Canon PowerShot S330

Review Date
October 18, 2003

Overall Rating
 1 of 5

Value Rating
 1 of 5

Used product for
0-1 years

Visitors rate this review
3.33 of 5, 3 votes

Reviewed by
Sloberdog , Casual

Price Paid
$298.00 at BestPriceAudioVideo.

Summary
This is my second digital camera, I purchased the camera in 12/2002 and was extremely happy with the quality of the camera until 10/2003. Here is what happened:

Turned on camera, lens goes out, and that was it. LCD screen lists error code "E18". Search the internet for what to do about E18 and found the following site:

http://homepage.tinet.ie/~e18/emails.html

Called Canon customer service and they said that the camera is under warranty and that they will fix it.

This error E18 appears to be a Canon manufacturing problem as this widespread problem appears to be affecting all Canon digital cameras models. I cannot recommend nor will I ever buy a Canon digital camera again.

Strengths
Good pictures, solid build, great battery life, good optical zoom. Everything is great until you get the E18 error!!

Weaknesses
E18 error. Go here http://homepage.tinet.ie/~e18/emails.html Do not buy,unless you like to throw away your $$$. Just do a search for Canon and E18, I am not making this up.

Similar Products Used
Casio LV-10 that is still working like new!

Customer Service
Not sure yet, will find out in 3-4 weeks after I get the camera back.

Review Date
April 8, 2003

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
0-1 years

Reviewed by
michhy Kan , Intermediate , from Melaka, Malaysia

Price Paid
$349.00 at Canon Malaysia

Summary
I've always been a point-and-shoot person. I dislike heavy and bulky devices, I prefer carry-anywhere products whenever possible. After looking around for a "geeky" camera that suits my requirements, I finally ended up with the S330. I initially wanted the IXUS V2 (S200) but in the end picked the S330 solely for the X3 optical zoom. The camera is an ultra-compact type, but came with lots of features and hard buttons, which eliminates having to go into slow and clumsy menus as in other digital cameras of the same class. Picture quality is good, start-up time is fair. Personally I think the S330 would pass as a full featured digital camera (not SLR though) with all the available functions and settings.

Strengths
Loads of features, adjustments. Enough to satisfy the geek in me. Good image quality, cheap CF storage media, compact and fits in pocket. Bright LCD display. 3X optical zoom, speedy operations. 10X zoom in preview mode very useful for checking image quality on the spot. Great bundled software suite that I actually uses.

Weaknesses
Proprietary battery (but considering it's an ultra-compact camera, it's forgiven), bundled 8MB memory card is a joke. Flimsy rubber cover for the USB and output jacks.

Similar Products Used
Mustek products, Sony U20, older models of some Sony Mavica units.

Customer Service
Have not used or needed.

Review Date
February 12, 2003

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
0-1 years

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by
Sandy_Howell , Intermediate , from Eaton Rapids MI

Price Paid
$268.00 at Buydig.com

Summary
I purchased my S330 in October. At first was very dissapointed because the auto white balance was incredibly off---making people's skin tones look very orange under incandecent lighting, and changing the white balance to incandecent didn't help. I immediately shipped the camera to Canon's service department. It was returned in under two weeks and the problem was corrected to my satisfaction. Now I love my S330. I've taken over 1,000 pictures with it. I'm particularly impressed with the close up portrait type shots. They are very clear and sharp with amazing detail.

Strengths
Pocketablity is awesome. I can carry the camera in one pocket and extra battery and compact flash in the other pocket and I don't even notice I'm carrying them.

Great close up portrait shots.

Great night shots using slow shutter speed.

Love the compact battery charger.

Weaknesses
Battery life is less than that of the Nikon Coolpix 775 that I have. I have remedied that by buying a couple of after-market spares.

Sometimes is a little slow at focusing in low light situations.

Similar Products Used
Nikon Coolpix 775
Olympus C700 ultra zoom

Customer Service
I was very pleased with the prompt service given me by Canon.

Review Date
December 26, 2002

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
0-1 years

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by
s330Mark , Casual , from Maryland

Price Paid
$275.00 at B&H Photo Video

Summary
The S330 is a perfect "take-along" camera, being very light & compact. I use it on nature walks, motorcycle trips (both road & off-road). Photo quality is very good. The auto settings are accurate. I've dropped the camera twice with NO ill effects. Treat yours better, but they are tough little critters. Its many functions are easy to learn & simple to perform. Read the book. Battery life is good & it recharges VERY quickly. Memory included (8MB) is a joke. Get at least a 128MB card (highest resolution pics are about 1MB each)& you'll get through a decent day of shooting. The cards are cheap compared with missing priceless memories. Canon-brand lithium ion batteries (about the size of a piece of chocolate) sell for about $45. I just paid $60 for a truck battery - something ain't right there. Get an after market replacement/back up battery - about $25. In summary, I HIGHLY recommend the S330!

Strengths
Light weight, small size, strong case, good photos, adjustability, accurate auto settings.

Weaknesses
Inaccurate white balance. Manual focus or lack there of. Case not included. Standard memory insufficient, bordering on insulting. Accessory prices ($200 for a waterproof case, $45 for a battery, have to buy a case.)

Similar Products Used
Fuji FinePix 2650

Customer Service
Should have needed it by now but zero problems to date.

Review Date
December 20, 2002

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
0-1 years

Reviewed by
Marginal , Intermediate , from Montreal

Price Paid
$400.00 at ebay

Summary
I bought this camera mainly because it is a Canon, it's small and its body is made of stainless steel.
Well, Canon have about the best optics around and I was not disappointed with this particular camera concerning the optics. The colours are magnificent, contrast is very good compared to other companies cameras in this range, and the overall quality of the pictures is more than satisfactory.
Very small to carry (eventhough it could be a little smaller) and practical to handle this camera does exactly what it is supposed to do.
They could have added another mega-pixel to it but if you don't print big pictures from it it is very good.
Some complain it's video quality is no good, but how can you expect a good video quality from such camera?
It simply is not made for video, it only does it in extreme surcumstances, if you want good quality video go and buy a camcorder.
So, I would recommend this camera to everyone without hesitating, you can carry it everywhere without problem.

Strengths
Strong stainless steel body, excellent Canon optics, compact size.

Weaknesses
Only 2 mega-pixels, could have been a little smaller.

Similar Products Used
Kodak DSC-265

Customer Service
I have not have to use it yet.