Product Reviews

Canon's Digital IXUS v3 is the third camera in the company's Digital IXUS range. While Canon hasn't reduced the camera's size, which really would have been something, the designers have crammed in a higher-resolution imaging chip, as well as more advanced metering. The camera also borrows a new auto-focus system from the superb Canon PowerShot S45.

The Digital IXUS v3 has the same elegant, satin-finished steel body of its predecessor - in other words, it looks very good indeed, and is built to a high standard.

At 87mm x 57mm x 26.7mm, the camera is small enough to fit into a shirt pocket - although it might be a little uncomfortable to do so because it weighs a rather hefty 180g without Compact Flash (Type I) media card or rechargeable battery.

With its three megapixel sensor that kicks out a 2080 x 1542 image, the IXUS v3 will capture 10in x 8in photographic-quality images. A4 is no problem on a photorealistic inkjet, either. Smaller image sizes can be selected and there are three JPEG compression options for each of the four resolutions available.

At the highest resolution and least compression, eight images can be stored on the supplied 16Mb Compact Flash card, so you will need at least a 64Mb card to get roughly the same number of images as a roll of 35mm film without compromising on quality.

Focal point

The camera uses the same lens as its predecessor. Although this lens is a decent performer, you would think that it would come with something better than a 2x zoom. It's the equivalent of a 35mm-70mm f/2.8-4.0 in a 35mm camera and, while a 35mm focal length is adequate at f/2.8 for interiors and landscapes, 70mm at f/4.0 is a bit short and slow for portraits. A 3.2x digital zoom gives a combined 6.4x zoom range, albeit with the obligatory loss of resolution. A handy macro facility can be selected from the rear keypad, enabling close-ups between 10cm and 47cm, although in tests

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distortion was an issue, particularly at the edges.

The camera offers just two exposure options: TTL Programmed Auto and Manual. Using the optical viewfinder in Auto mode is straightforward, as the camera chooses the focusing, metering, exposure and white balance settings, although the viewfinder image is quite small. However, most people will use the 1.5in LCD to the rear to compose their shots. Although there's no indication of which aperture value or shutter speed is selected, the v3 will happily show you where it intends to focus using the nine-point, wide-area auto-focus system.

Manual mode allows control over the multi-pattern metering using either spot or centre-weighted options, and there's exposure compensation in 0.3EV steps over +/-2.0EV. Sensitivity can be increased to ISO400 and white balance can be changed as well, with a choice of five pre-sets. There's also a welcome Custom feature. All of these functions are controlled directly from four buttons and a keypad to the rear.

Switching off the wide-area auto-focus for a narrow centre bracket involves using the menu in Manual mode only. The white bracket changes to green when the focus is correct, and to amber when it's struggling - a very effective warning system. That said, using the camera in Manual mode isn't very intuitive and it really takes some getting used to.

Metering is linked to the focusing point so exposure is consistent in Auto as long as subjects are not strongly backlit, though if you can bear it you can always switch to Manual.

Options open

The IXUS v3 produces pleasing results overall. It captures colours accurately in daylight, with skin tones being particularly faithful using the default settings. Canon has, to its credit, added options for colour saturation and sharpening if you want to tweak the results.

The new v3 is crammed full of sensible features, such as a range of flash options, including red-eye reduction and slow sync; a wide shutter speed range from 1/1500 sec to a full 15 seconds with noise reduction; and a 640 x 480 pixel movie mode with sound.

Competition is stiff, though, and the Sony DSC-P7 and Casio QV-R3 each employ a three-megapixel chip and 3x optical zoom in an ultra-compact body. And both are cheaper, to boot. The Casio has marginally better build quality and an extensive range of exposure options, although the Canon is just ahead on consistent exposure and colour rendition. Despite its shortcomings, the Canon IXUS v3 is still well worth the money.