Offering 5megapixel resolution, Canon's Powershot S60 combines the simplicity of a point-and-shoot camera with the option to be more creative.

A new layout of controls on the back panel includes buttons for quickly uploading pictures to your PC and switching between shooting and playback modes. The zoom control has become a thumb-operated rocker switch in the top right-hand corner, and Canon's usual four-way controller is a central thumb-pad.

The S60 has a 3.6x optical zoom lens offering 28mm wide-angle to 100mm telephoto operation, extendable to 200mm with a tele-converter. The design allows the chassis to be thinner than before, but the camera still feels weighty and solid.

The Powershot is packed with features. There's a nine-point auto-focus system, 13 shooting modes including eight automatic settings and full manual control, and a macro setting that can shoot subjects as close as 4cm.

You also get movie mode and special effects options, but the former is limited to 30 seconds and 10fps at 640 x 480. The S60 uses Compact Flash and saves images in uncompressed raw or jpeg format. It's compatible with Hitachi Microdrives.

The S60 is easy to use and produced sharp, bright, detailed images. Chromatic aberration was noticeable on some shots but no more than we'd expect, and we were impressed with macro images.

The Directprint function used with a Canon i990 produced great results. More photo manipulation options would be good, but Canon's software suite can take care of this.

Contact: Canon 08705 143 723
www.canon.co.uk

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