Canon Digital IXUS 70 > Reviews (30)

I am very bad at upgrading to new technology. I rarely buy something new until the old one is completely dead and buried, and so when my poor old camera finally passed away I wasn't looking forward to getting a new camera - especially considering I had no idea what half the specifications listed next to the camera means! To me, a camera either takes a good picture or it doesn't - and for me, this little baby certainly does.

This camera has a simple design. It's extremely tiny and light so it can easily fit in your pocket or wedge into your bag. It is essentially a miniature box, with no random sticky out bits like you'll find on some other cameras. On the back there is a small LCD screen which is extremely clear and a good representation of what your picture will actually come out like, some buttons, and a view finder. I'll admit that the main reason I chose this camera was because it gave me the option of a view finder alongside the actual screen - despite this I think I've used the view finder once, but it's still there if you like it.

It has quite a few features on it, alongside the regular zooming in and out, flash, etc etc. It also includes things such as settings for when you're taking photos in the dark, for when you're taking photos of fireworks, or for when you're taking macro photos. These aren't entirely perfect, but to be honest if you're paying such a cheap price for a camera then you really shouldn't expect them to be. I haven't found the night shot option to be that effective, much to my annoyance after multiple attempts to get a picture of Toronto's space needle all lit up in the night - it's DIFFERENT to how the photo looks when it's just in regular mode, but not really better. All of the options can be changed to however you want them and for the most part the camera is excellent at this, however I have noticed an exception when it comes to the flash. I specifically remember being asked to turn the flash off when at an animal park. I did so, but then also turned my camera off a few minutes later as none of the animals in that particular section appealed to me. However when I turned it back on I would have assumed the flash would have stayed off like all the other settings did - but nope, cue me blinding a poor bird - and the guard, who did not look very impressed!

I have been really impressed with the picture quality of this camera. It might just be a point and snap camera, but it's capable of taking some really beautiful, high quality shots. It can be used in a range of settings and produce really amazing quality pictures - as has been said, for me the only exception is that pictures in dark rooms always come out horrible, regardless of what settings I use. But then I don't often feel the need to take pictures in dark rooms so it's not really a major problem! The hue and saturation on the pictures is a little bit brighter than most cameras I have found, but I actually really like that. If you've ever watched Pushing Daisies you'll notice what I mean - everything seems realistic, but at the same time a little brighter than it should be.

It might be a little odd to some but I actually love that effect. You can probably muck around with it and change it a bit if it really bothers you, but I like the effect it creates so keep it.

This camera is very fast loading as well. The picture is taken almost immediatley, and comes up on screen just as quickly. I have noticed that in unusual light settings it sometimes doesn't always take the photo and then it can be a bit oof a fight, but this doesn't happen very often.

Overall I really like this camera. It's cheap, it's light, it's tiny and it takes beautiful shots - what more could you want in a camera?