LCD Size:
3 inches
Resolution:
10 MP
Optical Zoom:
3.8 x
Ease of use
0
Show what experts say (3 reviews)
The PowerShot S95 is a thoughtfully designed, precision built and robustly constructed imaging tool that was obviously designed for serious shooters
Aimed at the serious photographer looking for a capable compact, the new Canon S95 features improved handling and greater levels of manual control.
With video not being a shining star the S95 is more likely to appeal to those who are primarily interested in having a lot of control over their stills photography.
Picture Quality
10
Show what experts say (5 reviews)
The S95's JPEG photos are exceptionally clean and relatively usable up to ISO 400; plus, you can probably squeeze out a stop more if you shoot raw. That's a lot better than your typical ultracompact.
The image quality is absolutely superb, with a huge amount of fine detail. The S95 can shoot in Raw mode, but the in-camera JPEG quality is so good that you won't need to use it often.
Comparatively, the S95's image quality is noticeably better than average.
The Canon PowerShot S95 produces images of excellent quality.
The versatility on offer is backed up by excellent image quality, with detail retained where lesser compacts give up.
Low light shooting
10
Show what experts say (4 reviews)
Shots at up to 400 ISO are effectively noise-free, and it produces printable well-detailed shots at 1600 ISO, with minimal noise. Combined with the fast lens and powerful image stabilisation system it makes the S95 one of the best cameras around for low-light photography.
Image quality is still excellent, with a usable ISO range of 80-800 and fast f/2.0 maximum aperture, albeit only at the wide-angle lens setting, making the S95 very well-suited to low-light, hand-held photography.
Just like the S90, we were really knocked out by the lack of noise of our standard test subject. ISO 1600 was fairly clear, and even 3200 are very useable, something impossible to state with most point-and-shots, even some DSLRs.
The S95 comes with an F/2.0 offering at the wide angle which does offer some scope for better low light shooting without bumping the ISO up high, along with Hybrid Image Stabilisation.
Video Quality
7
Show what experts say (5 reviews)
The video quality is good as long as digital zoom isn't used, and the audio quality too is pretty decent, with good stereo separation from two microphones mounted just below the lens.
The S95's 1280x720 at 30fps HD movie mode produces sharply focused, properly exposed, color correct videos clips.
Unfortunately there is no optical zoom available during recording, only 4x digital, and no auto-focus either, which limits what can be achieved and doesn't compare well to some of the S95's main rivals.
The S95 takes 720p HD movies, and the quality is just OK, with lots of noise during interior clips, but with enough outdoor light, they’re acceptable — nothing more.
The long and short of it is that the S95 doesn’t offer Full HD, and whilst the HD video it offers is perfectly acceptable...there are other limitations to consider.
Build Quality
10
Show what experts say (4 reviews)
It's well built, with a slightly more textured finish than the S90.
It is very solidly made with metal front and back, and the bottom panel is now also metal, with a metal tripod bush in the ideal position below the centre line of the lens.
In general, the S95's styling is similar to earlier "S" series digicams; its rectangular metal alloy body is stylish in an understated way and eminently durable.
It feels solid even at its body-only weight of 193g when gripped in the palm...
Battery Life
0
Show what experts say (3 reviews)
According to Canon, the S95 is good for about 200 exposures (without flash) or 300 minutes of video on a freshly charged Lithium-ion power pack. That's noticeably fewer exposures than average for cameras of this type.
The battery is rated 200 shots per CIPA, a pretty weak number, so you should consider picking up a spare if you plan to shoot all day.
Battery performance, however, isn’t great. Officially listed as 200 shots, we found ourselves with a flat battery after around 150 shots with a handful of video too.
Size show formula
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Travel Capabilities show formula
We combine our Battery Life Score with our Build Quality score.
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