Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic
Review: I love this camera. I wanted a small camera that I could take everywhere with me. My first digital camera was a Nikon Coolpix 700 which did me great, but was bulky and difficult to tuck in my pocket. The s500 takes wonderful pictures and is so compact. I love the stich assistant feature which is on the included software- after a trip to the Grand Canyon it worked beautifully. As others have suggested, it id definately worth purchasing a larger capacity memory card if you intend to go on vacation with your camera as the 32MB included takes only 11 pictures at full size. I also use a close fitting case rather than one with lots of padding and pockets. I think using a bigger case defeats the object of having such a small camera in the first place. You can always put extra cards and batteries in your pocket/purse.
Overall this is a fantastic camera. It is portable, and takes great pictures. It looks great too!
Rating:
Summary: Exquisite little gem!
Review: I own a 10D which I absolutely love and was getting tired of using my old Olympus Epic (a GREAT film camera) and was looking for a good digital point and shoot. My two major candidates were the S500 and the S50.If you follow the photography boards at all you realize that this is a fairly common dilemma - the S500 vs the S50. The S50 offers excellent manual controls while the S500 is significantly smaller without any manual control whatsoever other than exposure compensation. I just LOVE the look and feel of the S500 though if anything it could be argued that it is TOO small. If you feel it is and you are looking for a carry everywhere camera it is well worth the effort to get used to the small size because the camera takes beautiful pictures. The S500 is simply beautiful. I can live without all the manual controls since I own the 10D and since this camera is primarily for my wife and for me when I don't want to lug the 10D around. Several have pointed out that since this camera is so small it will always be with you whereas the S50 would be less likely to be carried along because of its increased size. This is a very good argument! The camera is SUBSTANTIALLY smaller than its bigger brother the S50. The form and size factors are what finally won me over. One criticism of the camera. Low light focusing is less than ideal. You need to work with the camera to understand its limitations indoors. Also, battery life could be better, but that's the price you pay for such a small camera. I purchased the leather Elph case which protects the camera well and only adds insubstantially to the bulk. Some have complained that prior iterations of this camera scratch easily. I've owned them and found that if you keep the camera in a case and exercise modest caution that the camera will remain pristine. The pictures are just fantastic! Color saturation is superb and the file size is sufficient that you can crop with impunity. Other than in low light the camera locks onto its subject quickly and accurately. I am a huge fan of the Canon cameras and I would advise anyone looking for a camera, whether a point and shoot or a DSLR to carefully consider the Canon line since, in my opinion, Canon currently represents the state of the art.
Rating:
Summary: Superb Machine! Excellent, Sharp Pictures in a Small Frame.
Review: I was shopping at Best Buy with my friend, who decided on the SD110, the smallest in the ELPH series. However, after a little research, I found that the s500 is only marginally larger than its smaller sibling. Even so, this marvel can slip into my front pocket easily and takes superb pictures. The s500 also has the distinction of having 5 megapixels--fully 2 more than the SD110, and 1 more than the cheaper s410. I'm thinking if I'm already going to be spending so much money ($500 with an additional battery pack), I might as well go all out for the best, or just stick to a cheap $200 camera. Right? And who wants to buy cheap electronics? :-P I also have the Canon A70 and the Sony Cybershot U40. While the A70 was my trusty workhorse last year, it is rather homely and bulky. While not *very* large, there would have been no way to slip that brick into my pocket, with it's protruding grip and lens. Also it is only 3.2 megapixels. From looking at the pictures I took today on the s500's "shakedown" around the neighborhood, I can already tell that it takes far more detailed, sharper images than the A70, which suffered from a minor "softness" in the pictures it took. Also, the s500 is less a camera than it is a work of art in it of itself. When off, the camera has a slim, elegant look. It has an nostalgic air of Art Deco about it. From the front, the highly polished silver and handsome gold rings around the lens will catch anybodys' eye immediately--a breathtakingly beautiful machine to take breathtakingly beautiful pictures. On the other hand, this camera is not nearly as small as the Sony U40, which was about the size of my index and middle fingers put together. However, that had no zoom and took only marginally acceptable images (2 MP and rather grainy)--I bought it primarily so I'd have a throwaround camera. In any case, the s500 is not *as* small, but it still fits into my pocket without any hassle (you'll know it's there, but it won't bother you), and the optical zoom and high image quality more than make up for it. Again, the image quality is superb, and all in such a portable package. Manual controls are light. There is AUTO, Manual, Panorama, and Video mode. In Manual, you can control the ISO and F stops, but they are not readily available, and require fiddling with the menu to access. I don't care, personally. I bought the camera for it's portability and ease of use when I want to snap pictures. I leave the wheel on AUTO and I am perfectly content with the images I get--for the average picture taker, too, I'd imagine. The movie mode is decent. This is a camera and not a camcorder, it's still part of the package, but I'll not put it into consideration when rating this camera. Subpar. My A70 could take 640x480s at 15 frames/second while the s500 only takes a sluggish 10. It's is quite choppy, but bearable. The s500 can have 15 frames a second under the two smaller video resolutions, but they still do not look as good as the videos I captured with my A70. There is just an element of choppiness that I do not like. Perhaps the increased megapixelage necessitates a decrease in smoothness, I don't know. However, the movie mode is just an additional nicety in this otherwise superb piece of machinery, and it decent, acceptable, just not as good as I know it could be, for Canons, but I know this feature is important for many people considering digital cameras. The proprietary battery is also something that I do not like (I prefer AAs) but I suppose there have to be some trade-offs--I'd suggest getting a spare, since it's theoretically supposed to last only about 2 hours per charge. I'd also suggest getting the skin-tight leather cover for this cam, since you can still fit it in your pocket while keeping that lovely luster intact, away from the coarseness of your pockets. I'd also suggest getting a CF that has as high a write speed as possible. When taking pictures at maximum size(2592x1944) and maximum resolution (super-fine), my card took about 1-3 seconds to finish recording. I could continue taking more pictures almost immediately afterward, but I would still have to wait for the images to finish writing before turning off the camera. I did not notice this when I took superfine photos at the Medium size settings. Speaking of CF, I'd also suggest getting as big a card as possible. This monster takes pictures at 1-3 Mb each which means about 100-200 picture for me--my 256Mb card doesn't seem so adequate anymore. But it's fine. Conclusion. So definately a great buy. It takes wonderful, superb pictures, and decent movies. By itself, it is a work of art, and truly is a handsome camera. All this, and is still compact enough to throw in your pocket or for the ladies, purse. There are slightly smaller and cheaper ELPHs, the sd110 and s410, but you will already be spending so much, and if you are, you might as well spring for the full 5 megapixel goodness that the s500 offers--3 megapixel cameras belong back in 2003. And there are other brands to choose from, but I honestly have not seen a more handsome camera that takes such spectacular images, and I think if you are considering this camera at such a price, that surely, you will be considering the aesthetic value of what you are buying. This camera is sure to please.
Rating: 
Summary: This is a good camera, but...
Review: I'd been waiting for the five megapixel version of this camera to come out, but after a bit of research I have some advice; buy the four megapixel version instead. Canon's been having problems putting five megapixels on such a small sensor like the ones used on the S50 and S500 (they use the same sensor). Check out the online review at dcresource(dotcom). Why buy a five megapixel when you get better image quality and smaller file sizes with the 4MP version of the same camera? I ended up buying a brand spankin' new S45 on closeout from Amazon for 2/3 of what these sell for. Let the members of the upgrade of the month club have their new toy, and be waiting to take their "old" camera off their hands, or buy a new one at a fire sale price.
Rating:
Summary: Love it, glad I got it
Review: I'm a big fan of Canon cameras. I have an old AE-1 SLR, a point and shoot, and a Powershot S100. I got the S500 mainly because of my past experience with Canon. I'm not disapointed in the least. I love my S100 because of the size. I literally carried it with me everywhere I went. Now with the S500 I do the same thing, and the pictures are so much better. I just got my first set of pictures from Ofoto and they came out stunning. The pictures are sharp, vivid, and balanced. I love my S500. I do think you should get a bigger memory card, because 32mb is barely enough for a handful of pictures. However, the camera is top notch. And the size makes it so much easier to deal with. Your not giving up quality for size with this thing.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing Little Camera That Packs a Punch
Review: If you are looking for a camera that has excellent picture quality, easy to operate, and compact enough to take everywhere - Canon's PowerShot S500 deliveres. This camera replaces my Sony DSCV1 Cyber-shot 5MP and left treadmarks on it. The S500 has better picture quality and is smaller. These are the qualities that I want in a compact, portable, point and shoot rig. If you want more features consider the new Canon Rebel (digital rig). Pound for pound this camera hangs with the best of them.
Rating:
Summary: Best Still Picture Quality for Compact Digital Cameras
Review: If you just need a digital camera to take pictures in the sun light, you can almost pick any digital camera. But if you want your camera to take great pictures under all different light conditions (i.e. in door, with dark background, wedding photos and other complex light situations), then Canon S500 will be the only choice. Thanks to Canon DIGIC Image Processor and iSAPS Technology, this Canon S500 really takes perfect pictures in all different light conditions, which no compact digital camera from other vender can match. However the Canon case for S500 is very dispointing, which is poorly made with cheap fake leather. I found the most beautiful, perfect fitting leather case for Canon S410/S500 from http://stores.ebay.com/ProCases
Rating:
Summary: Great Lil' Thing
Review: Im 16, going to portugal for a year. Got this camera to take some photos before i leave, and while im there. Has great photo quality (printed some out at Walmart) I love the camera, holds a good charge. I lost the charger already (3 weeks) oops! but its a great charger. Many options on the camera. I love it!
Rating: 
Summary: lousy performance
Review: Not convinced about this camera. Using just the default parameters does not allow to take great pictures (contrast, saturation, lighting). You have to play around with it a lot. Under low light, it even performs worse. I had 3 Canon Powershot models before, and they were really great (best the Powershot S40). But this camera is definitely an egg. Worst of all, it seems to have constant memory problems with my high capacity compact flash cards, and as a result erases all the pictures previously taken! I never had this problem with any other digital camera. The camera basically encounters the card problem, and before anything can be done, the camera reformats the CF card, and all photos are gone. Nice.
Rating:
Summary: Top quality in picture and body build
Review: Not sure what that person was talking about, this being poor quality. I got my S500 two weeks ago (my 4th Canon digital!) and have put it through three weddings, one funeral (no kidding!) and tons of pre-smmer shots. This is rock solid! Picture quality is great. Never any problems. Redeye could be better but I rarely use it. My only advice: get a second battery. You can find it cheap on teh web.
| 
