The stalker cam is here! See the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS wield its 35x optical zoom in our full review.
Canon PowerShot SX30 IS Overview
Out of the five new Canon cameras announced this Fall, the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS represents the most revamped model in the fleet. Canon bumped the optical zoom up to a monstrous 35x optical magnification, expanded the sensor to 14.1-megapixels, boosted the LCD screen size, and gave the PowerShot SX30 IS a rechargeable lithium ion battery in place of an AA battery power source. The Canon PowerShot SX30 IS has also undergone an aesthetic overhaul, including the addition of a mini HDMI port, and it refreshes its shooting feature arsenal with some of the latest updates brought on by 2010. For the zoom junkie, the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS will take you places that are uncomfortably close—places no Super Zoom digital camera has ever dared to venture.
Canon PowerShot SX30 IS Design
Canon has scrapped the ugly two-tone SX body design we've seen on the PowerShot SX10 IS and PowerSHot SX20 IS and replaced it with an all black body featuring ergonomically altered construction. The Canon PowerShot SX30 IS ‘s button placement is nearly identical to its predecessors, flaunting a large spinning Control dial in back with quick functions. This year, Canon has migrated Macro and Manual Focus into one option, clearing space for an Exposure Compensation option on the top of the directional pad. We get the same independent Video Record button, along with a customizable Shortcut button that can be assigned to nearly any manual control.
The Canon PowerShot SX30 IS is still a hefty beast, measuring slightly below the average entry-level DSLR. This year, Canon added a rubberized cover to the SX30 IS's accessory shoe, located directly behind the popup flash. We still get a nice big shutter button/zoom rocker combination, which shifted smoothly throughout the entire focal length range. The Canon PowerShot SX30 IS also bounces from a 2.5-inch flip out, rotating LCD to a 2.7-incher. Unfortunately, the basic 230,000-pixel resolution is retained on the LCD, making Manual Focus a difficult task. Canon switched to a large rechargeable lithium ion battery pack this year, and the camera supports SDXC memory cards in addition to SD and SDHC cards.
Shooting with the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS
While we loved the menus and navigation offered by the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS, we'd have to go with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ40 for shooting features—but just by a hair. The FZ40 has a handy rear dial that can alternate between tasks and acts as a hybrid selection button. In addition, the FZ40 gave us a 60-second shutter speed, 23-frame AF mode, and the ability to shoot in RAW. While the FZ40 may entertain the slightly more advanced crowd, the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS still has plenty of tricks up its sleeve.
Aside from a 15-second maximum shutter speed and f/2.7-f/8.0 aperture range, the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS has Focus and Auto Exposure Bracketing, FlexiZone AF, and tons of color adjustments. The Canon PowerShot SX30 IS also received the new Super Vivid and Poster modes found on the higher-end PowerShots, and it offers a gaggle of additional Scene modes like Portrait, Sports, Landscape, and Foliage. We loved the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS's Macro mode because it allowed us to get up close and personal, but the most important feature was its Optical Image Stabilization, which performed adequately at full zoom.
Although the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS falls behind the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ40 by a leg at the Shooting Features finish line, it still packs in plenty of options for the shooting looking for versatility. Plus, there's also image quality to consider.
Canon PowerShot SX30 IS Still Image Quality
As we expected, the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS exhibited a more basic point-and-shoot type of performance than what we've seen over the past week with the Canon PowerShot S95 and G12. Noise was a bit hectic in low light situations where we had to use higher ISO settings around 1600, and certain bright light images showed signs of smaller imager syndrome. Purple fringing along borders and a general lack of fine detail at full resolution helped us come to the conclusion that, like the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ40, the Canon PowerShot could not be used for more advanced photography applications like a gallery or magazine shot.
However, the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS does have an edge over the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ40 in the image quality department. We were still able to attain some impressive shots with the SX30 IS, in addition to playing around with the camera's fun filters. The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ40 gave a solid mediocre performance across the board, so we had to hand it to Canon. However, there was no need to pump the size of the SX30 IS's image sensor up to 14-megapixels. We feel as though that hurt the camera's light gathering capabilities in the long run. Still, the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS is one of the better cameras with a basic imaging sensor, and definitely beat Panasonic in this realm.
Now the tables have turned. The Canon PowerShot SX30 IS fails to match the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ40 when it comes to video. Both cameras capture 720p 30fps HD video, but the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS shoots in the .MOV H.264 format while the FZ40 shoots in AVCHD Lite, which is a higher quality format that is employed by many advanced camcorders.
The bottom line is that the SX30 IS is better for still images while the FZ40 is better for videos. There were not many controls in video mode on the SX30 IS. We were able to apply color filters, adjust the White Balance, and shoot in a few digital filters. The height of the camera's advancement was its Manual Mic control, while the FZ40 offered a full Manual video mode.
All in all, the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS cranked out a mediocre HD video performance, which is typical from such a small sensor with a large megapixel count.
Canon PowerShot SX30 IS Final Answer
This is a tough one. The Canon PowerShot SX30 IS offers one of the biggest zooms to ever hit the digital camera market. It flaunts many upgrades from last year's SX20 IS, and many of them—like the larger LCD, lithium ion battery, and new shooting features—are welcome. However, the push for more megapixels hurts the camera in the long run.
If you're on the fence between the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ40, know this. We loved the SX30 IS's big zoom, excellent features and navigation, foldout rotating LCD, and revamped body design. On the FZ40, we liked the AVCHD Lite HD video performance than the PowerShot SX30 IS's H.264 format, and the FZ40 offered more advanced manual controls. When it came down to image quality, the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS wins.
In our eyes, we see the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS as the winner, but not by much. This is a prime "try before you buy" situation, but if you've got the need for the biggest zoom in the jungle, swing no further than the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS.
Price and Availability
The Canon PowerShot SX30 IS is available now for $430.
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