Home > Consumer Reviews > Canon PowerShot A650 IS Digital Camera - Silver (12.1MP, 6x Optical Zoom) 2.5" LCD

I've been using the Powershot A 650 IS pretty constantly for the last 8 weeks and must say I didn't expect such quality results. My initial reasons for purchasing the 12.1 pixel compact was the swivel screen (not to watch from different angles but to put out of harms way when not working), the optical viewfinder for sunny days (when the screen can't be seen anyway)and the use of AA batteries instead of the expensive ion ones. I was aware of the experts' reservations; a tricky battery compartment (which I don't have a problem opening), bulkiness and high noise levels at faster ISO settings. All these seem a small price to pay for a camera that challenges the specs of a lot of DSLRs let alone other compacts. The colour and sharpness is wonderful and the flexible controls allow you to get great pictures in "most" situations. I find the camera VERY comfortable to hold and easy to manipulate. I've even had nice results with the 3200ISO mode when everything else failed late at night. The battery life(with rechargeable AAs) is superb and the detail allows you to blow up photos well beyond A4 size.
Altogether, I've found the camera to be a thoroughly satisfying purchase

This is a super camera for beginners and experts, everything comes together in one package. Optical viewfinder or swing out LCD display, great for sunny days, no reflection to worry about. Buy an SDHC 4GB card and you have a video camera as well. Need extra lenses, you can have them. This camera is not light weight but it is compact. Cons. The main handbook is on the CD, this cuts down the cost of the camera as it is not printed, so you need a computer to explore its potential. Try it, then buy it.

Very pleased with my A650 IS. Very good value for money performance well outside tis price bracket. My favourite features are the quick start-up and the excellent battery life.

I agree with the other reviewers that it is a bit plasticky and I think that the silver finish is largely to blame. To me it looks cheap and it certainly scratches easily. A friend has the previous model (can't remember the number) in black which looks fresher than mine.

The basic controls are fairly intuitive, but reading the user manual is a must to get any use out of the variety of features. It would be better if the memory card could be removed without opening the battery door, as this usually causes me to drop the batteries. The USB lead is a standard size however and worked rapidly for me on XP without the need to install any software.

For me the drawbacks to this model are few; overall very pleased.

Hello! I received this camera yesterday for when i go on holiday and ive got to say im amazed.

When i first got it out of the box i thought it felt very light and cheap when compared to my older Powershot A95 5MP but after a few minutes of using it i realised it has excellent build quality, its been made with lighter materials. I wouldnt say its a massive camera but with functionality that can match a 600 quid DSLR camera i cant moan, its not like camera enthusiasts with DSLR cameras are able to carry them around in their pockets.

I also bought a 8GB memory card and it works like a charm, a step up from the supplied 32mb card lol.

The startup time is insane, less than a second to be ready to take a photo and there are so many different focus options. I am particularly amazed with the face recognition option. It can search for heads in a photo and auto focus on them, i then started messing about, i sat about 5 meters away from a framed photo i have and it picked out the heads without a problem, its also funny when you point the camera at dvd covers etc with people on them, it must have some seriously clever hardware and software in it.

To take continuous 12.1mp photos at maximum quality it can do about 1 every 1.5 seconds, and oddly enough lowering the quality and megapixels doesnt increase the photo speed. I later discovered the iso3500 (or something rediculous) setting which allows you to take a rediculous amount of photos very quickly, must be about 4 a second. This setting will be ideal for photographing fireworks if i ever go back to Orlando.

There is also a scene selection mode with options for practically every environment, aquarium, underwater, you name it. All are very impressive, theres more complicated stuff like 1st and 2nd curtain flash (no idea) shutter priorty / iso priority (also no idea).

A lot of information is also saved with each photo, and you can specify whether you want to see this after each photo, brightess histogram etc. Theres also an option that makes the photographed image flash in areas that might be a bit over exposed so you know whether it might be necessary to take a nother photo with the flash off etc. There are guides and grids that can be overlayed across the screen to help you frame images etc. Theres also a very impressive video mode, allowing you to cut copy trim etc. With the 8gb card inserted it said i could record for 67 minutes, it must use huge a massive amount of space due to the quality of the video. That reminds me, after you have taken a photo, you can manually remove red eye from photos taken, crop and trim them to lower resolutions etc.

Id type more but theres so much i could talk about!

Amazing camera for the price, i highly recommend it.

After visiting many websites and looking at reviews I decided to go with the A650. OK I didn't need the 12MP but as a buddy photographer I liked the fact that I could point and shoot or if I was feeling creative I could switch to fully manual, just like the digial SLRs but without the bulk (and expense).

I'm really pleased with the shots that I've taken so far and the performance of the camera is great - quick start up, low shutter lag, etc. I really like the fact that I can move the screen to different angles and the video playback is good.

My only concern is the build - it does feel a bit plastic however very robust.

I really do recommend for anyone that is looking for something a little more than a point and shoot.

The Crumpler Crisp-e 950 is a good camera bag