Canon Powershot S50 - opinions pls

[daver]

Hi all,

I just picked up a used Canon Powershot S50 from a friend for a measly $25! His parents bought him a nice and shiny lil' Sony pocket size digicam, so he wanted to get rid of his older camera. Since he's a spoiled b@stard, he was making me an offer that even people on welfare couldn't refuse! Inevitably I took it - Why wouldn't I? My first real digital camera too!

The basics: 5.0 megapixels, 3x optical zoom, and he even threw in his old 256MB CF card. however, he was not able to produce the charging cable as he claimed to have lost it. (I really think his cat peed on it or something else, and he just won't admit it). Of course, no manual provided, not even a box. I was able to find the manual online however. I will also be surfing ebay for a cheap charger. Shouldn't be a problem.

I was wondering if any body has had previous experience, or still uses this same camera, and would like to ask for their opinion. And I don't need suggestions on a better camera, as I've already made my purchase, and I do believe there's no refund :D
I don't mind if it's not the best camera out there, or if the flash isn't bright enough, etc. If I wanted real good quality pictures, I"d whip out my trusty ol' Olympus optical camera, and spend a good 5 minutes adjusting the focus for top notch photos.

Thanks guys!

daver

[kiteandcamera]

$25 is an excellent price; good buy! I use a Canon S70 7.1 (megapixel) which is the successor to your S50. I love this digital camera. One the downside, the LCD screen is difficult to use in bright light, the camera body is very smooth (use a wrist strap!), and, with most similar devices, you can easily cover the flash with your finger. The Canon photo software is pretty intuititve.

As for the missing AC charger cable, this is an accessory. I think the only power you get with a new S50 was a battery and battery charger. eBay is definitely the best source for these parts. I bought a backup battery on eBay and it weems to work just fine. I definitely recommend that you have a spare, as well. Also, you can offload pics onto you iAudio X5L with the 2.10b7 firmware.

For a decent review of this camera visit Digital Photography Review at http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canons50/.

Enjoy

[daver]

thanks for the word kiteandcamera.

i'm not too worried about the LCD screen because i much prefer using hte viewfinder to LCD screens on digital cameras. i guess it's just a hangover effect from using optical all the time.

i've been reading reviews and what not, and it seems that most of the let downs on this camera apply to almost every other camera out there (at the time it was released into hte market). some people even said that this camera is one of the best for the price, etc. etc.

i guess i did get quite a steal, but only by luck. if my friend weren't so damn spoiled, i'd still be using my 0.3mp camera on my TH55 if i wanted digital.

also, i'll be going to NY and DC for "extreme" team building late April and early May. I will definitely have this Canon and my X5L on hand, and can't wait to be able to make use of the OTG feature! my friend will be bringing his laptop so i can always just use his card reader for the CF card in case the OTG isn't working properly though.