I bought this camera about 2 weeks ago and I'm very happy with the camera so far. It's easy to use right out of the box and the picture quality is very good. I like the 6x optical zoom and the IS really helps with the camera shake, especially when using the zoom. The movie mode is very nice as well. The camera is big enough to feel right in my hand yet small enough to easily slip into a sweatshirt pocket or purse. My two complaints are: the camera ships with a 16 MB SD card-which is a joke, and battery life seems fairly short. Investing in rechargables would be a good idea. I'm now using a 1 GB Ultra II SD card with great results. Overall, I'm very happy with the camera and I'm still getting to know it.
I recommend it.

Good camera. Compact size and weight. Like the 6X optical zoom.

Just been using it for a couple of days but finding a few limitations. One clearly is the flash takes a bit too long to re-charge. Also, many of the indoor shots are grainy and some out of focus -- trying to figure out what is going on -- increased the image quality to super-fine but had hoped the image stabilization would have done more.

Again, been a couple of days only.

Good camera. Compact size and weight. Like the 6X optical zoom and the IS. Full set of manual controls.

Flash takes a bit long to re-charge. Also, initially many of the indoor shots were grainy (noise) and a lot of redeye. Finally figured out that indoors with less light one has to keep the zoom on the low side.

Overall happy with the camera.

Canon has an excellent rep with its digital cameras and the A710 is one of the latest in that long line. It's a great camera...not too small to handle with but small enough to be slipped into a jacket pocket. The zoom works well and the stabilization keeps zoomed photos clear, although a bit grainy at full zoom. Syncing with the computer couldn't be easier...load the included software and you're ready to go. I couldn't believe how easy it was to do this. As stated by another reviewer, the included 16mb card is almost worthless, but I used it to practice and get the hang of the camera operation before loading up a 1 gb card. I took the camera on a week and a half vacation and loved it. At the touch of a button I can see how many shots I have left on the card and how many I'll have if I adjust the size and detail of the photos. This let me reduce photo quality just a bit to get the last few photos at the end of the vacation onto the card. Zoom is quick, but, as stated in another review, the flash recharge takes a few seconds. The large LCD screen is great, but, like most digitals, difficult to see in bright light. This makes the optical viewfinder a god-send, but be aware that the viewfinder shows you a tighter shot that what is really being captured in the photo(watch out for the trend from other camera manufacturers of dropping the optical viewfinder!). There are a multitude of optional settings that I'm still figuring out. One - the night shot setting - is questionable. I get better night time shots with the setting on 'automatic' that I do using the 'night shot' setting.

My only problem with the A710 is battery life. Even with the power save function on, I went through a set of batteries a day. Obviously, using the flash a lot reduces battery life and I took many photos inside buildings. I also took 50-60 photos a day, so I was working the batteries from sun-up to sun-down and sometimes after that (I took 600+ photos in 10 days of travel). Rechargables are probably a good idea, but traveling in Europe complicates that....you need to carry a Euro style plug in addition to the battery charging apparatus and lugging all that would be just about as bad as dragging around my big, old Pentax film SLR (the main point, for me, of going digital was to reduce the size and weight of taking the film camera on an extended vacation). The need for all the batteries is the only reason I don't give the A710 5 stars and that's probably not really fair considering the number of photos I'm taking and the conditions of flash use.

In conclusion - The A710 takes great photos, is easy to use, figure out, and connect to your computer, has all the features a non-professional photog could want has the megapixels to let you enlarge your photos to at least 8x10 and is reasonably priced. If you can live with replacing batteries frequently in heavy-use situations, I doubt you can do better in this price range than this camera.

First off I would like to say that I am just an average camera user with no special skills and I really do not understand what any of the jargon means when people talk about their cameras.

I was interested in this camera for several reasons:

1. It was highly rated in every review I read about it by people that know a whole lot more about such things than me.

2. It uses 2 AA batteries not 4 and not a rechargeable battery. I use rechargeable AA batteries on my own. I really do not like being forced to use the ones provided with the cameras. No matter what they say the batteries will run out and at the most inconvenient time. I can swap the batteries out in an instant or buy new ones. You can't do that with other rechargeable batteries. I travel a lot. I never know if I will have access to electricity to recharge my camera or if I will even have time. For this reason I absolutely insist on AA batteries. This may not be a concern for your standard user but it is to devoted travelers.

3. I am not that obsessed with photography. I wanted a camera that would work "out of the box" and let me learn about the features as I go.

4. It uses an SD disk. This allows me to use the same disks without buying new ones or buying an adapter for my computer. I can use the same SD discs with my mp3 player and my palm pilot. This is why I refuse to buy items using xd discs or anything by Sony and their insane use of their memory stick. Hey Sony the Beta was great but no one bought it. You are going down the same path with your memory stick. The deciding factor between a Sony computer and the Gateway I bought was the memory stick feature versus an SD drive. I did not buy cameras from Sony twice now because of the use of memory sticks. I have told many people about this and have steered them to other brands for the same reason. Compatabilty is very important in electronics.

5. It has lots of cool accessories that I may or may not eventually decide to buy. The main one being the waterproof case. I tried this out at the camera store and it was really cool. It allows divers full access to all of the features on the camera and seems like it is really easy to use. I will be buying it in a month or so for an upcoming diving trip. I will know better after that if it works in the water as well as in the camera store.

6. It has a separate watch battery to store the date and time information. That was a major issue I had with my last camera. Digital cameras go through batteries fast. Having to constantly enter this information gets annoying, especially if I am not wearing a watch.

These are my initial thoughts after purchase:

Setting up the camera was a snap. Everything seemed intuitive and I had no problems whatsoever.

I have taken a few test shots in the various modes and am really impressed. It has a lot of detail that my previous camera did not provide.

The camera seems to be the perfect size for me. This camera is big enough so that you can operate the buttons without getting a 4 year old to do it for you. And small enough that it can be used as a handheld camera, fitting nicely in a case around your shoulder.

My only complaint on this camera and with a lot of them is the wheel that switches the modes. I really wish they would make these things flush with the camera body. This one is better than my previous camera but the wheel still shifts modes when you pull it out of its case. Other than that one minor gripe I am very pleased with this purchase.

I hope you like this camera as much as I do!

I spent about three solid days online/in store researching camera's before I decided that this was the camera for me. There were three things that I really wanted from a new camera: better zoom, image stabilization, and better quality pics. I believe I got all of this and more in this little camera.

First, most camera's on the market have a 3X optical zoom- this one has 6x, which gives you a better quality picture further away. I realize there are other camera's on the market that have a better zoom ability, but I did not want to jeopardize size, I wanted something close to "pocket sized."

Second, the image stabilization feature is great- especially at night when you are trying to take photo's of buildings, etc. Regardless of how steady my hand was with my last digital, I could never get a night shot to come out- not a problem with the A710.

Third, the quality of pictures this camera offers is superb. I have no complaints on the ease of taking pictures. While there are quite a few different settings to choose from, the "basic" manual explains each one in an easy to follow manner (and I am not directions reader).

I highly recommend this camera to anyone looking for an easy use, high quality camera. Everything you need comes in the box, you can literally pop the batteries and memory card in and you are set. There are many camera's that have a lot of great options out on the market, but I believe this to be the best.

I researched digital cameras for over two weeks and finally decided on the Canon A710 IS for a couple reasons. One)it offered the 2nd largest optical zoom, only surpassed by Panasonic right now. Two) the sharpness and quality of the canon images. Three) the Image Stabalizer (IS), which is absolutely the best on the market right now. I shook my hand violently while I snapped a picture and it was crisp and clear. Warning: the IS does not work as spectacularly with flash, nor would any other IS system, because the camera sets the shutter speed lower to get enough light in and this effects the IS capability. Still works well, though. Four) This Canon camera is sleek, easy to hold, easy to use menu features, manual options, and lots of cool extras (I love the color accent feature). And five) because of all of the excellent reviews on this particular camera. Pros, cnet, customers, everyone had something positive to say and very few negatives.
I wanted a camera to capture our first child (Simba, a Shiba dog)and our future first child (hopefully in the next year) when they are active, indoor low-light shots of when we are hanging out with our friends, and have the instant on-hand video camera to catch exciting moments. This camera does all that and more! Very impressed with low-light pictures but was hoping for slighly less red eye (hard to get less red eye, though, with where such small cameras have to place the flash).

I was really torn between this one, the Fuji Finepix F30, the Panasonic Lumix TZ1, and the Canon SD800IS. We had a Fuji before that lasted forever and the F30 is said to take the best indoor, low-light photos available in a digital camera right now, but it was hard to find customer reviews on this camera and the optical zoom was only 3x. The Panasonic has the highest optical zoom at 10X, and customer reviews said it was very impressive but I saw quite a few reviews regarding problems in the first few months and a short warranty along with bad customer service. And nothing was said about low-light images, though Panasonic images just aren't as clear and crisp as Canon's.
In the end, I decided the extra megapixel was not worth the lower optical zoom, so I went with this one over the 800IS.
I have attached some pictures to view.
I am very very impressed with this camera. I viewed my pictures hooked up to a 64" TV and they were awesome. The video is also great quality; my stepdad is considering this digital camera with a large memory card instead of getting a new video camera, he was so impressed.
The camera is extremely easy to use and comfortable to grip. The only thing I have to complain about is that I am nervous about the error 08 that people have said causes the camera to stop working and the lens to not retract. However, this was not enough to stop me from purchasing it. This is something any camera could have happen if grain or dirt blocks the lens shutting and canon customer service assured me that if it did happen, they would repair it free of cost to me (I would have to pay shipping). Best way to avoid this, keep in a case.
I have had it for 4 months and have had zero problems.
It uses 2 AA batteries (great for me cause they can be found anywhere) and I played with the camera for almost 2 straight days before they died (lots of pics and video and viewing on screen).
Also, my stepmother has the Canon 600. She dropped it and it fell down about 20 feet, hitting multiple rocks along the way. When recovered, the LCD screen was broken so the menu cannot be viewed, but the camera still works and still takes great photos! Amazingly durable.
I would recommend checking out [...] for more info.

You will not find a more versatile camera for the money anywhere. This camera is still selling locally at $399 "on sale" but as usual AMAZON beats them all. As for the camera it offers the best of everything for just about everyone..........Full Auto to Full Manual and everything in between plus the new Image Stabilization feature!!! For those that know how to take advantage of manual operation this sure beats lugging around a full size SLR and for those point and shoot types it couldn't be easier............plus the added benefit of being able to experiment a little as you become more familiar with photography. Canon continues to top the ratings at most of the camera review pages...this one is no exception. Money well spent!!!

After seeing 2 reviews about the Canon 710 gobbling batteries, I had to set the record straight. With a pair of inexpensive X1 rechargeable batteries, my 710 took about 400 shots without recharging, which amazed me. (Regular batteries die quickly with a digital camera.)
Amazon's price was considerably lower than Costco's, which was impressive.
As someone who's still learning how to use this camera, I encountered a persistent problem that I haven't solved. While using the auto setting quite a few of the shots looked overexposed. Then I tried photographing some ducks that were swimming in the shade and I noticed that the white birds looked overexposed, losing many details, while the darker ones looked just right. It's almost as if the camera is too sensitive to white, or bright lighting, not infrequently causing a washed out look and disappeared details.
The shutter response is pleasingly quick, and the macro detail is impressive, but some of the shots in auto mode still aren't quite as crisp as I expected a Canon camera to produce. Whether the few problems I've encountered disappear with more experience remains to be seen.

all the nice features the camera has, is lost when it comes to batteries consumption. I bought the camera after I read a lot of nice reviews about it, and only 1 review mention the batteries problem which I did not pay enough attention, until I bought the camera from Amazon, tried for couple pictures, saw the batteries red light flashing, packed the camera back in its original boxe and ship it back to Amazon.
if you're willing to keep carrying batteries everytime you use this camera, then get it, otherwise look for another one.

The Canon Powershot A710 IS is by far my best 3 digit purchase in years! Expecting my first child in early June, my husband and I wanted a decent digital camera that would capture baby's first moments. I was hesitant about the price at first, but was instantly relieved when I saw the camera in person. It has the ability to attach a lens and a flash, which is great for someone who wants the best pictures. It is like an "in between" point and shoot and a digital SLR, not too simplistic and not too complicated. I'm still learning the features but found no red-eye thus far! Pictures also weren't grainy or blurry and were taken indoors without a problem. Even without a flash, my pictures came out very well. The colors are vibrant and the images are crisp. A good purchase, but be aware that it is best to use rechargable batteries. Also, it is best to read the manual and learn the best ways to take the perfect picture. I'll invest in a carrying case as well to keep this nice camera safe and snug when out.

I ordered this camera the first of December but didn't have a chance to really work with it until around the 15th. As a amatuer photographer I wanted the A710 as a companion to my DSLR and to carry in my purse for all occasions. I was very interested in the 7 megapixels, 6x optical zoom, and top priority for me was the image stabilization feature. I gave this camera 3 stars because the outside shots were very good, it's the inside shots that are problematic. All of the inside shots were far to noisy to be acceptable when using the zoom feature. If you used the camera preset modes it raised the ISO to high causing a great deal of noise and if you used the aperture priority and set the ISO to an acceptable level it was still very difficult to get a photo that wasn't noisy. I tested it against my Canon A620 (great camera) and the A620 had a better photo in all but one occasion. I have gone back to using the A620 . This camera would be good for someone that just wants a point & shoot to do home photos. I called Amazon and they were great, I returned it the 22nd.

After 1000 images and umpteen sets of (rechargable) batteries I still like the camera, but haven't figured out a good battery solution yet. The estimate of 100 images per set of alkaline batteries / 350 for NiMh seems rather optimistic (or my rechargeables are in pretty bad conditions).

Otherwise the camera is great. The image stabilizer extends my options without using a flash (which is as bad as one can expect, considering that it sits an inch above the lens and can't be adjusted). The software is straightforward, the programming modes are fine (some seem superfluous), I like the "manual" option best.

The camera is very small, considering that it packs a 6x optical zoom, and I like the fact that it fits into my shirt pocket. The plastic body is reasonably stable, but some of the buttons start to rub off. A dedicated bag would fix that. Its only drawback (aside from being a battery hog) is that the optical viewfinder does not really show you what will be on the image (it undersetimates, which might be OK, at least you don't cut off any heads).

I have only had the A710IS for a few weeks now, but I am very impressed so far. I am a novice, but have found the camera very easy to use. I replaced my aging Fuji Finepix 2600, which was great for it's time, but I was looking for better picture quality, no more blurry pictures of my active 2 yr old, better flash, more features, etc. etc.

I actually replaced the first A710IS I got from Amazon as it had red dots on the LCD screen. After returning it and further research, I found that this was most likely dead pixels in the LCD itself. The replacement that Amazon sent was perfect.

Positives:
-Excellent picture quality so far both indoors and outdoors
-Awesome Zoom
-VERY stable pictures at extended zoom ranges
-Great "quick" buttons provide easy and quick access to camera features without navigating the menu
-Menu system is VERY easy to use and intuitive
-Large LCD - compared to my Fuji, the sceen is very large and works well in all lighting situations
-Stitch Features: I tried the "Stitch" feature (which may be common on other cameras, but I've never heard of it until I read the owner's manual for this camera). I tried it once and took 3 pictures to stitch together. It was Very easy to figure out how to use on both the camera and the software that canon provides. It worked Great to provide a panoramic shot.

The only negatives I have found have already been mentioned by other reviewers (which is why I gave a 4 instead of a 5 rating):
-Battery Drainage: Drains the batteries quickly. For me, this isn't a big deal as I always be sure to have extra batteries on hand. I started out using my rechargeable batteries from my old Fuji, so since these are about 4 yr old, that could be part of the problem. I plan on buying newer rechargeables and expect them to last even longer.
-LCD:
1. LCD doesn't swivel: Again, not a big deal as I'm not sure how much usage I'd get out of this, but it would be nice for the few occasions that I may need it.
2. LCD Resolution seems a bit low such that the picture quality on the LCD appears a bit fuzzy. The quality it good, but not great.
-Included memory card - the 16MB memory card that is included is a joke. I purchased a 1 GB Ultra II card, which should be plenty for my usage
-Physical size of pictures is Large - This is obvious given the higher megapixel count for the camera (6 MP compared to my Fuji's 2 MP), so not really a negative, but more of a reality to be aware of if you have the settings at Fine and above.

I still haven't tried the movie mode yet, but plan to soon. I still use my Sony Digicam for movies.

First, I have to say that I'm really used to the Canon interface - so this was a big plus when comparing this model to others with image stabilization. I was drawn to the Fuji F30, but I had had a fuji in the past, and although it took good pics, it was not what I was used to using. I've had the Canon S2 IS, and loved it, but found I didn't use it like I wanted because there are just some places that I needed to have a smaller camera that fit in my purse.

The A710 is perfect for me. I don't use the flash that much - so my batteries last and last. I have two grandbabies under the age of 12 mos, and most of the pics of them come out clear and sharp, (notice I said MOST . . . everyone should know that it takes dozens of shots to get the perfect ONE, but with the 710 it's so much easier!) I love the 6X zoom. Pics of my grandson's Christmas program came out great. I could actually get close enough to identify HIM from the 6th row back. I know how to use the manual settings - but the auto setting,(with the flash turned off) gives me such perfect shots MOST of the time that its a pleasure to use. Its almost as small as my beloved little A510 (which I regretfully passed on to my son). So, it does fit very nicely in my purse. Of course, I'll continue to experiment, but I'm totally satisfied. LOVE IT! LOVE IT! LOVE IT! . . . FIVE STARS!!!

I'm very impressed with this camera. It's smaller than it looks in photos but still large enough to handle easily. I also bought Canon's accessory soft case (that's listed for the A700) and it fits nicely. A previous reviewer mentioned the protruding function wheel -- I haven't noticed that to be a problem yet, especially since the wheel has a *very* firm, positive "click" motion that feels like a fine piece of machinery. It would take a serious rub to accidentally move it.

Digital cameras with proprietary batteries are OUT. Rechargable AA is the way to go. The disposable AA's that came with the camera lasted all of 30 shots, but those aren't serious batteries. Anyone who reviews battery life based on a disposable battery that comes with the camera needs to wake up, invest in a set of rechargables (about $10 for 4) and a charger, and then evaluate the battery life.

Pros: Great image quality, especially w/IS
Strong flash
Awesome feature set

Cons: None yet

I got this camera for Christmas and took it to New York City for a day. It took great pictures and even better videos with the auto setting. The flash does take a very long time to recharge, but the quality of the photos made up for it.
I would highly recoomed this camera.

I own 3 digital cameras, this being the best. Last weekend on a trip to Washington DC I got to take alot of shots alonside my sisters Canon DSLR XTI. She has a 10MB super fast 133X speed card compared to the 4GB SDII I use. The 6x optical zoom was plent even in long shots where she was using a large Canan zoom lens. Using medium fine setting the computer viewed shots compared easilt to her Large files. The A710 screen is great and the features are jam packed. This camera easily accomomdates the picky photographer. Next step up is a Digital SLR but I do not see the need unless I wanteds to take lots of shots in succesion. That is were the speed of an DSLR sets them apart. You cannot go wrong with the A710 as long as you carry extra batteries.

I purchased this camera primarily to obtain image-stabilization. I am pleased. It works well, particularly in zoom setting. I have absolutely no problems, although I have not tried all the "bells and whistles." This is my fourth digital camera, and it is clearly the best.

might not buy the $1200 dollar Nikon after this one.

This one is definitely "the little camera that could" yielding some very impressive photos for such a low price. I like the manual focus adjustment in particular allowing me optimal clarity where I need it. Also the nighttime and indoor photography is just second to none for such a little guy. The one drawback has been the short battery life, but I'll give the high end and rechargeable batteries a workthrough see if I can mitigate that some.

what a find! I love this camera. Besides the wonderful job it does taking natural light pics, also has many options for creativity. I appreciated the ease of use and small size. It uses batteries quickly so, i use rechargable and keep a spare pair with me. The video may be zoomed during use which is not the case with some other digital cameras. The sound and clarity are wonderful too. All in all a great deal for beginners or veterans.

Took close to 700 images with this camera on a trip to Greece. Used camera for family shots, landscape shots, some digiscoping of birds and macro shots for insects, amphibians and plants. Movie with sound is cool feature. HD CCD would be a plus. And it works great in most lighting situations. In dim landscape situations with strong back-lighting the back ground gets washed out unless you click on the sky and then drag to the subject. Then the for-ground is under exposed, but at least you can lighten in Picasa or similar. Other minor complaints are it's not water-proof/dust proof, it's has some shutter lag (0.3 sec), boot up time is fairly short (3sec with flash about 1 sec in bright conditions) and reboot time after a flash is long (approx 5 sec). Sometimes the sutter lag is huge 2-3 seconds indoors using flash. But haven't figured out why yet.

Software is OK lacks sofisticated (sorry) renaming feature and sadly does not name files with date-time stamp. Date-time is in exif data and can be added with Exifer. I use Lupus rename to add essential data to file name such as who what where. Would be nice if camera had a GPS to where stamp but that is asking a lot.

When digiscoping paired with a Swarovski STS 65 with 20x eyepiece. There is no vinetting. Marco is awesome can focus down to 10 mm or less.

Great small size digital camera with image stabilization and great resolution at 7MP. It is small enough to go in my purse. Price at Amazon was best we found at the time. Computer software not as easy to work with as previously owned Fuji so I use Microsoft Office Picture Manager to edit the pictures instead of the Canon software. It comes with two user booklets and for some items you must use both--seems like the smaller one should have been incorporated into the larger one.

I found the Cannon PowerShot A710 7.1 after reviewing many different camera brands, models and capabilities. This camera meets my need for taking "point and shoot" pictures and for taking more detailed and elaborate pictures. Controls are clearly marked,easy to move. Directions easy to follow.

Love Zoom , quality of pictures in various conditions
love amount of control
love size and shape of camera
love cost

negative slow processing of shots( even with fast chips)
negative poor batery life
negative too easy to accidently change some parameter and not know it

Overall very good camera

The Canon PowerShot A710 has met all my expectations. This was a replacement for my Canon PowerShot G3 which is also an excellent camera, but a little too big and heavy compared to the A710. I took this camera on a 25 day trip, so purchased 2 2GB memory cards. The high resolution, low compression settings that I prefer to use require lots of memory. I like the size of this camera--not so small as to make holding it steady a problem, but small enough to fit into a jacket pocket. The 7x optical zoom is another plus. It takes beautiful pictures and has more features than most serious amateur photographers will use. If you don't want to bother with learning all the features, set the camera to "auto" and get excellent results.

Bought this camera to replace an older Canon S30. The S30 is my only experience with digital cameras, so I do not have many comparison points. Our biggest issue with the S30 was that battery life had diminision and buying a new OEM Canon battery was expensive. I did a lot of research prior to selecting this camera and narrowed my search down to the Canon SD630 and A710. We selected the A710 because it takes AA batteries and because of the better zoom. My wife and I are happy with the purchase. The A710 takes nice pictures, we like the extra zoom and we are getting good battery life out of regular Energizer AA rechargable batteries.

Our first digital died last year and we just recently purchased the Canon S2 IS (from Amazon) in November to replace it. At first didn't really like the quality of pictures we were getting with it. Plus the size was a bit big and heavy for everyday use so we were planning on returning it. I was also a bit intimidated by all the functions that I did not know how to use. Started looking and researching another, smaller camera. Wanted to stay with the A series Canon because they use AA batteries and SD card. Researched (and researched and researched!!) and it came down to the A630 and the A710IS, both of which are very good cameras. Finally decided on this great little camera mainly because of the IS (check out our pictures above). Love it, great size for carrying anywhere, awesome features (most of the same features as our S2) and pictures. Plus, the movies are good quality too. I don't have an issue with the flash recycle time that I read quite alot about. I use rechargables and lithium batteries so maybe that is why. After playing with and reading up on how to use some of the features on the A710 I realized Auto is not the best mode and have actually learned some of the functions of the manual controls (only way to go, IMO) and am extremely pleased with this camera. In the end we decided to keep the S2 (got out of Auto mode and that camera is doing beautifully also!). Now we have the best of both worlds!!

Very convenient, very easy, very good.
I bought this Cam in December before Christmas and satisfied with it! Very good IS (really works) and very clear and sharp lens, nice colors. You can get a beautiful pictures independently of your experience.

It's a really nice camera. the only thing that I dislike about this camera is that the screen is sometimes hard to see outside.

I really like the camera and all it can do! It was a great price also! Im really loking forward to using it alot in the future. I will be getting the waterproof case also so I can bring it in the rivers fishing with me. The size is great also.(not too big/small) It has alot of very cool fetures that I love! Most of all Its VERY easy to use!

Bought this camera for my husband for Christmas. Was disappointed to open the box and find that the camera wasn't wrapped in factory packaging, had no warranty cards/info and only came with a user manual for advanced users. Then,to top it off, the camera was programmed to be in Japanese and it was clearly written on the box NOT INTENDED FOR SALE OUTSIDE U.S.---contact etronics and they responded via email pretty quickly. We told them that we wanted to return the camera for a full refund. We did get a refund for the full amount, minus the return shipping of $11.
But be warned! This could happen to you!

Overall a great camera and glad I bought it from Amazon. Came in during the Christmas Holidays with no problems at a great price. My only recommendation is anyone buying this camera should strongly consider geting the NiMH batteries and charger. I have been using regular Alkaline batteries and they don't last very long, in the first week I burned through 10 normal batteries. It is my option the camera should have been designed for LiPolymer and too bad it can't be adapted.

The A710IS is a really nice camera in that it really packs a ton of features into a relatively small body. It is not tiny but still small enough to fit into a winter coat pocket. It has all manual overides or can be set in the auto manner for full automatic usage for those not familiar with photography. The IS feature is very helpful, allowing about 1-3 more stops. A nice feature is the "grid" overlay on the viewing screen allowing for better composition and leveling of images.
Image quality is good, not great.
All in all, for a point and shoot that has some advanced features, I would rate this a good buy.

Finally, Canon gets around to image-stabilization. I hope that this feature filters down to the entire line, like Panasonic. This camera is terific, full featured, great images and a good size, not as big as an SLR, but still feels good in the hand

I was a little worried when I read some of the reviews regarding this camera. After using it extensively for the past two weeks I can only assume they must have been comparing it to a Canon 5D. The pictures are excellent. I have compared the pictures to my Canon 30D and I was very impressed. Obviously Canon never designed this camera to be a replacement to a SLR camera with a lens that cost 3 times the price of the A710IS. The 6X optical zoom is great and the image stabilization is a must have on the long zooms. Ninety percent of the people using cameras today would be very happy with this camera the rest need to purchase a high end SLR

Very pleased with this product. So far has provided everything that I expected. There is a learning curve and I am working on it.

The most important thing first. The picture quality is very good. It looks like they've done something right with the Canon point-and-shoot digital cameras.

Don't expect anything fancy; it's not thin and light, it doesn't have 3" screen. Just a reasonable set of good basic features at the best price while keeping the great picture quality.

6x zoom is the only reason that I bought this model, instead of the thin and sexy SD630 which only does 3x zoom. I've been longing for a bigger zoom capability while using a previous 3x camera (SD200) so far.

I feel the IS (image stabilization) is only a marginal improvement, when it comes to picture taking. More often than not, it's the moving object that causes the problem, rather than the shaky hand. Don't get me wrong; definately, better to have it, but I would have traded the IS feature for the SD630's small size and 3" LCD screen, if possible. (I went with A710IS because of 6x zoom.)

Having said that, IS does help greatly for the video. I get much less of that shaking video with crude home video feeling.

If I reduce the resolution from 7M to 3M, then the real optical zoom range is 9x! How great is that!

Great all-around camera with great value.

I have loved this camera since the moment I opened it. I bought some of the lithium AA's at the store because it goes through regular AA's fast, but they have not run out yet. I have been using the video feature a lot and the sound is not bad for a digital camera. The screen is huge and the pictures are beautiful although it still can be difficult to focus at high zoom and in the dark. I highly recommend this camera and think it is one of the best on the market right now for a reasonable price!

Ity's easy to use and I love it. I waited a long time for a camera like this and got in line when it first came out. It's a keeper for sure and small enough to go anywhere. The video part of it is great and the software is easy as pie

Before replacing our old digital camera, I did research online, checking customer reviews and camera-review websites before I decided to get this one. The deciding factors for us were:
- cameras with 10-megapixels appear to be overkill unless you have a really expensive camera to take full advantage, and I think this camera's 7.1 megapixels are plenty for us to get great photo resolution for our needs,
- the zoom is super for taking pix at my son's athletic events,
- image stabilization (IS) is a feature highly recommended on camera review websites,
- it can be a fully automatic point-and-shoot, or I can adjust settings for different effects and results,
- it had good ratings for use as a short-video camera (which we need but not enough to buy a separate video camera at this time).

Amazon had the best price, free shipping, no tax, and I now see that the post-holiday price is even better than what we paid a month ago.

The camera is small enough to stick in a pocket if you want, but big enough that my husband and I can both use it easily. It has a nice heft and solid feel. The right side protrudes to allow for the battery compartment and that makes the difference between a secure grip and a tenuous one. The LCD screen is nice and big, too, covering about 3/4 of the back of the camera.

We are on set #3 of batteries after fairly light use, but so far I have spent less time taking pictures and more time going through the manual and playing with the camera settings to learn the bells and whistles. I hope I will get more pictures per battery once I learn what I want to learn. But so far, battery usage is my only complaint and not a major one. We have a great padded camera case with zipper pockets to carry extra batteries. (It's an M-Rock case purchased from a 3rd party seller through Amazon... if you need a camera case, ours is beyond great and was relatively inexpensive). The SD card that comes with the camera is barely enough to take some test pictures at medium resolution, so be sure to get one with more capacity, like 1GB.

So far I've most enjoyed the color adjustments this camera offers. I can sample any color and take a photo which is all black and white except for that color (i.e. red flowers in a b/w photo). Or, I can intensify either blues, reds, or greens to make that color really pop. Also, there are white-balance settings for different lighting conditions (daylight, cloudy, flourescent light, etc) if the auto-mode doesn't adjust colors correctly (or the way you like). There are settings for night, fireworks, foliage, kids&pets, which I haven't tried yet but I look forward to tinkering with those as well.

We are really enjoying this camera and are happy with the photo results and extra effects we've tried thus far. I would recommend this for anyone in the market for a new camera.

The product is good and what i was looking for. The pictures in-door and out-door are excellent. I am using it for few weeks and expecting to have great experience with the product.

Good value for the money.

Regards,
Ashok Kumar J

Bought the camera in early January to take on a trip to the South Seas in mid January. Needed IS for a slight hand tremor, so IS was top of the list. 6x zoom instead of 3x, as on my other digital camera, is a benefit. Just got back from French Polynesia, downloaded the images, and am very pleased with the results. The IS works fine for me, including shots from a rolling deck. Took a few videos with it and am amazed at the sound quality. Bought a battery recharger to take along, two spare batteries, and had no troubles. Used a 2G SD chip. I really like it so far, though I have more to learn about it. An easy point-and-shoot with advanced features if you wish.

This is my first digital camera and so far it has been extremely fun and easy to use. Downloading photos to my computer is SO simple, and the quality looks wonderful. I am very happy with my purchase so far!

i just picked up the a710 for a recent trip to tokyo to replace my a70. i loved my a70 for the ruggedness, flexibility, manual settings and the fact that it takes AA batteries.

the a710 did not disappoint. it seems a tad smaller and it's definitely lighter taking only 2 batteries compared to the a70's 4. The one thing that i was apprehensive about was the fact that i would have to buy new memory moving from CF to SD. luckily memory is currently pretty cheap.

the features of the 710 are great. i especially like the IS feature since i like to take a lot of photos in low light and i hate to use a flash. this has given me a ton more flexibility and in my opinion justified the purchase of the camera.

the last thing that's nice is the screen size. without looking it up i think it's about 2.5". either way, it's a step up from the a70 which, now when i look at it, has a laughable screen.

there are a whole slew of other features which i won't get into but the bottom line is that this is a great camera if you're looking for something between a pocket size point-and-shoot and a DSLR. Admittedly it's closer to the point-and-shoot . you won't be disappointed with this camera.

I'm a newby when it comes to digital cameras, this was my first. I wanted a compact with a decent zoom and a see thru view finder. This has all that and more. It's a lot of camera and I'm still learning. The nice thing is you can "point and shoot" while still learning what all the other bells and whistles do. I like it but it's a battery eater and I'm glad I bought the re-chargeable batterys and charger!

I bought a 710 when my beloved 700's sensor died after two years (digital cameras do not have long lives, unfortunately).

This is a fabulous almost desert island level camera once its limitations are understood and accepted.

The general image quality and color are superb. I have a Pentax K100 DSLR and it is gathering dust because its kit lens colors are inferior to this little Canon.

Resolution is very good at ISO 80-200. I generally just leave it on 80 most of the time. With the image stabilizer, I can take handheld pictures in available light down to 1/5 second at least.

The meter will always blow highlights, I just leave it on -1/3 and all is well.

White balance is fairly decent outdoors, needs to be set manually if you're picky indoors.

I love all the other manual tweaks: manual exposure, color ranges from screaming vivid to insipid neutral, black and white and sepia, the ability to change contrast and sharpness and saturation. I have sharpening set to -2 since their algorithm tends to oversharpen things like landscapes with a lot of detail. I have never used Auto mode, but the Portrait mode produced excellent reduced depth of field as long as you remember to use the lens at maximum telephoto and try to fill the viewfinder with your subject.

The flash recycling time is horrible, but if you have a lot of time and want to illuminate something standing still, its coverage is decent.

Battery life is great. I get about 200 or so shots with rechargeable AAs.

The best thing about this camera is that it lives in my pocket and can be taken anywhere so I not only never miss a shot, but have infinite opportunities to learn and grow as a photographer with shots I never thought I would take.

It would be wonderful to have a swivel screen, but Canon never listens to its customers.

However, if you have more guts than me and can get in people's faces, this truly is the poor man's Leica for the early twenty-first century.

zippy performance (thanks to Digic II), very good imge quality, tons of features, great battery life

I'm an Olympus loyalist, and purchased the 710 for my daughter at Christmas, but she wasn't pleased with it. Her friends have this A710 that she's used and became comfortable with it. So I exchanged the Olympus for this Canon and now she's in heaven. My personal take on it though....too bulky for fitting in a pocket; not very compact. The menu buttons on the camera weren't obvious ('course, that's what manuals are for). Didn't have a flip-around screen (nice feature for kids). The memory card only allows for about 7 pictures, so plan on spending some serious coin to upgrade your memory. It's a good camera, you won't have wasted your money on it - just not my first choice.

Having had an early digital, and a really good Toshiba PDR-35 (no longer made)-- I wanted an upgrade to about 35mm picture quality digital. In the past I have had Canon equipment, and trust the quality of lenses and camera. We take a LOT of photos on trips, well over a hundred per week at those times, under all kinds of real life action and all light conditions.

This one does it all, better than I had hoped!! Smaller, easier to use, bigger display, optical viewfinder etc. I was amazed at the movie quality with available light, indoors at a library. Love the indicator to show when you run over the (best) optical telephoto range, and enter the digital part. Deleting old pix was a snap, but the "in computer" editing controls are simpler on the Sierra "Image Expert" from my old Toshiba, nice to have both. In building wood boats I keep detailed records on how and why it was done that way for future owners. So high quality images, quick and easy, are better for me. I can not think that even the much heavier and more expensive digi-cams would materially improve what this one will do. Check out the extra flash add-on, 35mm slide copier, filter adaptors, 2x tele-verter and underwater case, this has it all -- at a very reasonable weight and price -- a super camera that does everything very well.

I was really excited to receive the camera after doing several months of research. Unfortunately, after only 20 minutes of use, the camera failed to turn back on. Instead, I got the message that is part of the title. After doing some research on this error message, it seems that Canon has a long-standing issue with this problem. I guess I will be sending it back to them for repair, but it certainly is not starting on the right foot.

I am very happy with this camera. The instant stability is excellent. Also the zoom works great for outdoor pictures from inside the house. All inside pictures are very good.

I have all Canon cameras. But this is the best Point and shoot camera I've seen so far. I was going to buy a smaller one for pocket use. But after looking at the difference in features I opted for a slightly larger one. It is a trade off between size and features. I have a Canon 20D but I use this one more. Best features are the 6X which is about 210 mm. And the image stabilization which is a must have for sharp pictures hand held.

This is my third digital camera, and it's by far the best. Great set of features with aperture and shutter priority, full manual, 6X optical zoom, 7 MP, and image stabilization. There just isn't another camera out there with the same features. Feels good in the hand too. I'm particularly impressed with the speed of operation, especially when using a high-speed SD card, and with the image stabilization feature. I've been able to take good quality shots without a tripod at the 6X optical zoom setting and the shutter speed as slow as 1/30 of a second. That would be impossible without stabilization. All in all, I think it's a great camera for anyone who doesn't need a SLR.

Had a Canon A60 and loved it ...Needed to update and checked out several other cameras....Settled on this one and sure happy that I did....Does everything it says and Amazon.com you did a great job again.

Obviously this is no SLR - but you're not paying for an SLR. I bought this camera after using a Panasonic Lumix FZ15. I loved that camera but it was bulky like an SLR. I wanted a smaller camera that gave me similar results and the A710 is what the doctor ordered. Granted it doesn't have the zoom capability as the Lumix (12x) but I seldom used that much zoom anyway. (6X is just fine most of the time). I also wanted a camera that allowed me to take quality video. For not being an actual video camera it does a great job - except for the other night when I accidentally took all my video at 15fps intead of 30. I had to junk that. I'm still learning the in's and out's of the camera. The reviews are correct though - video taken with zoom in dark conditions are so noisy they are really not fit to share. But again it's not a video camera - it's a camera that shoots video! The other problem with the camera is a problem mentioned by just about everybody. When you take out the SD memory card you have to be careful because the batteries want to pop out also.
You want a better camera? Be preapared to spend a lot more bucks!

Esta cámara toma unas fotos increíbles, el estabilizador mejora el resultado de las fotos.

As the first of Canon's great A series this camera comes with image stabilization and 6 x zoom. Great camera!

35 pictures on the lowest setting is the record so far! It may use "regular AA", but it eats them. On recent trip to Tahoe had to change batteries twice in 2 days!! Have contacted Cannon...waiting to hear.

Great camera, many features. Amazon and Cannon should tell you the supplied 16mb card will only hold 4 pictures in memory. Another recommendation is for cannon to either leave the card out altogether or tell you it won't hold squat. The 1gb card is only $20+ dollars and will hold 500-600 pictures easily.

Now, That's a neat little camera!
I have had it for two weeks now and my wife is complaining about my playing with it all the time.
The thing is that you can just put the mode dial on "Auto" and point and click or you can get wild and experiment with all the other settings including Full Manual mode, color swapping, aperture or speed priority etc. This is my first digital camera. Before, I used an old film camera, a Nikormat FT2 with no auto anything. It's interesting to discover that, if I ant to, I can use this digital camera in much the same way as i used the Nikormat.

The interesting features that made me buy it are:
- the low price (for the possibilities it offers),
- the compact size (I can hold it with one hand while driving and still make a very decent picture through the opened window of the car),
- the image stabilization,
- the 6x optical zoom (though I off the 4x digital zoom most of the time),
- the AA rechargeable batteries NiMH (the alkaline lasted me one day so the first thing I did was buy a set of 4 PowerEx 2700Mamp batteries along with their C204W charger, the camera only uses two so I always have two spares, The 2700Mamp batteries last me a full week, I take pictures every day),
- the camcorder possibilities,
- the large LCD
- the quality of the Canon lens,

There are some things that Canon should work on though:
- the battery door latch is a little clumsy,
- the thread for the tripod is plastic, should be metal (it works with my old tripod)
- the flash should have a longer range and a shorter recharge cycle.

The 710is is a good looking camera, the position of the controls is very intuitive and I like the fact that I can program the timer and the number of pictures it takes after I have set it. There are a couple of attachments that Canon and other makers have available for it but I think that if one needs them you are better off buying a larger camera like a DSLR (The Nikon D40 is only about twice the price of the 710is) instead of attaching different lenses to it and making it fragile and bulky.
I just love it!

Very pleased with camera and Amazon. Camera has very good focus. Batteries are great!! Very fair price. Lots of modes.

I shopped around a lot to find the best price for this item. It has many sophisticated features, some of which I am still learning to use. The image quality is superb.

I am very pleased with the camera, which I have been using for about a month now. The delivery was very prompt. Even though I do not quite understand how the auto focus works and some pictures were blurred (as a result of wrong focus), I am very happy with the camera. Most of the pictures were excellent, and there are lots of options for the more creative photographer. I love this camera. The only thing I need to make sure is to turn the switch to "view pictures" before I put the camera in the bag. Thanks to one previous reviewer for this tip. I unintentionally pressed the power button a few times when the camera was in the case. Fortunately the lens did not try to come out because I had set the camera in the "view picture" mode.

This is our first digital camera. We have a Canon Rebel EOS film camera, and love using it, but we needed something for everyday use. We originally bought a panasonic digital camera, and returned it because it lacked the features we were looking for. I got online, and found this camera, which has all of the features we want. We love Canon, and will most likely never buy any other brand. This camera is well worth the cost!

This camera is absolutely wonderful! The picture quality is amazing and the camera is very easy to figure out how to use. I like the fact it has AA batteries so it's easy to replace when you're on the go. It does go through them farely quickly, but it's worth the extra couple bucks on the batteries. We have rechargable ones so when we are at home or something, we can just charge them up when they get low. I/we LOVE this camera! It's worth the money.

I got a Canon SD600 Digital Elph camera for Christmas. This is after owning and using a SD30 for about 4 years, give or take. I was deciding between getting the A710, or a Casio Z70/700 or similar. I decided on Canons, due to supposedly higher image quality. The Casio's have great/fast interfaces.

I got my A710 from Amazon, and thought "I can't wait till it's charged and I can use it". Then I remembered, it uses normal batteries! At first I didn't like this, since I liked the easily rechargeable battery from my older S30. However, I love the normal batteries now; they're easy to replace if you need to, and I can keep multiple pairs for charging (great for trips). Plus, no special charge to misplace all the time.

The IS is why I bought this camera. It seems most of the available cameras (when I was looking, Christmas '06) don't include Image Stabilization (IS). This is the part I love most! When I'm moving the camera, it's almost eerie and disconnected since the picture doesn't move when I'm shaking the camera (including intentionally shaking the camera like I've eaten too much sugar/caffeine). You can definitely notice, especially on movies where normal camera shake have rendered other movies unusable. The IS is great!

The LCD is good, noticeably better than the Exilim's I've seen and used. It's bright enough, though hard to see in the bright sun. For those situations, I've found myself using the viewfinder. The higher-end exilims without the viewfinders are supposed to have incredibly bright LCD's, still usable in the bright sun.

The shot quality is amazing, much better than my old S30. Even a lot of higher-megapixel cameras simply don't look it, as their shots are fuzzy, have chromatic aberation (purple fringing), and bad color. This camera shoots great pictures, and has rekindled my love of taking quick snapshots.

The camera is quick from startup and shot-to-shot, with the exception of using the flash. I don't use the flash much, due mostly to the fact that the old S30 looked horrible with the flash on (overexposed everything, no matter what the manual settings). The flash on the A710 looks great, but it adds a delay. You take a picture with flash, can review the picture right away (hold the button down if you want to review it for a while). As soon as the review is gone, the LCD turns off for 4-5 seconds to recharge the flash. First time this happened, I thought I'd broken the camera. It's annoying, and is the one huge flaw on this camera. I imagine it's due to the camera using 2 AA batteries instead of 4 like older A-series Canon's.

The movie mode looks fantastic (I would definitely consider using this instead of a non-HD camcorder) except that the files are huge (125mb per minute... no MPEG-4 here!). I really wish Canon would get onto the MPEG-4 bandwagon, like the Exilim's. A 1gb card does 8 minutes, a 4gb card a half-hour. You can pull quality down, but it's just a shame it doesn't do MPEG4. However, the sheer quality of the video is excellent, and makes for a good quick clip (30 seconds, couple minutes) feature.

It's smaller than I thought, less bulge due to using 2 AA's instead of 4. The lens doesn't protrude any more than the handle bulge, and it's comfortable to hold. The interface is nice, easy to change most items from a couple of menus.

Battery life for me has be very impressive... about 300-400 pictures so far on my single set of AA 2800mah NIHM batteries from Walmart. I decided to use the camera until they die... they still haven't yet! I keep getting the low-battery warning, but they just never quit. I've got little energizer bunnies in there or something. The bundled Alkaline's died after the first 100-200 pictures, still pretty decent. About on par with what I got from my old S30, which wasn't great on the included Li-Ion battery anyway.


The only things I'd change are the blank-LCD-delay after flash photos, and the extremely huge but nice video clips. Definitely recommended for a good mid-range point-and-shoot semi-manual. Very happy with my purchase.

- great optical zoom
- great quality and
- great colors.

i like it all.

The combination Viewfinder Window and Large LCD display make taking pictures in sun or shade very easy. The Funtion /Setup screen allows fast switching between different Compression and Pixel setting a snap.
The picture Quality is excellant. The 6X optical zoom (coupled with a neat display bar) is a wonderful feature for a vacation camera.
Because only 2 AA batteries are used, I recommend that NiMH recharchable
be used.

It's an excellent camera, HOWEVER you have to struggle a bit before you can begin to operate it. And I mean struggle. The book with instructions to operate it are clear when you read them over and over. But I guess its no different from other technology. I purchased this particular model because of the stabalization feature. And of course I replaced the picture card with a 2Gb card.

I upgraded from a Powershot A530 and really like the new Powershot a710IS. This is a fine camera that is very sophisticated but also easy to use. It takes high quality pictures that are easy to save and store. Short of getting a professional (and much larger) grade this is my top on the line. For under $300 the technology in the camera is wide ranging, user friendly and delivers great results. I like everything about the camera; the large view screen, the in-camera view finder, the grip edge for holding, and so on. The most dedicated non-professional can really appreciate this camera.

After much research ( and printouts of reviews on about a ream of paper) I narrowed my search to 3 Canon cameras. My first digital was an Olympus 3 years ago and I still have it but wanted to upgrade. We were going on a lengthy cruise with potentially great photo-ops so I was on a mission to find MY new camera! I was not disappointed! Very easy to set up and use. The viewfinder - an especially necessary item in the bright tropic sun - was the envy of all of the other tourists toting new,expensive, miniscule, and displayscreeen-useless-in-sunlight cameras!

The fact that it can take real batteries was also important. (My older camera also does and ran out of power on a vacation and just a trip to a local drug store allowed me to play tourist again.)

I am NOT a techie but I do like to do my homework and the reviews I read helped me to make a decision.

I bought this camera after owning an Olympus 3 MP for over 4 years. I switched to Canon because the brand in general has great reviews.

Here is a non-expert list of pros and cons of this camera:
Pros:
1. The video feature has sound which some less expensive models don't offer. The video feature in general is better than I expected.
2. Although it goes through the batteries rather quickly, I still like having a camera that uses normal AA batteries versus the lithium ion. I bought a Sony charger with 4 batteries, and since this camera only uses 2 AA batteries I always have 2 extra. Plus when I'm out somewhere if the batteries die I can just go to any store and buy AA batteries. Our camcorder uses the lithium ion batteries and even though we have an extra battery pack they always are dead when we need them. So the fact that this camera uses normal AA alkaline batteries is a good feature, especially on vacations.
3. Compact size considering all it offers
4. Offers a viewfinder which makes it so much easier taking pictures in bright sunlight
5. The LCD screen is big and extra bright
6. The optical zoom is great

Cons:
1. No in-camera cropping. This is a major drawback because even the lower-end Olympus cameras offer in-camera cropping. This means you must use software to crop pictures and the software included with this camera leaves a lot to be desired.
2. The red eye reduction doesn't work as well as my Olympus did. Once again software is necessary to reduce red-eye, especially on pictures taken indoors. I have not had this problem with outdoor shots.
3. No internal memory. You need to buy an SD card of at least 512 MB with this camera. The one that comes with it (16 MB) only holds about 5 pictures.

Overall I'm happy with the camera but in general I like cameras that offer more in-camera editing options instead of always having to connect to a computer or photo printer to edit.

I don't think anyone would be disappointed in general with this camera but they might have a couple of minor gripes like I do.

Only problem I had was some difficulty in initially opening the battery compartment. Otherwise it would be 5 stars.

The good: This camera takes very nice photos. It's small and easy to tote around. It's also loaded with neat features like IS, a 6x zoom, view finder, as well as different scene modes. These modes are for night, sporting, and landscape settings as needed. It makes life a little easier for point and shoot photographers. In addition you can play around with various color settings and really take artistic pictures. It also has full manual mode which is a truly great feature to have on any camera. The canon software is also decent. The photostich app is a handy way of doing panoramics without using a photoshop type program.

On the downside canon only gives you a 16mb SD card which can only hold about 4 high resolution shots. Considering that prices are dropping on these cards it's almost an insult. But that's not so much a criticism of the camera. My only real gripe with the camera itself is that the flash recycles painfully slow. I had read that this was true and thought this might be an exaggeration. It is not. The good news is that this camera takes extremely good low light photos so if you've got decent indoor lighting you can take nice interior shots without really needing the flash in the first place.

While image quality is very good I was a little disappointed. I have an old canon S30 3.2 mp and I did some comparisons. While the 710 did shoot noticeably higher resolution it didn't blow me away with clarity compared to 3.2 mp. I thought the difference would be more dramatic then it actually is. My old S30 was a very high quality camera and there is a lot to be said for optics. But the 710 is a very good camera. Considering that you can get it now for well under $300 it's really a bargain for a camera to does so much so well.

If the flash rate was better I would easily give it 5 stars. Maybe I'm expecting too much from a compact camera under $300.00. Still, the flash is just about useless for multiple shots.

This review has 2 part one for the camera and one for Amazon. First the camera. This camera is a camera that is small enough to take anywhere but still is big enough not to get lost in your hand. It is easy to use right out of the box but has enough features to keep you trying different things and experimenting for weeks. The picture quality is great. Just one slight negative is the tiny capacity memory stick that comes with it. If you buy this camera order a larger stick as well. (Example: the stick that comes with the camera will only hold 3-4 pictures)
Second about Amazon. When I ordered this camera there was a promotional item that should have come with the item. The Amazon website for some reason did not allow me to order the promo item. I emailed customer support and they had the issue solved within 48 hours. I received the promo item and as a bonus Amazon absorbed the shipping cost of the promo item. I have been using Amazon for quite a few years now and all the purchases I have made have been good experiences. Hope this review helps.

We purchased at Christmas and so far works great. Highly recommend!!

I was very surprised at the features and quality of the camera. It is easy to hold and produces a very clear shot even from a moving sail boat. The auto feature makes it a superb point and shoot camera. It took a very crisp sunrise shot which clearly showed the foreground. I doubt I would ever use the manual settings since the auto is so good.

After reviewing cameras for hours both in stores and online, I chose the A710 IS. I upgraded from a Sony Cybershot 5MP. I have taken about 200 pictures in different settings using my Sony and the Canon for comparison. My biggest complaint with my Sony was poor image quality with indoor shots. The Canon does much better. Overall, I have been satisfied with the colors and picture quality. I chose the Canon over a few others because it is small enough to put in your pocket yet it does have a few advanced options like aperture priority, shutter priority, and exchangeable lenses. I noticed that the reviews stated that flash recharge time was slow. It is VERY SLOW (usually 5-10 seconds compared to 3-6 for the Sony). This can be a significant problem. Otherwise I have been happy with the results and would recommend the camera for people who love to point and shoot but aspire to learn more about advanced settings in the future.

I did alot of research before purchasing this digital camera. I wanted more zoom than most of the cameras offered, and I wanted the stabilization feature. It has proved to be a great camera, although I haven't had the time to go through and test all the features on it. Also, I purchased the Digipower battery pack to charge the AA batteries. It has