The S3 IS is MUCH MORE camera than the vast majority of casual photographers, snap-shooters, and novice shutterbugs are ever going to need (or use). The differences between the S3 IS and the S2 IS are minor when compared to the similarities, so the substantially cheaper S2 IS may be a better choice for some budget-restricted purchasers.

In summary, the family-oriented Canon PowerShot S3 IS is a feature-packed six-megapixel hybrid digital camera that is equally at home with photo enthusiasts and digital diehards as it is in the hands of the point-and-shoot “where do I press?” set.

The family-oriented Canon PowerShot S3 IS is a feature-packed six-megapixel hybrid digital camera that is equally at home with photo enthusiasts and digital diehards as it is in the hands of the point-and-shoot “where do I press?” set.

Taken as a package, the Canon S3 IS is one fine digital camera, and one that’s a lot of fun to use besides. Based on our testing (and playing with it), it’s clear that this is going to be a huge favorite in the market. The Canon PowerShot S3 IS is highly recommended, and an easy Dave’s Pick in its category.

The S3 IS presents a worthy alternative for consumer digicam users considering an upgrade to a consumer dSLR. While its image quality, responsiveness and viewfinder quality are not quite up to dSLR standards, the S3’s versatility, especially its movie mode and articulating LCD viewfinder, is unmatched by any dSLR available today.

There are similarly-priced digital SLRS that have better performance; pay more and you’ll get better image quality too. But they’ll be bigger and more complicated. The combination of the excellent zoom, good image stabilisation and wide range of features and settings make the PowerShot S3 IS a flexible camera in a surprisingly compact package.

All in all, it didn’t take much for the Canon PowerShot S3 IS to convince yours truly. You can get started quickly, and you will be able to capture all your moments with excellent quality in no-time. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Canon PowerShot S3 IS rise instantly to worldwide bestseller fame. It is indeed a unique camera, suitable for everyone. Truly recommended to all that are looking for a high-quality versatile camera!

There are cameras out there that offer slightly better image quality (certainly in terms of sharpness), and I’m pretty convinced that the Panasonic image stabilization system is slightly more effective, but taken as a whole there is nothing out there that offers the feature set, handling and sheer fun factor of the S3 IS, and so it still – just – keeps hold of our top rating.

The Canon PowerShot S3 IS has a lot of solid functions, but its actual image quality has yet to be tested. Its predecessor, the S2, produced noisy images that didn’t have great colors for a Canon. The Canon PowerShot S3 isn’t an incredible bargain, but does have more pros than cons and is priced right among its competitors at $499.

The Canon S3 IS will be inappropriate only for those photographers who like to make high-contrast images or those who shoot into the light (something you’re not supposed to do, but I love the look and do it all the time). Otherwise, the S3 IS is tough to beat as an all-around multi-purpose compact digital camera with super zoom capability.