I don't believe that any of the elph models have an optical viewfinder or use AA batteries. In fact I think that is true of all of the sub compact sized cameras although there might be one that uses AA. These cameras are simply too small to have these features. They are built around a very small proprietary battery - that is how they achieve their tiny dimensions.

Ira, thanks for pointing out my awkward and incoherent sentence and thereby helping me to get an answer to these questions.
Maureen, I will look up those reviews and hopefully make some sense out of them. However, I am not an internet member of Consumer Reports (Guides?), so I don't know if I can access them. Isn't that right?
Basingstoke2-Thanks for the info. I guess your answer should have been obvious to me, since of course they do need to get rid of a couple of things in order to be a subcompact in the first place, right? I've read over all of the responses here again, and I guess I just have to decide about the worth of what I am sacrificing for a little less money. Also I should consider ira's point--about the value of the greater zoom power as a real plus for travel photography.
So, Ira, is the "S2" the complete number of the model you mentiontioned to me in your last post? I really want to look into it some more, especially after seeing your own great photos. (Take a compliment; don't be modest or shy).

Since I am not leaving until mid-February, I figure I do have a little time to look around and make the best decision--especially if we're talking about only another $60 or so. I just don't want to wear all you nice people out with my questions.

Still, it's always good to hear from all of you.

jg

The Canon S2 is a great camera. Just be aware that is a much larger and heavier camera than the sub compacts or compacts. For me, the extra heft would be worth it for for its features. Now that the S3 is out, you can get great buys on the S2. See Amazon.com to see what I mean. It is selling for about $260-70.

Hi Jg,

The full name is the Canon S2 IS.

IS is for "Image Stabilization". This means that you can take long zoom shots without a tripod (usually). It helps to lean against something.

The Elph will weigh about 9 oz with batteries.

My A60 weighed about 14 oz with batteries.

The S2 weighs about 20 oz with batteries.

I bought a small carrying case for the camera, and wear it across my chest. The weight is not significant.

My arm doesn't get tired if I walk around with the camera in my hand for about 0:30 hr.

I think that the Elph is a pretty good-point-and-shoot camera, but it isn't in the same league as the S2.

You should be aware that you can use the S2 in automatic mode and never go beyond that, or you can read the manual and do all sorts of stuff. :)

I really think that for the prices that you are considering, the S2 will be the last camera that you will ever want.

((I))

fwiw, I've always found the "Dave's Picks" site to offer clear and readable reviews and articles about digital cameras, as well as recommendations of specific cameras for different types of people/interests ("tight budgets" "enthusiasts" "grandparents")
http://www.imaging-resource.com/WB/WB.HTM

All 4 members of my family have Canon digital elphs (older models) and we have been very happy with them. I love being able to slip my camera into my front jeans pocket or my small travel purse. I don't mind the battery pack - I have one spare and charge them both at night. I take a lot of pictures and haven't run into a situation where I use both packs. I do miss a viewfinder; on very bright sunny days it can be hard to see the screen.

We've been pleased with the generally high quality of our pictures. That being said, my film slr always takes better pictures than my elph, and I just received an Canon XTi digital slr for Christmas - for those times when I don't mind toting a bigger camera and all the extra equipment (lenses, external flash, etc.)

Hi Noe,

> I just received an Canon XTi digital slr for Christmas ...<

Good for you.

Look forward to see your pix.

((I))

Ira, thanks for all of the professional help in your contributions to both of my camera decisions. I checked out the Canon S2 IS that you speak of so highly as your personal favorite. As you know I have a high respect for all of your opinions, but this time I think I am going to have to go with the little Elph 600 (even looked at the 630) as my personal choice and what best suits my needs at this time. The S2 just seems a little out of MY league right now; perhaps one day when I feel a little more adept. I just don't think that at my stage I woul be able to appreciate and utilize all of the professional features of the S2. It seems that I fit more into the "Beginner, Mom, Grandmother, All-Purpose, Retired Middle-age-Klutz Lady)" categories. I want to stick with something ultra simple right now, and this little gem seems just perfect for me to learn digital, have a little fun, and slip into my travel day-pack. Plus--and I know you'll love this--it's just so darn cute!! All you professionals out there, thanks for your patient help and advice for my son's camera and for mine. Believe it or not, I have actually learned a lot more about cameras and even read the reviews this time with some true understanding and knowledge of the techno-talk. Thanks for linking me up to Dave's site and the other one as well. But as you can see from my "cute" statement above, I am still at a very low level of evolutionary development when it comes to cameras. Please don't feel that you wasted your valuable expert time with me. You have all given me a new foundation of knowledge, I have had a lot of fun learning about something new, and both my son and I are very happy with the choices. Thanks for your time and kind advice. Jg

Hi jg,

May you and your elph have a long and happy partnership.

Let us know when you move up to the S3. :)

((I))

Have fun with your new camera. You're smart to buy the one that fits you best.
:)>-

Maureen and Ira, thanks for the good wishes for success with my choice. Please don't think that I was unappreciative of all the great advice. I really got a good basic education about choosing cameras from this discussion, and I also learned how to read and decipher the professional reviews. So, nothing is wasted if you learn from it. Although it will be some time before I leave, I promise that I will send you some of my pictures along with trip report when I return. I'm sure my son can teach me how to do this and include some of the photos with his 540 as well. Again, thanks for all the help and good wishes. jg

jgarvey, thanks for starting this thread as it contains some very useful information! I hope you and your son are happy with your new cameras!

Ira, I have a three year old Nikon Coolpix that takes perfectly adequate photos but is sooooo slow, especially when grandchildren are being cute, which they usually are. I have hefted some Canon and Nikon SLRs but they just don't feel comfortable. Now, thanks to your suggestion, I am going to check out Canon S2s and S3s. Like you I prefer to zoom rather than heavily crop so would happily choose extra zoom capacity over more megapixels.

My question is, just how fast is your Canon S2? Can it stand up to a speeding toddler?

Just to add to the camera commotion ;)
We have an S2 IS, I love it, I love that it uses rechargeables but I hate how big and clunky it is, I can't fit it in my pocket or my purse. So for Christmas "Santa" brought me the SD800 Elph and as much as I love our S2 IS, I love the Elph more. I feel that it takes pictures faster, the combined 15x zoom is, for me, perfectly adequate. It still has an optical viewfinder, which I also need due to eye issues. The additional battery cost me $40 at Best Buy. Best of all it fits into the pocket of my jeans, so I'll actually take it with me!

~Christine

Christine, thanks for the good news about your satisfaction with the Elph you got for Christmas. One reason I decided on the Elph also is because of the compact size and lightness. I have been looking at the 600 and/or the 630. I know I could probably look it up, but if you would be so kind as to help me--what does the 800 have over the other two? Is it the zoom factor or the megapixels? Thanks for your advice. jg

Hi jg - the SD600 and SD 630 are basically the same camera. The major difference between the two is that the 600 has an optical viewfinder and the 630 does not. Other differences are in the size of the LCD display and mostly cosmetic. The 800IS costs about $80 more than the 630 and $120 more than the 600 at amazon. For the difference in price, the 800 gives you an optical viewfinder like the 600, 4X instead of 3X optical zoom, 7mp instead of 6, image stabilization and much better low light performance.

Hi, Basing--thanks for the valuable info. Did you notice? I now know how to ask a couple of intelligent questions, thanks to you and others who helped to educate me a little. Aren't you proud? Now I just have to decide how much I can spend or want to spend. Will update. jg

The Canon ELPH SD line is overall excellent, and you'll appreciate the small size when traveling.

The best ones are the 700 and 800, both with image stablization. Main difference is that the 800 has a wider-angle lens (which in my opinion is very useful when traveling or shooting in tight corners). But those are at least $300.

If you budget limits you to $200-250, then you basically have to settle for the 600 without image stabilization. At $207 shipped, it's really really a good deal, unless you really need IS (for low light) or wide-angle.

Best price for SD600: $207 at newegg.com (great store!)

Best price for the 700 is about $300 now and the 800 $370. That's pretty steep.

Hi Moolyn,

>My question is, just how fast is your Canon S2? Can it stand up to a speeding toddler?

The S3 has a max shutter speed of 1/3200 sec.

It goes up to ASA 800 (Although it's pushed at that speed)

It will do 2/3 frames/sec in continuous mode.

It will also record video at 15, 30 and 60 fps in stereophonic sound. You can record photos while in video mode.

The rate at wich you can take flash pix depends on how well charged the batteries are.

Hope this helps,

((I))

Hi Christine,

>..I hate how big and clunky [the S2] is...<

You,apparently, haven't schlepped a 32 oz SLR with associated wide-angle and zoom lenses up the stairs to the top of the Eiffel Tower. :)

Not to mention having to take the lenses off to change modes, put them into their appropriate cases and put the new lens on. :)

>Best of all it fits into the pocket of my jeans, ...<

I, myself, wouldn't do that. I'd end up crushing the camera. :)

((I))

Just to expand a bit - the better low light performance of the 800 over the 600 or 630 is due to two things. The first is a more sensitive processor that results in less noise - i.e. graininess at higher "film" speeds, not to be confused with shutter speeds. The second is the image stabilization (IS) that reduces or eliminates the blur that can occur at the slower shutter speeds usually necessary for low light photography. The 800IS and the 700IS mentioned in rkkwan's post also have about 50% more powerful
batteries than the 600 and 630 - thus many more pictures on a single charge. However the 700 uses the same processor as the 600 and 630, thus does not have as much low light sensitivity as the 800. The price of the 700 is not much more than that of the 630 and thus IMO it is the better buy of the two because of the IS and longer battery life. It also has an optical viewfinder and longer zoom.
If you can afford the extra cash, I would go for the 800 - I think that the IS, longer zoom, more pixels and superior low light performance is worth it. Between the 600 and 630, my own choice would be the 600 since IMO the optical viewfinder is more valuable than the larger LCD display and the cost is less. The price difference would be well spent in buying a spare battery.
Bottom line, if you really want the elph because of its size, my own ranking would be: 1. SD800IS; 2.SD700IS;
3. SD600; and, 4. SD630. Whichever you buy, strongly consider an extra battery and large memory card - at least 512 and better, 1 or 2 gigs particularly if you want to use the movie mode.

Mentioned

OK, basing, don't start getting carried away now just because I said I am smarter than I was before and know what a few of these terms and abbreviations might mean. I might be starting to "talk the talk," but I am definitely not quiet ready to "walk the walk" with the rest of you guys up there on Mt. Olympus. BTW, is there a god of photography?

Here's the best thing you did for me, the way you summed it all up and put it in a simplified version at the end of your post. I really appreciated that! Thanks so much! I can't tell you how much this helped. And you know what? I'm sure that your input helped many other first-time digital buyers out there as well. Maybe you ARE the god of photography! I'm thinking that if I could afford a little more, then I should really go for that 800. I would never have known enough to even consider making this decision without the education that you provided.

And...if my knees hold out, and if I stay generally healthy (Hello, health club and salads!), and if I intend to keep traveling during my retirement, and if pray God I ever do have grandchildren--then I should really look upon this slightly more expensive buy as a really smart investment in the future.

Thanks for doing all of the techo-legwork for me. You are a god among gods, and a good friend as well. jg