Rating: 
Summary: Biggest bang for your buck
Review: Here is the skinny; I would classify myself as an intermediate/pro photographer as an owner of 3 digital cameras and 5 SLRs. I have come to the conclusion after about 9 months with the S50 that it will give you the greatest bang for your buck. Whether you need it for its manual (semi-pro) functions or as just a point and shoot, this is just the camera. It is small and portable, yet very powerful and filled with functions that the average user will never need. It is very durable and has excellent optics, as you will eventually see from your first set of prints. This camera has been out for a while now and you will be able to purchase it at a very reasonable price. You simply cannot buy a comparable camera that even comes close.Read on for more detail.
The LCD screen is very bright and easy to see, even in direct sunlight. In my experience with other digital cameras, I would recommend that you apply a screen protector. I have had them replaced on my other cameras due to scratches. They do not make them for cameras, however you can cut one out of any after market PDA screen protector. It does an excellent job protecting your screen from scratches and fingerprints. A must have when you start taking this camera wherever you go; and you will after you fall in love with it as most S50 users have. This camera takes great photo-quality pictures. The reason that I got this camera is because of the 5MP resolution. You will not need that resolution for your average 4x6 or 5x7 print; however it's nice to be able to take a picture at the highest resolution and know that you have flexibility in editing and cropping or even getting a photo-quality 8x10 or 11x14 if you ever need it. Besides, we all have 100+ Gb drives with CD burners, so whenever you want you could burn your photos on a CD/DVD for storage. However, this high resolution comes with a price. It is a necessity that you purchase a high capacity CF card. This all depends on how many photos you take per session. A 512MB card will take a little over 200 photos and ranges from $70-$100. There are those who think that you need a camera with a 4X optical zoom as opposed to the S50s 3X. The 3X vs. 4X zoom is just another selling point. DO NOT PASS THIS CAMERA UP BECAUSE OF THIS! In my professional opinion, that makes little difference to the final product, the print. Keep in mind that the more zoom you use, the more light and stability you need in holding the camera. In other words, you will likely need a tripod to take a decent picture, not to mention better lighting. Bottom line is that the 3X is ample for a camera in this class. My last recommendation is for an after market high-capacity battery. I purchased an 800mAh Lithium-ion for about $35 and it is a vast improvement over the factory supplied one. I used to lug them both with me, but I stopped doing that since I have never had the other one discharge on me before the day is over. One feature that this camera needs is hour/minute indicator of how much battery time is left. The only indicator is a two-minute warning that the battery is almost empty. So if Canon is listening, please put this in the next firmware update. My other gripe with this camera is the lens cover/door. It is flimsy and does not always close as smoothly as it is supposed to.
Rating: 
Summary: Digital camera with growing room
Review: The Canon S50 has lots of strengths: crisp, sharp color, excellent automatic focus and exposure settings, sharp optics and snazzy design. And a few annoying weaknesses; major redeye problems, an optical viewfinder which only shows 82% of the picture, one second shutter delay and a tiny multi-function switch. It's very durable; I dented mine dropping it from an overhead train compartment in Japan. The 32 meg compact flash card included only holds ten pictures at the highest setting but you can buy a 128 meg on the internet for $35. The very compact battery charger charges Canon's proprietary battery in 80 minutes and works on 110/220 volts. You can buy a clone battery on the net for $5.95. I recommend substituting a neck strap for the provided wrist strap. Included software is okay but I like ACDSee better. On balance, an excellent value at Amazon's price. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Wow!
Review: For those of you wanting to take a (giant) leap over the average point-and-shooter (and even if you do not) this camera is your final destination. I agonizingly researched numerous digital cameras for months and results always seem to conclude that the Canon S50 is highly rated and was a consistent editor's pick. I am a die-hard Olympus fan with their lens construction, which utilized "ED" extra dispersion glass. My old (now bulky) IS-1 point-and-shooter gave me stunning photos which actually once exceeded a professional wedding photographer's pictures at a cousin-in-law's wedding. I can safely say that I can easily match those vivid results with the S50. The features bundled with this camera are immense. I have yet to get through them all and the journey can only get better. In researching other "user" reviews I discovered complaints about the flimsy lens cover/slider door and an LCD screen that scratches easily. I appreciated that advice and I now exercise caution in the operation of the slider door with no problems so far. The door seems durable enough to last for the years of use. As far as the LCD screen damage, as a Pocket PC owner I wisely purchased a package of ten plastic screen protectors to eliminate stylus damage. I cut one sheet down to size and rubbed it onto the S50's LCD screen. It works and looks very good and they are easily removable thanks to the use of a light adhesive. You can purchase them at any local computer products retailer. The battery life is fair and upon the cameras initial use, the built-in memory battery needed to charge off of the removable one, so your first run will drain the battery fast. After that you should see your performance increase according to your camera's operational settings. I will however, purchase a spare battery or two as well as the AC and DC adapters. External card reading and writing devices are a must to conserve power and again, my Pocket PC and laptop are invaluable for this as you can view and edit CompactFlash cards with ease. That said, the world is my oyster and I continue to see the quantum leaping advantages to digital photography. I'll miss my old IS-1, but not it's bulk and film waste.
Rating:
Summary: Print quality is 100% as good as film
Review: I was concerned with two things regarding digital cameras: print quality and low light shots. This camera could not have performed any better for either criteria. I have stared at the shots developed on Shutterfly and I honestly cannot tell they're digital. I also tested many different dark shots and it passed with flying colors. The automatic setup picks it up well, but the camera also has a ton of manual overrides in case you want to increase the exposure, etc. Only reason it's not 5 out 5 stars is that I worry that the sliding plastic door will break off before I'm through with the camera, and the software is not as user-friendly as Olympus. Overall, though, I am incredibly pleased with this camera!
Rating:
Summary: Overall a great product in it's league....
Review: I have just bought S50 after contemplating for over 2 years over the benefit of digital photography over film photography. I am extremly happy with the results of the photographs - i got them printed at a local retail photography store. Few drawbacks that I noticed right out of the box - 1. Flimsy lens cover -- need to be very careful in closing otherwise one might end up scrathing the body
2. 4-way controller difficult to operate for SET (or Enter) operation
3. Too much Red-eye during flash photography
4. Slower response during Continous drive mode -- (may be better when compared to other digital cameras but I am comparing with my Nikon N70/80/90 film cameras)
5. Add another $300 or more to your budget for high speed 512 MB CF card, camera cover, extra battery
6. Scratches on Black body are quite noticable
7. Tendency to slip - as with all metal body cameras But don't get disapponted by all these negative points - I just want everyone to be aware of these...overall a great camera in it's league ...even my 3 yr old can shoot great pictures!!!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Camera
Review: I have used many different film cameras Including a Canon body with EF lenses. This camera takes excellent pictures and has all of the functions of my $500 Canon body I bought 10 years ago. After reading some of the poor reviews on this site I was nervous about purchasing the camera, however after receiving it and taking some pictures, it is all Canon promises and more. I do get some out of focus pictures now and then but that is primarily due the the camera not being able to obtain an autofocus lock. Nothing inherently wrong with the camera and I always can override the autofocus with the manual and the pictures then come out excellently. I would recommend this camera for anyone who wants to be able to have the flexibility and quality to take very good pictures in a small format camera. The only downside is the fact I can not put my EF lenses on this fine little camera.
Rating:
Summary: I'm Now A Believer
Review: I never thought the day would arrive that I would abandon my Canon Rebel 35mm camera for a "digital....ugh..camera" but the Canon S50 has made me a true believer. I finally got fustrated trying to scan in all my 35 mm prints in order to "preserve my memories". Very time consumming, and I was never quit satisfied with the quality. So, after a lot of soul searching, and a lot of on-line reseacher reading countless reviews, I finally took a leap of faith and purchased the Canon S50. I couldn't be happier. This is an excellent camera for the serious amature, allowing for point and shoot capability or multiple features that allow one to adjust various settings. I've had the camera for over 5 month now and don't have any regrets. The quailty of the pics is VERY VERY CLOSE to 35 mm and I've enlarged prints to 20 x 30 with excellet results. I strongly recommend buying an extra battery and 512 MB Compact Flash Card. Also, www.shutterfly.com offers a tremendous service which allows one to utilize your new digital camerea to the fullest. Buy this camera and I highly doubt you'll be disappointed!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Buy!!
Review: I have owned the Powershot S50 since May 2003 and have been absolutely pleased with it. Pros:
1)Great Pictures= I always use full quality and when developed they look just like 35mm
2)Small form factor
3)Looks cheap(thieves arent interested)
4)Many features(too many for me an amateur photographer but i'm learning) Cons:
1)Had to replace LCD screen after 2 months of use (for some reason it cracked while in case and no history of dropping; Fortunately Canon replaced it free of charge, I just had to pay for shipping to the factory not from)
2)The little markers(stickers) on the function wheel seem to be peeling off. (I have no auto sticker and others are fading could be due to my sweaty palms) In summary I have enjoyed using this camera every minute. I would recommend it to anybody. The LCD screen didnt bother me b/c they fixed it within a week and a half. Enjoy!!
Rating:
Summary: Don't even think about anything else!
Review: I researched every digital camera on the planet in my quest to find the perfect one for me and it took me a fornight of pains-taking effort and lots of lost sleep! I sort of knew what I wanted in a camera, but where to find it? I never knew the Canon PowerShot S50 had so much going for it until I actually bought one. I looked at all the leading makes and models, like Kodak, Sony, Fuji, Nikon, Minolta, Panasonic, Hewlett Packard and so on. Then I found the Canon range! Then I saw the Canon G5 and thought "that's the one for me", but when I looked at it's specs., I noticed that they were all but identical to the much cheaper and more compact Canon S50. You see, when you buy a Canon S50, what you're really buying is a Canon G5 in a smaller case! Sounds like bull? No way! Every function you can find on the G5 is present on the S50 with the following exceptions.... G5 has a 4x Optical zoom - S50 has a 3x Optical zoom G5 has a slightly larger lense than the S50 (which btw, is a problem!
It casts a very large shadow on the bottom right hand side of the photos when you use a flash in wide-angle. This is because the lense is too close to the flash and cuts out the light when taking shots where the subject is closer than 10 feet from you!) The G5 has a hot-shoe - the S50 does not. The AiAF 9-Point multi-focus is NOT in the G5 but is present in the S50. The reason I opted for the S50 and not the G5 is basically that I was getting the same camera without the bulk! The S50 is a beautiful camera even just to look at, but the G5 is a very clumsy affair and not so pretty to look at! Looks aside, the functionality of the S50 is on a par with the G5 and the quality of the photos are nothing but excellent! You just cannot get a better result from a camera other than the Canon S50! That is a fact! I downloaded 100s of huge sample photos before I bought one and I was amazed by the quality of them. When I started to take my own photos using the camera, I was so happy to see the results and they did not dissapoint me in any way whatsoever! The manual control you have with this camera is unrivaled and even an SLR couldn't offer you the the controls for such creativity as the S50 does! This is a camera which is aimed at both Amateurs, professionals and beginners, so don't worry if you're new to digital photography as the S50 can be used in full auto mode until you familiarise yourself with the many functions it has to turn you into a David Bailey in no time! The price of this camera is placed about right for what you get...'and that's a lot! The accessories and software are first class too! One thing...'if you are going to be a heavy user, don't buy a stack of 'Flash' memory cards, buy the 1GB IBM MicroDrive instead! It'll be cheaper in the long run as these are a false economy. The bottom line here is that you can't buy a better camera than this and it's well worth the price asked. I only have two words left to say! Buy one!
George.
Rating:
Summary: Compact creative
Review: I use a Canon G3 as my creative camera and got this for my carry-everywhere camera. What I like is that its modes and menus are almost identical to the G3s, and while the lens won't zoom as much as the larger camera's, the extra megapixel makes up for it in cropping. Picture quality is terrific and the ability to choose how much, or how little automation in a camera this size is refreshing. Highly recommended.
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