enough to do most of the things you want.
Sixth, it uses a standard "mini USB" cable to connect to the computer. This means that if you ever lose it, or wish to have a spare, you do not have to get a special part. Also, since so many other devices use the same style cable, you can (as I do) leave the cable permanently attached to the computer and attach devices to it as necessary. I have a webcam and MP3 player that use the same type of cable, so there's usually something attached.
Finally, it has a removable ring around the lens to attach an adapter, allowing you to attach all manner of filters, wide and tele lens extenders, or whatever you would want to attach. The Canon adapter is also threaded to 52 mm, which is a very common filter size. If you have an old SLR, chances are you already own some 52 mm filters.
If you are wondering if 3.2MP is enough and you wouldn't be better off with more megapixels, all I can say is this: If you don't know exactly why you need more than this resolution... you probably don't. I have been able to run 12" by 18" color laser prints from my pictures with quite acceptable quality -- do YOU have access to a printer bigger than that? I would not mind an upgrade to the A530, but only because of its significantly better video capabilities. More pixels in the same size sensor usually means more noise and longer save times between pictures, though admittedly you do not have to run at maximum resolution at all times. It generally is easiest though to shoot at the highest resolution and worry about reducing it after you get home.
If you feel you need the enhanced capabilites of the A530 or A540 (for an additional $50-120, last I checked), then by all means buy one. You won't be disappointed. But if you want an inexpensive, pocketable camera that doesn't take cheap-looking pictures, you can't go wrong with the A510. All the accessories are the same, so if you decide to upgrade later, it is only the camera you have to buy. |
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| "Very nice camera!" | 2007-04-20 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2TPG89E43NFGC |
| Great camera and bought on sale it was a true deal. The camera is easy to use and it takes great pix. Quality and a decent price, what more can you ask? |
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 "TERRIBLE CAMERA AND SUPPORT" | 2007-04-07 |
| - Reviewed By psfrankj |
| I purchased this camera over one year ago at Amazon and over the past several months image quality began to deteriorate when taking out of doors pictures. At this point all images shot out of doors are now all white washed out. I called Tech Support and they told me that one of two automated digital devices on the camera were defective and that the camera was out of warranty. I would have to pay more than what this used camera is worth to fix it OR I COULD BUY ANOTHER MORE EXPENSIVE CANON AT VIRTUALLY THE SAME DISCOUNTED PRICE OFFERED BY AMAZON AND, TO BOOT, THE REPLACEMENT CAMERA DIRECT FROM CANON WOULD NOT BE NEW!!!!! Such a deal. This is my second very bad experience with Canon, the first with TWO VIDEO CAMS which, as with this PowerShot, were rarely used at all. I got stuck with those two videocams as well with no support from Canon. I recommend Sharp and Samsung as much more reliable electronic devices in general terms. YES, I am embarassed to admit that I did this three times! I now own two video cams, one Sharp and one Samsung. NEVER AGAIN CANON. |
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| "love it !" | 2007-01-13 |
| - Reviewed By tlt5548 |
| its one of best I own for the money , easy to zoom and operate. |
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| "No doubt, one of the best reasonable cameras" | 2007-01-13 |
| - Reviewed By xz38 |
| I bought it after reading tons of reviews. I vote it as the best camera under 150$. High quality picture, rich functions, universal interface. I heard it can afford up to 2GB SD card. So take your video clips after buying a hight discounted 1GB or 2GB SD card.Super! |
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| "Terrific Camera" | 2007-01-08 |
| - Reviewed By User: AYNGYGN306EMI |
| I purchased this 1 year ago as a Christmas present for my inlaws. They strictly used film cameras and hardly used their computer. They love the camera and the software that it came with. There have been no complaints or concerns over the past year. I definitely recommend this product. |
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| "Great customer service, good camera" | 2006-05-16 |
| - Reviewed By User: AJTB3FOQT71TQ |
My mom & I have each have one of these cameras. Neither, one of us has had any problems until recently. I dropped mine while taking pictures with the timer. The drop on my tile floor smashed the telescoping lens out of alignment and wouldn't close and gave a E8 error on the screen. I contacted the canon US website then, I sent it into the canon repair center in IL. It cost $87 to have it repaired and shipped back. It took about a week and a half to have it returned to me.
The only thing I would improve about this camera is the speed, I had trouble taking pictures of my son on the merry go round(but it could be that I need to change settings). It has many features on it and accessories to add on. Since, I am learning more about digital photography this is a great little starter camera to have with many features that canon is known for. Also recently I've been looking at some of the newer canon models, their casing/ bodies look/feel really cheap to me. It may make them lighter but it makes me really afraid that I would break them. |
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