Canon Powershot A1100 IS Review: A Low Cost Pocket Point-and-Shoot

Advanced face detection, Smart Auto, a 12 megapixel sensor and Digic 4 image processing make the Canon Powershot A1100 IS a big improvement on the A1000 IS. Its capture quality is particularly good for a camera less than $200, although the same was true for the A1000 IS. The biggest difference is the Powershot A1100 IS's newer technologies.

Those who would immediately move on from the Powershot A1100 IS might feel a bit indecisive if they held it in their hands. It doesn't feel as cheap as the cost suggests, with the curve for one-handed shooting. Powered by two AA batteries, the Powershot A1100 IS has a somewhat small LCD, but it does feature an optical viewfinder, something many Canons lack. Some of its best qualities come out when you're shooting in bright sunlight, plus you can save power by turning off the LCD.

Canon dropped manual controls with the Powershot A1100 IS. It does have ISO, white balance, light metering, color and autofocus controls, though. For the most part, the Powershot A1100 IS is just a point and shoot camera.

Performance on the Powershot A1100 IS about matches up with what you would expect from this range of cameras, though some may not have the patience for the two seconds it takes to go from off to the first shot. Shot-to-shot, you have a 2.1 second wait, which is pushed all the way up to 6.6 with the flash on. Frustration is the obvious result in some cases, particularly since shutter lag is 0.6 seconds. Think of all the action you can miss in that time frame. On the bright side, you only sacrifice 0.2 seconds when lighting is worse. The Powershot A1100 IS does 1 fps with its unlimited continuous shooting mode.

One area where I can't complain is the image quality, which is superior to that of a lot of others in this price bracket. Highlight clipping is a slight problem, but white balance, color and contrast are pretty stable overall. You know the routine: Bright lighting and ISOs of less than 200 produce the best shots. 8x10 or smaller pictures will be fine all the way up to ISO 400, though. The Powershot A1100 IS has the option of going up to an ISO of four times that, but over 800 really isn't worth the trouble. The lens widest setting produces a little barrel distortion, plus the Powershot A1100 IS has a bit of a problem with purple fringe on higher contrast pictures.

You have what you need in the Canon Powershot A1100 IS if all you want is a point and shoot that doesn't cost too much. Photo quality beats that of other similarly-priced cameras, and the AA batteries are a convenient option for many, along with the viewfinder. Definitely worth some consideration.