Original URL: http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2008/04/22/review_canon_digital_ixus_970_is/
Review How do you improve on an existing product? Well, you can change the colour, you can add new features... or you can do what Canon has done with the Ixus 970 and give it a radical new redesign.
The Ixus 970 isn’t ugly, but it’s not as good looking as previous Canon cameras we’ve seen. The left-hand side of the body has a straight edge while the right tapers to a smooth rounded curve. The top has a large shutter button and zoom rocker, but Canon has moved the power stud from the top and placed it at the back.
Canon's Ixus 970 IS: not as stylish as past compact Canons
The power key is a small white button that’s recessed to prevent accidental activation. Press it - and you have to press it pretty darn hard - and it glows a pleasant green colour, and then the Ixus 970 springs into action. Also at the back is a bright 2.7in LCD screen with 230,000 pixels which Canon has complemented with a tiny optical viewfinder.
The rear is also home to a selector switch for the various camera modes; a four-way rocker control with a central function-set button; plus buttons for playback, printing, display mode and menu. Around the rocker control is a ring which, when moved, enables you to select various features from an on-screen set of graphics which changes according to the camera mode you're in.
It’s all neat and functional. The mini USB jack for transferring images is hidden behind a plastic flap on the side, and at the bottom there's a spring-loaded flap for the battery and SD/SDHC cards.
Not so long ago, we reviewed Canon’s Ixus 960 (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2008/04/01/review_canon_ixus_960_is/), a 12-megapixel beast with a 3x optical zoom. Well, this time, Canon has turned the specification on its head, giving the Ixus 970 a ten-megapixel CCD and a 5x optical zoom. We have to say that we think Canon has got its priorities right, because most of us would be hard pushed to tell the difference between a ten- and 12-megapixel image, even on a large print, but there is a big difference between a 3x and 5x optical zoom.
That’s the good news. Sadly, however, the Ixus 970’s zoom lens is a bit of a disappointment if you’re looking to do some wide-angle shooting, because the specifications are 6.6-33.0mm, which is equivalent to 37-185mm on a 35mm camera.
At the back is a bright 2.7in LCD screen with a 230,000-pixel resolution
Other features include a shutter speed range from 1/60-1/600 second; ISO rating from 80 to 1600, with a 3200 ISO mode; face-detection technology, including an extra enhancement Face Select and Track; motion-detection coupled with image stabilisation to reduce the effects of camera shake; red-eye correction, which works in both shooting and post-shooting modes; 18 shooting modes, including portrait, foliage, snow, kids and pets; and a bunch of colour effects.
Oh, and it also shoots movies at 30f/s in both 640 x 480 and 320 x 240 resolutions, and 15f/s at 160 x 120 resolution. You also get the usual bunch of Canon accessories - battery, charger, connecting cables - and a miserly 32MB memory card.
Switch on the Ixus 970 and the zoom lens sticks its long nose out of the front. It’s quite a comfortable camera to hold and operating the large shutter button in tandem with the zoom rocker is a cinch. In auto mode, the camera does everything but make the tea, but there’s also what Canon laughingly describes as manual mode.
If your idea of manual mode is being able to select a number of ISO settings, exposure compensation and white balance presets that’s fine, but we think Canon is being a little, shall we say, imaginative with its choice of terminology.
Canon has moved the power button from the top and placed it at the back
The menu system is a little fiddly and doesn’t give you much time to make up your mind, so you often find yourself re-pressing buttons to return to the menu screen. The selection ring worked but it’s not the most ergonomic system we’ve used. However, the Ixus 970 warms up fast and there’s minimal shutter lag.
In continuous shooting mode, it takes around 1.5 seconds to fire off a shot, but this almost doubles if you use the flash. As expected, the extra long zoom is one of the camera’s highlights, but as we said earlier, not so great if you’re trying to squeeze in a wide angle shot.
Sample shots
Click for full-size images
(http://regmedia.co.uk/2008/04/20/light_and_shade_big.jpg)
The Ixus 970 IS was good at reproducing subtleties in light and shade, as this picture illustrates
(http://regmedia.co.uk/2008/04/20/iso_big.jpg)
At ISO 1600 you can clearly see the noise on this toy dinosaur
Sample shots
(http://regmedia.co.uk/2008/04/20/macro_big.jpg)
There were no problems with close-up shooting
(http://regmedia.co.uk/2008/04/20/zoom_1_big.jpg)
One of the features that will grab many people’s attention is the 5x optical zoom
(http://regmedia.co.uk/2008/04/20/zoom_2_big.jpg)
This shot gives you an idea of how good this camera is for long-range shooting
The face-detection system worked fine, but we weren’t convinced about the value of the Face Select and Track option. First, you have to go through a fiddly process of assigning the print button to the Face Select and Track mode, which means diving into the menu. Once you’ve done that, the Ixus 970 is good to go.
The FST system is supposed to detect a face and then track it if moves. Up to a point it does, but we don’t think it’s too much of a burden to move the camera yourself and follow the subject. The much-vaunted motion-detection system didn’t seem to make that big a difference to Canon’s bog-standard image-stabilisation system, either.
The Ixus 970 performs well, but then so do many cameras at this price point. We’re not sure about the new design, and nor are we that thrilled with the features, even with a 5x optical zoom. On paper, the feature set looks pretty decent, but the lack of manual control and a wider angle setting at the smaller end of the focal range is a letdown. The Ixus 970 isn’t bad - but we were rather hoping for something a little more exciting from Canon.
 | Canon Digital Ixus 970 IS |
| Summary | The 970 IS seems a great buy on paper, but this lacklustre offering is left in the shade by some of its rivals |
|---|---|
| Rating | 65% |
| Price | £299 |
| More info | The Ixus 970 IS page on Canon's UK website (http://www.canon.co.uk/For_Home/Product_Finder/Cameras/Digital_Camera/IXUS/Digital_IXUS_970_IS/index.asp) |
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