Customer reviews from usa.canon.com
Canon - PowerShot SX500 16.0-Megapixel Digital Camera - Black
Average customer rating
4.2 out of 5
4.2
(38 Reviews)
Open Ratings Snapshot
Rating breakdown 38 reviews
5 Stars
25
4 Stars
3
3 Stars
5
2 Stars
2
1 Star
3
73%of customers recommend this product. 
(
27 out of 37
)
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Customer Reviews for Canon - PowerShot SX500 16.0-Megapixel Digital Camera - Black
Customer Rating
4 out of 5
4
Love this for videos and daylight pics
on March 25, 2013
Posted by: E
from RI
I bought this camera over Christmas break because I wanted a digital camera that was not quite as heavy-duty as a DSLR, but still had very good specs (I had been stalking this camera and another one for a few months before purchasing).
I was surprised at first at how light and compact this camera is. It is smaller than I had expected it to be.
I use this camera to record many functions and concerts at our high school to upload to youtube. I saw another reviewer had an issue with the audio and video not lining up and I have not encountered this problem (I have a mac and use imovie to edit all the clips).
I am thinking about getting a spare battery though as that has been my only issue when recording. The battery lasted over an hour while recording in HD, but I did not realize that I should have had a spare in order to record the whole event.
The zoom on this camera -for both stills and video- is amazing (especially when using a tripod). I stood 10+ feet away from a ping pong ball and on the mechanical zoom alone was able to clearly focus in on the company label on the ball. With the digital zoom, the camera zeroed in on one letter of said label while maintaining crisp quality.
I love the automatic macro setting. Initially my brother and I thought that you had to be on a specific setting in order to be in macro mode, but the camera focuses automatically. You just have to have a little patience in order to focus it properly for the light/which object you want to focus on. It may take a couple times of half-way releasing the shutter and re-depressing it in order to get the proper focus.
My friend and I played around with the manual settings and they were fairly easy to figure out... you can't be scared to try adjusting settings and realize that you can undo almost anything if you click the wrong button.
For manual shooting, I would go to my 35mm every time and use this digital as more of an automatic though.
My only qualms with this camera is using it in low-light conditions, camera to computer quality, and no viewfinder. It is iffy about whether a good picture comes out or not and the flash is very good for indoor situations, but sometimes does not help with outdoor, low light situations. I literally had taken two pictures with the same exact settings and focus; one came out gorgeous and the other was grainy and unfocused (even though it appeared fine as I was focusing it). The camera to computer quality is odd with some images. It seems like for some of the images, the camera has too high of a megapixel rate. There are pictures I've taken with this camera that look fine on the camera body itself, but once it's transferred to the computer, it is a little grainy and appears like it is worse quality (as desktop wallpaper) than pictures taken with my very old 4mp camera. I would LOVE a viewfinder on this camera, but for all the other brilliant things about this camera, I would willingly let that little detail go.
The price of this camera is excellent especially considering what it is capable of. Even if you forgo the picture-taking aspects of it and use it primarily as a video camera, I believe it is still easily worth the price (though I do not know why you wouldn't take advantage of the wonderful pictures it can take).
Overall, I do love this camera and it is extremely easy to use and carry, but there are a couple of features that could have been a little bit better or just more consistent.
Pros: excellent image quality, Lightweight/Portable, Simple controls/menu, easy to use, automatic macro setting, hd quality video
Cons: hard to focus in low-light situations, must be patient with focus, no viewfinder
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
4 out of 5
4
Great still pictures, but not sports action
on December 13, 2012
Posted by: Sports mom
from Ohio
I bought this camera as an upgrade to another Canon camera to take pictures of my daughter's volleyball and basketball games. As this camera does not have a "sports" mode, I thought I would be able to make adjustments to settings (aperature, ISO and shutter speed) and get the quality of action shots I wanted. However, after two weeks of experimentation and endless adjustments to settings, I was unhappy with my pictures. I returned the camera and am looking for a point and shoot camera to take sports pictures with. I would recommend this camera for still shots as the pictures turned out great. But not the action shots.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5 out of 5
5
Great camera
on July 3, 2013
Posted by: JJ
from New York
This camera was a Christmas present to my wife and myself. I used this camera at several concerts in an arena. I was able to take photos, from the middle seating level near the back of the arena. I used the optical zoom without the flash, just using the concert lighting. The photographs are incredible, beautiful quality, the close ups were almost like a portrait shot. The video is also incredible, I would not hesitate to buy this camera if I had to do it over.
Pros: good battery life, Good Low-Light Performance, excellent image quality, durable, Bright LCD, Lightweight/Portable, easy to use
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5 out of 5
5
Extremely impressed
on July 21, 2013
Posted by: Big Guy
from Orange County Ca.
I have been using a cheaper 10 megapixel point and shoot camera for a few years now but really wanted a high end Cannon Rebel or better but was just not affordable for me yet so I thought I would at least upgrade to this SX 500 IS and WOW! I am Blown Away with this Camera. For the money this Camera Performs beyond my expectations. The Zoom feature is fantastic and the picture quality is amazing. I highly recommend this Camera and with a little patience and study of the more detailed manual available on-line the results are quite incredible.
Pros: good battery life, Good Low-Light Performance, Nice features/settings, excellent image quality, durable, Bright LCD, Lightweight/Portable, Simple controls/menu, easy to use
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5 out of 5
5
Young Photographer
on March 3, 2013
Posted by: Pa
from Florida
I bought this camera for my teenage grandson and he loves it. He quickly was taking quality pictures with almost no trouble understanding the controls and settings. I would recommend this camera for new photographers. It is affordable and takes high quality pictures.
Pros: good battery life, Nice features/settings, excellent image quality, Bright LCD, Lightweight/Portable, Simple controls/menu, easy to use
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5 out of 5
5
LOOOVE IT
on June 17, 2013
Posted by: Anonymous
from peabody, MA
all i wanted to say is last time i checked this was 130$ bucks cheaper and the price is saying i SAVED money. well anyways i love this camera one of the best point and shoots and if you know how to use the setting ou can get pro results
Pros: good battery life, Good Low-Light Performance, Nice features/settings, excellent image quality, Lightweight/Portable, Simple controls/menu, easy to use
Cons: Dim LCD, Flimsy Construction
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
3 out of 5
3
Poor Picture Quality
on August 3, 2013
Posted by: Boomer918
from Plattsburgh NY
I have been using Canon cameras for some time. I deceided to move to a bit larger camera for the 30x zoom feature which is great. Problem is my pictures are rarely if ever clear and sharp with this model. Very disappointed with this model. Can only guess the lens is low quality. Will buy Canon again but will check lens quality closely.
Pros: good battery life, Nice features/settings, durable, Bright LCD, Simple controls/menu, easy to use
Cons: Poor image quality, Poor Low-Light Performance
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5 out of 5
5
excellent camera
on March 2, 2013
Posted by: Steven p.
from Pompano beach,FL
Best camera I have ever purchased, excellent zoom,
excelent flash, focus,design, quality pictures etc etce
Pros: good battery life, Nice features/settings, excellent image quality, durable, Bright LCD, Lightweight/Portable, Simple controls/menu, easy to use
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
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