When I wanted to buy a 2 mp digital camera, everyone was telling me no 4 or 5 mp is better. My arguement was that I mainly intend to email photographs for which anycase I have to reduce the file size to about 100 kb each, then why pay extra to get a 5 mp camera? Also, expectation was that I would print 4 x 6 or a max of 8 x10 inch sizes. For this 2 mp should be just about fine. I saved nearly 100 dollars over the price of a 4 mp A80.

I have now had the A60 for 9 months and have no regrets. Have mainly been emailing photos to family and friends. I did print a few 5 x 7 pictures, and the quality has been great.

Initially did try various shooting modes, but, now the only modes I really use are the Auto, the Night Shot and the Fast Action ones.

I particularly like the 'stitch' utility which was a part of the CD. Have been able to piece together some wonderful landscapes, and one semi-circular rainbow.

Initially used standard AA batteries, but, found that too be expensive. Often needed one set of batteries for 40 to 50 photographs. Now switched to NiMh rechargeables and they have been giving good performance.

Another advantage is that one can attach standard telephoto and wide lenses. Did attach a wide angle lens. It worked great outdoors. However, the photos taken indoors with the flash on had a problem as the lens obstructed the flash. With a telephoto lens attached there is no problem.

The camera has been quite sturdy as well. It has usually been flung in the back-pack and taken one small fall without any problems.

Then only thing I am not too happy about is the lag. It is just too difficult to get a moving object in the frame because of the delay.

Overall, I am quite happy with the purchase. Probably will upgrade to one with 6 mp (I am begining to think I should print posters of some of the outdoor photos), 10x optical zoom (with image stabilization) when that becomes available for less than $350!

I have had this camera for less than a year, and I love it! I bought it because I own a Canon film camera, and I love the brand. I was thrilled with the investment. The camera is easy to use, and fits in my pocket. It takes great pictures too! I love the fact that it can also take movie clips. It's a great camera that anyone could use easily. The only bad thing about it is that I wish it had more zoom. However, this camera is great for taking pictures at any occasion.

Taken on its own merits this is a fine little camera, particularly useful for its fully manual mode, although the only reason you might buy it over the Powershot A70 and A85 models is because, like me, you're poor, either because you don't earn very much money or because you spend all the money you earn without thought of the consequences. The A70 and A85 are identical in terms of features and offer higher resolutions. The A60 is, however, a very good camera. In no particular order...

The image quality is sharp and clear, indeed too sharp at times, and a 2MP image fills up a 21" monitor. To a great extent the 'megapixel race' is a matter of pride and face; the only people who would benefit from a higher resolution are the awful, awful people who post on Photo.net, who will buy a top-notch Nikon digital SLR instead, because (a) it's their livelihood and (b) it impresses clients and models. It's a different world.

For the rest of us, the only major bursa in the A60s photographic trochanter is the digital sharpening filter which the camera applies to the image, and if you take a photograph of - for example - a sharp-edged cathedral against a blue sky, the cathedral ends up with an oddly sharp 'aura' around it. Thankfully you can turn this off by selecting 'low sharpening' as a special effect.

The close-up macro mode autofocuses very well - you can't really use the screen to focus, unless you use 'zone focus' with the manual mode - and although I never expected to use macro, I find myself frequently photographing lots of bugs, fingers, nails, stones, flecks of spittle etc up close. Probably not a selling point for most people, but it's fun.

In 35mm film terms, the zoom lens goes from roughly 35mm to roughly 50mm, i.e. from wide-angle to neutral. It's not particularly useful, and I keep it at its widest setting. The aperture at 35mm is f2.8, which is average for a film camera, and at 50mm is f4.8, which is not great, although the CCD seems more sensitive than film (you can set the ISO speed from 50-400, although I leave it on 50, and it's definitely more sensitive than ISO 50 film). The maximum shutter speed is 15 seconds. Up to about 10 seconds the visible parts of the images are noise-free, although if you subsequently brighten them with Photoshop they don't look very good at all.

The Powershots use ordinary AA batteries and widely-available compact flash cards, rather than odd lithium cells and obscure 'memory sticks'. If you take about twenty shots a day and spend a few minutes on each one, looking through the screen and juggling your tripod, four 2350 rechargable batteries last for about a week.

As for filters and accessory lenses, bah. There are wide-angle and telephoto add-on lenses, which require an adaptor, which has to be bought seperately. You will not purchase these, not ever, and they might as well not exist. Sadly Canon do not offer an M42 screw-mount adaptor.

As for lag time, I can sense confusion in the other reviews. When you lightly press the shutter, the camera focuses and sets the exposure; when you press the shutter slightly more, it takes the picture after a delay of a fraction of a second. If it was a long exposure it then takes some time chuntering away, processing the image. If you therefore keep your finger on the shutter button, there is very little delay.

Have used digital cameras since 1992, and high-end SLRs earlier. This one a personal purchase with 512MB flash-card.

Lenses-fantastic, with Nikon/Olympus close. Human/machine interface great- feels like a solid, quality camera. The boot-up computer bits good (contrast, some Nikons terrible). Great that can get optical zoom lense mount standard for A-series. Pictures- from great to average. Works with Windows and better with OSX.

2MB great for photos, but more for poster- maybe and A85/90 etc.

Overall, very happy, and transitioned from 35mm film to digital effortlessly. A G6 the next buy!

I've had this camera for a year and it's still a wonderful, sturdy point-and-shoot that's small enough to keep with me at all times. Key features:

2.0 MEGAPIXELS
This camera was a gift and had I bought one myself, I probably would have upgraded to at least 4 MP. Turns out 2 is just fine. I've printed photos as large as 8 x 10 with no pixelating. Resolution is wonderful. Color is accurate and resolution is quite impressive for this price range.

MACRO
The macro feature works amazingly well. For anyone needing sharp close-up photos, this camera delivers (perfect for Ebay sellers!!)

USER-FRIENDLY
The interface is fairly intuitive, which makes this a good choice for those who would otherwise be uncomfortable with a digital camera. The viewfinder is bright and large enough to see what you're aiming at. Canon kept buttons to a minimum and its menu is easy enough to figure out without even reading the directions. I have family and friends who've spent twice the amount on a fancier camera, but they use it less because it's so confusing.

LAG-TIME
This is one of the A60's biggest drawbacks. The lagtime on my camera can be as long as two seconds, which makes it hard to capture "the moment." Within that time, the subject can close his/her eyes, move out of the frame, etc.

VIDEO FEATURE
Shoots decent video, but of course, video's a memory hog, so be sure to have a bigger card (256MB minimum) or you'll be out of space quickly. Sound from 10 feet away is surprisingly good.

SOFTWARE
The software is okay. I'm a Mac user and when I first got this, I used the Canon softare to view photos. Now that I'm using OSX, I exclusively use iPhoto, which is a profound improvement. Excellent organizational options, easy uploading for prints, and, true to Apple's nature, very user friendly.

RECHARGEABLE BATTERIES
Digital cameras eat batteries. Though rechargeables are expensive, they are money savers in the end and they give the environment a break to boot. Well worth the added expense. Be sure to buy eight rechargeables. The camera takes four, and you'll always have four charging.

I purchased this camera almost 2 years ago. 6 months ago, it displayed the first occurence of the E18 error (problem in the lens mechanism), but recovered. It did that again last week and could not recover. Both times, it happened when I was on vacation. Search the web for E18 and you'll know what I mean. So, now I have a useless paperweight not worth spending money to get repaired. Now I will go for another canon, but an older model with a digital-only zoom, for 2 reasons a) the optical zoom on the A60 has give me enough grief, b)to keep using my 2 CF cards, since the latest cameras do not accept CF cards.

I love this camera. I have so much fun with it and the pictures are great. It is easy to use and the movie feature with sound is a blast! I bought a 3.2 megapixel for my daughter and she loves it as well!!!

It worked great for nearly a year. A loose connection was fixed under warranty. At 18 months it died with an E18 error. The lens will not move in or out when turned on and then it beep and displays 'E18' on the display. We were on vacation so I replaced it with an A95. It's the only camera available at Best Buys that still uses CF memory cards. Hopefully Canon has the E18 issue resolved.

I bought my A60 to replace my A40 after it was stolen. I figured if I had to replace a camera that I absolutely loved, I'd go with the next model up. Now I wish I would have just gone with the same camera. Besides a smaller, lighter build and more interesting sounds when operating, there are NO differences between the two. The biggest difference I've noticed with my A60 is the interference/colored lines that are often on the LCD when I turn it on to take a picture. It's like trying to watch TV with a bad signal. My A40 may have been less glamorous, but at least it was reliable. I'm keeping the A60 for now because I'm grateful to have a digital camera at all, but as soon as I have the extra money I'm going online and buying another A40.

We got the Canon Powershot A60 when it just came out, atleast 2 years ago. Now after many droppings on cement, the picture is messed up, but that's my 13 year old self's fault. I hope my dad gets a newer Canon soon. It may seem dated and bulky compared to newer and more expensive models, but this is jam packed with features. And it was really expensive when we got it. We got our use out of it, though. It's a really nice camera, but I've dropped it too many times before. (ATLEAST 8) And now the screen is sometimes messed up, I know I said that before, but I just want to let you know it's my fault (Not the brand's)... anyways you can have sepia, black & white and other cool effects... if you don't want to spend the money on the newest thing on the market, buy this, you'll love it too!

I LOVE THIS CAMERA

It has video, a decent microphone, different types of flashes, tons of settings, great zoom, and lighting settings. (AND MORE)

Get this camera today, you won't be disappointed, (and I would know, my aunt is a world renouned photographer...)

This camera was great for about two years. Then, various functions ceased to work, and the camera died altogether after 4 years of moderate use. Maybe this is all people expect or want anymore, but I expected better of Canon. I had hoped to be able to use this camera for many more years--am I unrealistic? I would like to believe that a quality camera made by a reputable business should last longer than 4 years.

Same exact thing happened to me as the reviewer Joe; got the E18 error and lens won't move after only 18 months! Canon, you should be ashamed; such JUNK!

I've had this camera for almost 4 years and it had completely stopped working. The lens doesn't open anymore. The camera has taken decent pictures, but sometimes the photos have come out with fuzzy gray lines across them. I wouldn't recommend this camera unless you plan on having trouble with it in the future.