I bought this camera after extensive research into consumer level point and shoot cameras. I have had a few digital cameras in the past and have found Canons to have some of the best image quality of any cameras I have used, along with having durable frames and great features.This camera had most of the important features I look for in a camera.It uses AA batteries, which gives me sufficient battery life, when using NiMh batteries, to not have to worry about juice, but also gives me the flexibility to buy normal Alkalines, should my rechargeables run out. And perhaps counter intuitively, the camera has no internal memory. You might think that this is a bad thing, but in fact that internal memory can makes things confusing and a bit frustrating. For example, you might want to be taking a video, and after a minute, you run out of space, because you did not realize you were running on the internal memory. While this camera is similar to the A560, I chose to spend a little more to get the A570 IS for the Image Stabilization. While it is not spectacular, it does offer a slight improvement over the A560. This camera also has very low shutter lag, so pictures can be taken when you press the button. The internal memory accepts SDHC cards. This is a huge deal. You can buy an inexpensive 8GB SDHC card, and have thousands and thousands of photos at maximum resolution, or around 3 hours of video, and you never have to swap out the cards. The biggest card that I know you can put into this camera as of right now is 32GB. The 4x zoom is a big plus too, as most cameras only have a 3x zoom. I have used the camera with the PictBridge, and it works much better and faster than expected. I tried it with a Brother MFC 240C and without looking at the instructions, I was able to figure out how to print a picture in under a minute.The face detection works well. The multitude of shooting modes, as well as the low-light lamp are ideal for shooting in almost any situation. Also, for armature photographers, there are some neat features I am learning to use with the manual shooting modes. It is making for some interesting photo taking.There is a viewfinder, which can be used in high sunlight, where the LCD, is hard to see. It can also be used to conserve battery life.The LCD is big and bright, but it is a bit grainy. I don't think this is a big deal, but just be aware that just because the screen is bigger than most, it does not mean that the resolution is any higher.The controls of the camera are intuitive and easy to use.The video in this camera is good. 30FPS at 640x480 is nice, and with a big SDHC card, you can take movies up to 4GB at a time. The sports 60FPS mode is good too, however, it is a major bummer that it stops after 60 seconds. The major downside is that while it shoots videos with sound, it does not shoot in stereo, nor in a compressed format, such as XVID, which makes sharing these movies more difficult.However, the downside to this camera comes from the AA batteries, and an autofocus that is not always on target.The battery meter will indicate low batteries, even on batteries that I have verified are good. After not too long, the camera might just shut off. The flash takes a long time to charge, and is not very bright.This is not the lightest or most compact camera out there. It is not VERY pocket-sized, but it is not a SLR either. With NiMh batteries, the camera is more heavy than with standard Alkaline.The screen scratches, and a stick-on screen protector should have been included.It would have been nice to have the ability to have some alternate portable power, such as a CRV3 Lithium battery as well as AA batteries to power the camera.</p>
You can choose to power this camera with an optional (not included) AC adapter. They go for about $20 on eBay.
The low-light performance of this camera is good, but not as good as some Fujifilm cameras.</p>
Overall, with the price of this camera falling in the $110 range, I think this is an excellent camera for both the enthusiasts and the point-and-shoot crowd.</p>
