Canon PowerShot S10 2MP Digital Camera w/ 2x Optical Zoom

The Canon PowerShot S10 uses CompactFlash type I and II memory cards. The Canon PowerShot S10 also supports IBM's 340 MB Microdrive, capable of storing the equivalent of 10 rolls of pictures at a time.

Another user-friendly feature of this camera is its USB (universal serial bus) connectivity, which allows the PowerShot S10 to communicate with your computer 20 times faster than standard serial port connectors. You can connect directly to USB or use the RS-232C serial port.
The PowerShot S10 is powered by a lightweight 2CR5 lithium (or NB-5H rechargeable NiMH) battery and an internal CR2016 lithium battery that ensures date/time stamp backup.

The Canon PowerShot S10 comes with a comprehensive software package that is fully compatible with PC and Macintosh computers and includes Adobe PhotoDeluxe and PhotoStitch for both Mac OS and Windows. It also provides a wrist strap, a video cable, interface cables, a lithium battery, an 8 MB CompactFlash card, a case for the CompactFlash card, and a user's manual.

Product Description
Canon's PowerShot S10 digital camera is packed with features to make high-resolution picture-taking a breeze. The 2.1 megapixel, half-inch CCD sensor lets you take clear, vibrant images at 1600 x 1200 resolution. Preview and playback the images on the large LCD monitor or download the images to your computer with the high-speed USB interface. One of the smallest and lightest 2x zoom cameras in the world, it comes with a CompactFlash card that holds 8MB worth of images. With an easy-to-use software bundle, this camera is compatible with Macs and PCs and waiting for you to unleash your creativity.

First off, I'll get the only bad thing about this camera out of the way. You MUST buy the optional power supply kit, otherwise you will be spending an extra 20 bucks for a Lithium CR5 battery every couple of weeks. The power supply kit, from what I have seen, goes for about 60-80 bucks, and includes the rechargable battery, charger, and A/C adapter (for operating without a battery when plugged into the wall, which comes in very handy).

Without buying this kit, the camera does come with the required lithium battery, serial cable for PC, serial cable for Mac, USB for PC/Mac, video cable, and an 8MB compact flash memory card. (Wrist strap, CD-rom, manuals and camera also included, obviously) First of all, the 8MB memory card can hold a lot more than 12 pictures, as quoted by one of the reviewers. If you read the manual, you'll find that the S10 can take pictures in 3 different resolutions, as well as 3 different compression ratios. In other words, 1600x1200 is a huge picture, and most normal people find 800x600 (the smallest setting) to be plenty sufficient for taking everyday pictures. Most people's computer resolutions are set to 800x600, and a picture that size would fill up the whole screen, if that gives you any idea. If you set the camera to 800x600 and high compression, you can put 61 pictures on the 8MB card. These are only a couple of the good customization options I found by reading the manual. This camera also 4x digital zoom and 2x regular zoom, which was not clarified by another reviewer. This feature can be enabled if you turn it on in the camera settings. It's not enabled by default.

Besides the zoom and large amount of picture storage, this camera can do a ton of stuff that I couldn't do on my old Fujifilm camera. Aside from the resolution and compression options, and the 4x digital zoom, the S10 can be set to manual mode and adjusted for specific situations. You can adjust the white balance, exposure level, object focus, and lighting condition options. If you don't feel like fooling with all these individually, there's an "Image" mode which allows you to set the camera for specific conditions, like Landscape, Fast shutter, Slow shutter, Night scene, and Black and white. And even further than this, there's a regular picture-taking mode for amateurs that allows you to just point and click while the camera automatically adjusts to the best settings. To top it all off, there's an included slide show option that cycles through all the pictures or a specific line-up that you make, which when hooked up to the TV (via the video cable) can make for great, quick entertainment, without having to download all the pictures and show them to someone on a computer. And for the outdoor photographer, there's an included photo-stitching mode that allows you to take several pictures, vertically or horizontally, and stitch them together seamlessly with the included software. (I.e. taking 3 pictures of a long beach and pasting them together)

In summary, after reading the manual included with the S10, I found that nearly everything is included into this durable, pocket-size camera. I'm extremely glad that I bought it, and it far outperforms my Fujifilm camera in picture quality, useablity, and transfer speeds. (with the USB cable). Even the LCD display is much brighter and clearer! Plus it looks cool! It's hard to go wrong if buying this camera. You won't be let down.


Amazing value...   June 1, 2000
Andre Stechert (Los Angeles, CA United States)
99 out of 99 found this review helpful

I just bought one of these S10's. As a 2 megapixel camera (where thegeneral classes are 1, 2, and 3 megapixels..., respectively at the time of this writing), I've been very happy with my purchase. My main reasons for choosing this camera were:

1. It has a USB connection. Very important for speedy downloads. Do NOT get a 2mp or greater camera without one. Warning: Win98/Win2000 are your best bets - NT doesn't support USB and neither does win95.

2. It supports CompactFlash Type II. I like CF better than SmartMedia. It's cheaper, supports higher capacity cards, and is more durable.

3. It supports the IBM MicroDrive 340 CF type II card (which would be a reason to buy this camera over the new digital ELPH S100, which is too small for that drive). 340MB = about 500 pictures for about $300. How huge is that!

4. My lower bound was 2 megapixels. The 3 Meg cameras JUST came out, so the prices on these two megapixel cameras all dropped by about 50% a few months ago. 3 megapixel cameras are still pretty pricey...

5. The review on dpreview was very good. Phil Askey explains in great depth the pluses and minuses of these cameras. I value his opinion a lot and he highly recommended this camera.

6. Battery life is reputed to be about 50 shots with regular use of the LCD preview and scanning shots. That seems about right in my usage so far.

7. Extremely compact and rugged, fits in your pants pocket. Has a sturdy non-plastic tripod mount.

Biggest surprises after buying the camera:

1. The software that came with the camera is surprisingly good. Thumbs up.

2. The batteries that you use are about $12 a pop, unless you get the rechargeables. The recharging device is a little under $100 and comes with one battery. Everyone recommends this as the first accessory followed by purchase of two more rechargeables (for a total of three) at about $35/ea. With this setup, you can take about 150 pictures - teamed with a 340Mb MicroDrive you can fit the entire vacation on the camera with room to spare!

3. I'd like to find a nice protective case for it, but they don't seem to be available :(.

4. You can't do the flash upgrade of the camera's firmware without the recharger kit. Fair warning!

5. The 340MB drive had some minor incompatibilities with the camera until the software patch released the first week of May 2000.

6. The LCD panel has the best anti-glare of any digital camera I've ever used. Big FAT SORT.

Hope this helps!


High quality for an inexpensive price   June 9, 2000
67 out of 69 found this review helpful

I just bought the Canon S10 digital camera and so far it has beenworking great!

S10 comes in a 8MB CompactFlash card which can hold up to 12 large pictures (1600 x 1200) and it is compatible with the 340MB card and connects to your computer using a USB port; if you have a Window95 or Windows NT system, don't worry, it also comes with a serial cable though using it would really slow down the actual download speed. S10 is also very compact compared with many other digital cameras, which is an excent choice if you have limited space on vacations. The feature I like most about this digi cam is that it has its own slide show built-in which you can hook up to your television with another cable that is provided in the package. Plus some other feature including Black and White photographs, slow motion, red eye reduction, etc.

Here are some of my regrets: 1. The software that is provided with the digi cam is very poorly put together and crashes alot on my Toshiba notebook.

2. The CompactFlash that is provided is TOO limited I would buy the 340MB card or buy a couple more of those 8MB cards.

3. S10 uses to much power, you will need to buy the recharger for around $100 because the Canon is so desperite to get more money, or you need to buy a dozen of those batteries at $12 each

3. 2x zoom is just not enough, you need at least 5x or greater...


Pleased with Canon S10   June 26, 2000
Tom Bailey (San Diego, California)
54 out of 55 found this review helpful

At almost the last minute before leaving on an Alaskan cruise, I decided to dump my usual point-and-shoot camera and go digital. Amazon got the camera to me the day before I left - needless to say, I was reading the manual and taking test photos on the plane to Anchorage! I found the S10 to be very easy to use, and very difficult to take bad pictures with. I'm still discovering new features. One of my favorites is the ability to connect the camera to any television set and show your pictures within seconds of taking them. We did this several times on the ship. The compact size of the S10 makes it more likely that I will carry it with me on outings, rather than leave it at home. I've not yet gotten into the computer/software side of digital photography, but I'll attack that soon - I just got back from Alaska yesterday. Three recommendations: 1) you MUST get the rechargeable battery set, and probably an extra rechargeable battery. It's unfortunate that the charger outfit was not included with the camera (and included in the price). For this reason, if I had it to do over again, I would look very closely at the Canon S100. 2) You should consider getting a larger capacity compact flashcard - I got a 32Meg, which holds about 140 snapshot-type pictures. 3)Think about getting a soft case for the camera - Canon makes a leather case - you can also get nylon cases that work. I worry about scratching or otherwise damaging the LCD screen while carrying the camera unprotected.


Great Camera   August 11, 2000
Nick Amaral (Narragansett, RI United States)
54 out of 55 found this review helpful

If you are serious about buying this product I am sure that you already know all the specs on it and such so I will just tell you why I bought it and what I use it for.

The reason I chose the Canon S10 over other similar digital cameras was mainly the size of the camera. I can easily fit this camera in my pocket on my way to the great outdoors.

While I am outdoors this camera is very sturdy. When powered down the lens retracts and is enclosed away from any harm.

Now this is how I use my camera, usually I take my pictures at the highest quality and when my 48mb cf card fills up I go through my pictures on the viewfinder and delete the ones that I don't like so much, and I fire away with my memory free'd up.

Back at my computer I upload with the USB connection (must have, anything else is WAY to slow). The photo company I print with is ofoto.com, they are great! They have software where you can crop your photos for the desired size, this is great when you take a picture with something that you didn't originally want in the photo. Then I upload the photos and have them printed out and sent to me, what a great service, I can also send out email with links to the photos albums I wish to share.