Perfect for the average user
The PowerShot S330 Digital Elph camera has proven to be an acceptable camera for me as I traveled briefly around China. The 2-megapixel sensor has produced beautiful pictures - and take my word for it - I was slightly concerned before I saw them because they are obviously lesser quality than the 3 or 4 megapixel digital cameras. Yet, I have seen pictures from a friend's 3 pixel camera and I truly cannot see a difference. I stand by my belief that for the individual who wants a digital camera for domestic purposes like birthday parties, award banquets, etc... you cannot go wrong with this camera. It works astonishingly well indoors and outdoors alike. Very crisp and well-defined pictures but...
A couple of warnings:
I was considerably disappointed with the digital zoom quality of my pictures. Individuals looking for a digital camera to take on family vacations - beware! You're going to have to get into a reasonable distance of whatever you're trying to shoot -- particularly if you want detail in the picture.
The battery caused me a great deal of consternation as well -- if you are going on a trip for a couple of days or more, I highly recommend you buy a spare battery. Yes, the battery will be fine if you are filming your child's first communion for two hours, but for a four day trip across the Silk Road with periodic use, buy a spare.
As for the sound feature, I was also surprised at how poor it was. It sounded like I was listening to something far away, regardless of how close the desired sound was from the camera.
One more warning: DO NOT PRINT YOUR PICTURES LARGER THAN 8 by 10! I do not know if that is a standard, unspoken rule with digital cameras, but even if it is one, the PowerShot S330 Digital Elph camera definitely does not evade it.
In sum, if you're looking for a consistent digital camera that is easy to carry, please look into the PowerShot S330 Digital Elph camera. Do not place much stock in the sound or video capabilities though. I think those features might be a sales pitch to try and get an edge over competitors.

Upgraded from S110
I have used an S110 for several months. I have taken, saved and edited over 1000 photos. Subjects ranged from family photos, wedding, air museum, catalog photos to light use at work. Bright colors and skin tones are outstanding with the advantage of adjusting ISO from 50 to 400 in manual mode. As much as I enjoy the S110, (I take it everwhere) I needed more features that the S330 offers. I am willing to trade off extra features for the S110's smaller size. The menus are easier to navigate and the red eye reduction seems to be more effective. The price for the S330...at Amazon is comparable to what I paid for the S110. The zoom feature during playback has a higher magnification and you have the ability to zoom in at all areas of the photos. The built-in speaker is an added bonus during video and memo playback. An extra battery (NB-1LH), higher capacity compact flash cards (32M, 64M and 128M) and soft case go a long way towards making this excellent camera more useful and mobile. My next purchase will be the waterproof case (WP-DC500) for scuba diving and fishing photos.

Good quality, size, and very economial
I had been looking for a digital camera for a while when I stumbled upon the Canon Powershot S330. At first glance [it] seemed a lot to spend on a 2 megapixel digital camera but being my first digital purchase I decided to try it out.

At first i just took pictures using the automatic function figuring that the manual controls would be too dificult but within the first day I was shooting pictures in manual mode, adjusting white balance and lighting and such, and printing them. I was very surprised by the quality that my two year old inkjet print the pictures at (as long as you don't look too close or print them over 8x10 which your not supposed to do anyways) on glossy photo paper.

I was also concerned because indoor shots came out very dark but I soon realized that the brightness could be adjusted with the included software which was very basic yet helpful. The movie quality is low but that's not what a camera is for so it's a nice little extra.

Overall I have had no problems with the camera and I am very pleased with my purchase. This would be an excellent camera for anyone looking for an easy camera for a novice with some advanced functions. If there was one thing I could change I wish it was a little smaller but besides that I am very happy and excited for that next oppurtunity where I can show off my new digital camera.

Best compact digital camera ever
"No way to go wrong with this baby..."
This is my second digital camera, and let me tell you, I am very impressed! My first camera was the s300 and I thought that I was never going to get another one as good, but the s330 excelled all my expectations. It is cheaper than the s300 and have more features and a better ISO, a problem that really frustrated me in the past with my S300. Overall both of them have the same specs but the additional speaker and the better menu made the s330 #1 in my list. Please remember that this is not a pro camera, but the photo quality is outstanding even at large formats like 8x11. The colors are better than the sony and olympus. I do recomend an extra battery if traveling and a way larger flash card. Newegg.com sell mr. flash 128mb for less than 60 bucks. I have bought 2 and have them for over 6 months and never had a problem with them. I did a lot of research before purchasing this camera and let me assure that this is the best digital camera for every day and even semi pro users. There is no need to follow the crazy trend of the more mega pixels the better. 2.1 is more than enough. I get the same or even better results than normal film. Because of the extra ISO options and the better price the s330 is a winner over the s300.

Excellent, portable camera with lots of features.
I am an avid photographer and have been looking to upgrade to a new portable digital camera. I received this camera and within one day I was already taking high quality pictures with this camera.

For an everyday user this camera would be a perfect choice. Once you figure out how the menu system works all the functions of this camera are easy to learn how to use.

The one bad thing I have to say about this camera is that the video and sound quality are a little disappointing. While it is a very cool feature to have on a small digital camera, this could have been improved.

Overall I am very happy with this camera and would suggest it to anyone looking for a small, pocket-sized digital camera.

Love this camera!
Great little camera! After months of research and deciding on buying a Canon S300, I was pleased to discover that they had released an updated model, the S330. Its resolution is 0.1 megapixle lower than the S300, but it includes many refined features.

I've used the camera for a little over a week now and have taken nearly 500 pictures and am still on my second battery charge (about 2/3 of the pictures I've taken have been with the LCD off). The included 8 MB compact flash card limits the number of hi-res, hi-quality pics you can take, but you can buy a 128 MB card for a little over 50 bucks (I recommend one from SimpleTech) and be able to hold from 128 to over 1000 pictures, depending on resolution & quality.

The camera has lots of options and is especially versatile in its "manual" mode where you have a little more control than you do in the full auto mode. It gives you freedom to lock the AE, focus and other settings, as well as apply special effects/enhancements. I leave the camera in manual mode most of the time, since it retains its point-and-shoot simplicity; that way there's one less step to take (turning the selector dial) when I want to change how the camera's taking pictures.

It also has a video mode and photostitch mode. In the photostitch mode the camera helps you line up multiple shots so you can merge them into a single panoramic shot using software on your PC (included).

If you're considering this camera but fear it may be too small to easily hold, don't worry. I have larger than average hands and have no problems at all with manipulating the buttons and taking pictures (although, as with all things, it takes some practice).

Enough rambling, the bottom line is....

This is definitely the BEST 2 MP, 3 x zoom, compact digital camera available at this time.

I couldn't be any more impressed...
with this camera or its abilities. This is the first digital camera that I have purchased, but it won't be the last thanks to my initiation into this genre of photography. This camera can do everything that a novice to amateur level photog. can ask of it.

The automatic camera settings are very realistic, and the advanced (manual) settings are much more numerous than similar cameras in this price range/megapixels. Manual settings don't take very long to learn, and give the user just enought freedom so as not to totally blow any important shots you may be taking. The LCD is bright and clear, and the function buttons and menus are very easily navigated. If you do however have to look in the owner's manual for some guidance, Canon leads the way as far as simplicity and explainations go. All the descriptions are accompanied by photos representing what buttons the user is to press to reach the desired result.

For me, the most impressive part of this package are the solid construction of the camera body (all metal and easily gripped with one hand,)and the advanced editing software that accompanies the imageviewing software for your computer. I was excited by how real the photos looked, but was twice as pleased after I touched up the photos with the editing software.
I used a ...printer that isn't necessarily a "photo" printer to catalog my shots, and the pictures were better than any I had experienced with a 35mm camera.

If you are looking for a light-weight, yet pocketable digital camera that will take better pictures than you thought were possible, then look no further than the Canon S330 Digital Elph.

Much to love, but red-eye reduction hasn't been reliable
... I am a novice to be sure, and hemmed and hawed for months about whether to go digital or get a regular film point-and-shoot. I'm very glad I got this camera, and it takes absolutely stunning & lovely outdoor shots; however I'm a little bummed at the efficacy of the red-eye reduction feature. Many of my indoor evening shots of friends look as if they were taken at a Satan worshipper's convention. I suppose I can clean this up in post-production, if ever I figure out how to do that, but I wish this feature worked better.

Everything I wanted...and sooo much more!!
I've been looking for a really good digital camera for a decent price for quite sometime now. I've been searching & researching. I finally decided I wanted a Canon Elph because of it's size, the 2.1 megi-pixel and the zoom. So I searched for prices and they seemed a little more than I had wanted to spend. But then when I found the S330 on Amazon for only a little more then the older models, I bought it. When it finally came in the mail, I immediately starting playing with it and reading through the manual. I found out it did much more than I even really knew!! I was really glad I bought this camera, and I'm going to have so much fun taking photos! Batteries in all the digital cameras are going to go fast, mine lasts about 1 to 1 1/2 hours on, just make sure you have an extra. I like the effect on the camera with the black & white and the Sepia look. A 128MB CompactFlash card is a good size for this camera.

Lightweight Portable Killer
I have been searching for a digital camera for over a year now. I have been close to buying many. Including Olympus, Sony and Kodak. None of them offered the portability and durabilty and yet maintained the picture quality I needed. When I saw the s330, I finally realized what I had been searching for... Great picture quality, digital/zoom, extremely portable and durable. Not to mention 2 megapix is way more than enough unless your thinking of starting a professional photo career. The pictures come out spotless everytime... Just shoot and put it back in your pocket. Another great feature is the battery charger... completely foldable in one piece. No cord involved, just plug directly into the wall. This is the ultimate travel package! Not to mention the additional speaker over the s300 model and the lower price tag, you have a winner here. Upgrade to the 128 MB card... I am averaging over 400 pics a card on medium resolution! Happy shooting friends!

so easy
This is my first digital camera....it is so easy to use, even I can get good pictures...........upgraded the card from 8mb to a viking 64mb card through Amazon special..............The S330 is a smidge larger than the the other elph cameras, so I find it very easy to manipulate....very satisfied..........

Hoped that this S330 would be my first digital camera
Considered this Canon S330 as my first digital camera. I just checked Canon's web site and found out that this camera is not fully compatible with Mac OSX. There are numerous other Canon's that are, but why isn't this NEW Canon model up to speed??? I really wanted to add this digital camera to my collection of Canon 35mm cameras.

Very easy to use
I bought the first Elph that Canon offered years ago and have enjoyed using it. Lots of features in a very compact size. So when I started to look for a digital camera Canon was my first choice. While there are other cameras with more features, etc., the S330 does exactly what I need it for. Images are clear and the camera is easy to use. I have tested out all the features yet, but when it comes to point and shooting you are up and running without even reading the instructions. Definitely recommend this to the average user.

AWESOME!!! Great things do come in small cases!!!
A friend of mine had brought a S-110 Elph to South Africa last summer. I was amazed at that a camera so small could take such great pictures. I bought the S-200, but called Amazon and upgraded to the S-330 before the S-200 shipped. I am no camera buff, but the S-330 is pure fun to play with. I feel I cannot mess up a picture.

... Also Stephen Wildstrom in Business Week (4/12/2002) reviewed the Kodak Dx-4900 and Nikon CoolPix 2500, but in his conclusion he came back to his good old Elph s-110 as his pocket digital camera of choice. If you are on a fence about buying the S-330 you will not be after reading these reviews!

FYI- I wondered how much the S-330 weighs with the battery and 128 flash card, well it weighs 9.5 ounces. I was looking at bidding for the camera on [line], but the finally bids were often about the same as the Amazon.com price or even more. Plus I just like to buy from Amazon.

Makes me look like a pro!!!!
I read reviews, I checked sites, I reviewed prices, I experimented with my friends' digital cameras and it all came down to this little photo wizard, the Canon Powershot S330. This camera has got it all, the ability to point and shoot, and more advanced controls when I want more emotional shots. The best part is that while I'm a total amateur, this camera make me look like a pro. The shots are so nice and clean, crisp and vibrant. I love the ability to take dozens of shots without worrying about film and developing... I have always loved taking pictures, but now the process is so much better with a little digital camera that does nearly everything!

excellent compact P&S
background: attended photo school at ICP in NYC, shoot with a canon G2, and previously shot with a canon A2 SLR and a stylus epic fixed lens P&S. (P&S = point and shoot)

i've owned the S330 for about two months now, and have to say it is an excellent camera. -the fact that it is digital is a dream come true because i never expected this kind of image quality outside of film P&S cameras. interaction with the camera is completely intuitive, and the controls are simple/excellent. build quality is substantial, sturdy, and very impressive outside the plastic flashcard door (although every camera seems to have one flimsy something or another)
the camera offers more features by way of light balance, artistic modes, manual modes and flash combos than the better film P&S cameras out there like the fixed lens stylus epic and the yashica T4. the lens is extremly fast at 2.0 (?) or is it 2.2? anyway, it's very fast for a P&S so this gives you better opportunity to shoot without the flash which should be avoided on any camera. the camera even warns you of camera shake if the lighting is low and the shutter speed is long. very cool.
very nice effects can be achieved using differnt metering and focusing techniques..(see photo.net to learn how to properly shoot with a P&S). add in the sepia, vivid and B&W settings, and you can really be extremely creative with this little camera. software is excellent, although a bit simple, and i've expereinced NO problems at all using Windows 98se. flash card reader is not at all necessary. canon instructin manuals, cables and everything related is excellent as it comes in the box -ready to rock. BUT, you need a bigger flashcard (96 should do) and a case of some type to protect the lovely metal finish. xtra battery is essential if you're shooting all day.
i've been using this camera for going out when i don't want to lug the G2 around. it's size is good, but not great. the s200 is a good compact size in my mind because the s330 is a hair too big to keep in a jeans pocket, plus its a bit heavy (but in a good way). this is being nitpicky, but the 3x zoom is worth the xtra size i guess. the LCD screen is excellent, although the viewfinder only includes about 80% of what your actual image is on the screen -annoying if you're trying to compose a shot through the viewfinder in an effort to save battery life with the LCD off. on the other hand, it's very easy to fix composition errors in the software.

a word on digital.. if you're a photo student, or if you're looking to improve your photography, then BUY a digital camera. it's free to blast away photos and test different technique, lighting, point of view, composition etc.. and you SEE your results instantly in the LCD. also, you know if you've blown a shot. you'll learn much much faster because you'll remember exactly how you shot, when, in what mode etc (all recorded wiht the image).. critical for learning quickly, and you don't need to take notes and burn a thousand frames like with film.

Where is the price
Where is the price of this camera? I couldn't find it anywhere even if I did follow what people said on the screen.

Accessories
This is in addition to my other review of this excellent camera.

I forgot to mention the accessroies for this,

1. Get one or two extra Canon NB-1LH batteries. This is the most important thing will need one a long day. (Don't get the older NB-1L, it had 25% lower capacity).

2. Get a Canon PSC-300 Soft Compact Case for this.

3. Spend some money and get either a 128MB or 256MB CF card. 128MB should me enough for most people.

4. CF card reader is NOT needed, the USB cable that comes with the camera works perfectly fine.

Buy only Canon branded battery/case for this camera, don't try the cheap imitations in the market. Same for CF card, buy only a branded one...

Good camera for the travelling people
Compact size, very handy. Quality is good. Price is little high compare to the other same type product in the market. The one of the useful item which I bought.

FANTASTIC! THE ONLY CAMERA YOU'LL EVER NEED!
If you are considering the Canon Powershot S330 (and I'll bet you are), you are on to something GREAT!

This is my fourth digital camera over the past 3-years. I have always stuck with Canon digitals because I just think they are the best out there (sorry Nikon!). My last camera was the Powershot S300, and I loved it. But when the S330 came out I saw enough improvements to buy it. And I'm glad I did. Picture quality is without equal among similarly priced 2 to 4 megapixel cameras.

Don't fret about it only having 2 megapixels - when's the last time you had anything enlarged beyond an 8x10, anyway (never, right?). 2 megapixels will give you fantastic results, will allow you to take subsequent shots quicker, will let you store more photos on your compact flash card, and cost less than the 3+ megapixel cameras. For 99% of you, worrying about 2 megapixels not being enough is kind of like worrying your car's top speed - you'll never take your car that fast, and with the camera, you'll never notice the difference between 2 megapixels and 3 or 4 megapixels.

The most important things to me are picture quality and portability - you cannot take great pictures if your camera is left at home. This camera fills the bill better than anything else out there for me. I'll admit that Canon's Powershot S200 is also fantastic, but since it only has a 2X optical lens, it just is not as versatile as the Powershot S330.

Buy this camera!

Great Camera
I love it!!! It's the perfect complement to my Nikon SLR camera, half the size and weight. You need an additional battery [$$$] and 128 Mbytes memory gives you 400+ photos at medium resolution and compression (which is fine for everyday photos). Pick up the PCMCIA CF adapter [$$$] if you are transfering photos to a laptop and you don't have to deal with any cables.

I also found the included ZoomBrowser software very useful to organise all of "My Pictures" on the computer.

Bought it in the USA for a considerable saving. Approx. [$$$] vs. [$$$] in Switzerland. Even saw it priced for [$$$] in the UK. Canon distributes the camera under the IXUS product line outside of the USA. I guess this is how they can command a price 50% higher.

Only recommendations for improvement - 1) Better viewfinder (although I only use the LCD display) and 2) Battery meter.

great camera
A friend lent me his s300 for a trip to Spain, and I loved it. When the s330 came out, I bought it right away and I've been very happy with it. It takes excellent pictures, and allows you to change to manual mode for getting more control over the exposure. The new battery lasts longer than the one in the s300, and the user interface for the camera is much improved. They also fixed another problem with the s300: when you take pictures by holding the camera vertically, it's smart enough to display it that way on the LCD screen (the s300 forced you to flip the camera). I would give the camera 5 stars, except that I wish the zoom were better and because some of the manual exposure features are a bit buried in the interface.

An absolutely incredible little camera
I bought the S330 3 days before leaving for Moscow & St. Petersburg. Based on reviews read here and at other sites I also bought a 256MB memory card and an extra battery. The basics of operation took about 20 minutes and 15-20 photos of the backyard, by the second day of my trip operation was effortless. The zoom is quite impressive and most pictures were flawless; whether from a boat, through glass, from a moving car, whatever, even an amateur like myself got some truly special photos. I had a 128MB card from another camera and took it with me, a bonus, the memory cards aren't specific to the camera and you can get real cheap memory on-line from secondary distributers or borrow the cards from freinds with other digital cameras. The batteries charge very quickly, and with two I was able to leave one charging at the hotel and the other in the camera, but I could've easily carried both all day - full charge takes less than an hour. I never had any power problems, I also got in the habit of turning the camera off between shots however. Which brings me to my only real complaint, the on/off switch requires sustained pressure for 2-4 seconds, its not usually problem getting the shot you want but it could be - and it was a little annoying. Since I had so much memory I used 1600x1200 and the finest detail for every shot, and I still took over 350 photos and had room for about 75 more. Now that I'm home its giving me all kinds of options for re-sizing and zooming into whatever details I like most in the picture. The picture review setting on this camera is one of its best features, you can actually zoom into the photo you just took to be sure you've got the level of detail or particular aspect of a subject that you might've wanted. I ended-up retaking several photos and getting precisely the picture I was hoping for. I own an older Sony and one of the original Kodaks, and I can't recommend this camera enough. Good Luck.

Great Camera!!
I received this camera 2 days ago and I absolutely love it! It has a lot of features but is very easy to figure out. I would definitely recommend this camera to first time digital camera buyers along with a compact flash card reader. It downloads pictures to the computer faster and without draining battery power from the camera.

It's worth it to pay the extra for the resolution and the zoom. Plus, it's very compact at 3.7" by 2.5". Check it out!!!

Can't beat this little guy!
All I have to say is, wow! I've had my s330 for about a month now and I have been nothing but impressed. I am still amazed at how much this little thing can do. This camera really is only slightly larger than those disposable cameras many people buy. It is also quite light making it ideal to carry with you wherever you go.

The interface is actually really intuitive with most options being labeled by easy to understand pictures as opposed to words. I was also impressed by how well it did with fast moving pictures.

My only reccomendation at all is that you buy a 128MB card to go with it. With the extra space you can use the highest compression and size settings for even better looking pictures.

The price might be a little scary at first, but trust me when I say you won't regret it.

Diminishing returns?
I have been a dedicated digital Elph user since the first S100 was released and have really gotten my money's worth from that camera. It was not, however, a perfect camera, and the S300 attempted to address its major shortcomings. First of all, the zoom jumped to 3:1 rather than the old 2:1, yielding a big improvement in utility. The S300 also added a 30 second movie function, which once you mastered the download process, really added zip to Internet photo apps. Lastly, the control wheel with embedded power switch worked far better than the old recessed power button, which in my mind was a real problem with the S100. Now, the new S330 updates the S300 with better battery management and higher amperage, and adds several new user controls. It does *not* add the anticipated 3 megapixel resolution, nor improve upon the optical zoom. The question now is whether the digital Elph series is worth the premium one pays for its compactness. For considerably less money, one can buy other digicams that are only modestly larger but rather better equipped. Personally, I would say that finding an S110 or even an S300 would be a better approach value-wise for someone intent on getting a camera of this size that is of good quality. I believe the S330 has merely gilded the proverbial lily.

Canon Powershot S330 (Awesome)
We purchased the Powershot camera for the birth of our son. The quality is outstanding. It even takes short videos. The price is unbeatable for what you get out of this camera. There are so many functions available, but it's not confusing like most cameras. We shopped around for almost a year and found out that the Powershot was by far the best! Highly recommended for the everyday user!

Excellent Camera!
I would like to rate this camera with 5 stars, but there are a few features that I miss.

1)No battery status. I have not yet found a way to find out how much battery is left at any given time. The camera suddenly alerts you when you have about 6-8 photos left to snap.

2)No case. Camera does not come with a case of any kind. I would like to protect the nice finish on the camera.

3)Problems to transfer the MPEG (the less than 30 second movies) to the computer. The MPEG movies did not automatically transfer to the computer with the rest of the images, not sure if you have to change the settings to do so??

4)No power cord. The camera does not come with a power cord, so you constantly have to run the camera on batteries, even when you have it hooked up to the computer.

However, I did a lot of research before buying this camera. It's my second digital camera, and I'm overall very satisfied!! The camera takes great pictures, the flash is strong enough at night, and the size makes it fit snuggly in your jeans pocket! I also bought a 256 MG flash card...This is a must!! The Flash Card works perfectly!! I have not yet bought an extra battery. The battery included in the S330 has 30% more capacity then the previous models in the powershot series. I snapped about 180 pictures with a fully charged battery, and when do you really to snap more than that during one day??!

I really recommend this camera! It's a go!

Good luck!...

Great Camera Too Pricy
I have the camera for a few weeks now. So far my impression of the camera is very positive. In the sub-compact catagory, the S330 probably have the best image quality (in my opinion). There are some issues under low light conditions. I think you should take this into consideration if you are looking at this camera.

1. For example, the auto-focus have a hard time locking under low light conditions. The picture is actually in focus, but the indictator says otherwise. As long as you hold the camera still for long shutter speeds the camera should take a well focused picture under low light conditions. The focus assist light is not that great either, but most other models in this catagory don't even have this feature.

2. Not a good camera to take distant objects at night. The flash is too small and weak, but that is a trade off for having a small camera.

3. The biggest issue with this camera is probably the auto white balance. If you use the auto mode under artificial light, the AWB feature doesn't work well at all!!! But this can be corrected under manual mode. I hope Canon will have a firmware fix for this.

Overall, it's hard for you to go wrong buying this little camera. The image quality is above average. Its size and construction is top of the class. My only real big complain is the camera is too pricy for 2MP. Oh... In addition, 50 bucks for another battery is not that cheap either (you should get one for long trips). 8MB compact flash card is so somewhat useless (only 10-32 max shots depending on the quality). So you probably to have spend another 150 dollars to make the camera "complete".

If you haven't looked at other subcompacts, I recommend Nikon Coolpix 2500 and Minolta DiMage X. Those are great cameras too, but S330 filled my needs betters than those two. Cannon S30 and S40 are great, too (suffer the same low light problems <- from what I heard).

So much digital camera in so little volume
What this camera can do is truly amazing.

The photos are very well done with good focus, exposure, etc. It allows you to exercise your creativity to an extraordinary degree. The panoramic stitching software is superb.

I have taken more than 120 photos at a time and still had power to spare. You should get a large memory chip (128M or 256M) because the 8M is only good for 12-16 fine quality photos.

Of course, it is a 2MP camera so you should not expect 13x19 prints but 5x7 or 8x10 are just fine. Panoramics are truly impressive - an 8x36 of New York City is stupendous.

I am delighted with this in every way. It has exceeded all my expectations.

Small, but packed with features!
I wanted a compact digital camera, so after much research I settled on the S330. This is a great camera that is well built and takes great pictures. I wasn't sure if 2MP would be enough for me, but so far it's great. I wanted a camera mainly for family pics and travel. I was using a point and shoot 35 mm Nikon with a zoom and I wanted to go digital. To me, the S330 takes just as good pictures. I usually don't print over 8x10, so I can crop pictures and print them out on my HP printer and they're beautiful. The camera is easy to operate and it fits in my pocket (but a bit heavy). I have Windows XP and the software installed easily and I have had no problems with it.
I have a 128 meg CF card that works well. I usually shoot on the highest resolution and the battery lasts about as long as it takes me to fill the flash card. Recharging is very easy.
So here are my:

Pros:
Small, portable and built very well
Easy to use with manual mode of various settings
can take cute video clips

Shutter lag is not bad
Takes great pics
3X zoom is nice and quick
Love the ability to review pics on camera and magnify 10X to check detail and quality

Cons:
video clips not the greatest quality and very short
sometimes my indoor pics aren't in sharp focus
sometimes it seems camera won't focus quickly (indoors)
Camera is a bit expensive for 2 MP

Overall, I highly reccommend it! It's easy and fun to use. Good luck!

A fun camera
A lot of fun playing around with the 330; I really like being able to connect it to my TV during a party and showing a slide show. Sounds can be associated with taking a picture or turning on the camera; you can download your own sound files. I shopped around a lot and all the camera's have some problem. The battery time is about 3/4 to 1 1/2 hours depending on using the LCD and the low battery warning is very short; the zoom is average for a 3X and the view hole is not overly accurate; also the macro feature is about average. But I could find more problems with the other cameras I tested.

Overall, my family loves the camera and we use it a lot. Especially nice are the Sepia, Black/White, photo stitching, the LCD is about the best I've seen even looks good in bright and low light, memo feature is cool, the colors are very accurate and the pictures look great, it feels like a real camera not some piece of plastic. And best of all it fits in purse or bigger pants pocket.

8/5 I've played with the camera for about 2 months now; in 1028x768 mode with super fine quality I can get 270 pictures on a 128meg card (49.00 Viking Card); I had Wal-Mart print 4x6 and 5x7s and they are perfect; they look better than my 35MM.

I'm very impressed with the manual adjustments you can make; from the 50-400ISO to the lighting. I took a hike in the Adrondack mountains and was able to adjust the lighting to take pictures in the forest. The movie mode is very good but you can't rotate movies and the 320x200 is so so when displaying on a 35" TV. One problem, downloading to my PC is extremely fast, about 150 pictures in 2 minutes but sending pictures back to the camera is painful at 10-20 seconds per picture, ouch; also you can not send AVIs back to the camera.
Still a great camera.

James Bond would be proud to own this one
This camera packs an amazing array of features into one of the tiniest packages you can imagine. The image quality is also outstanding, considering this camera's size. Although slightly larger than its cousin, the s200, this unit comes with a full 3x optical zoom rather than the s200's 2x optical zoom. And it will still fit unobtrusively in your pocket. The build quality is great, too. The whole camera feels like a solid piece of finely crafted aluminum and stainless steel. I was very impressed and you will be, too.

Great pictures, but...
I was extremely pleased to begin my digital experience with the Canon S330. The pictures were great, and the camera offered such ease in use. A friend of mine suggested this camera, and I had used his camera to take some family shots before purchasing one for myself. Anyway, I speak of the camera in the past, because shortly after using it, I started getting an E18 error on the screen. I have returned it and am now wishing that this camera had worked for me, because of the options it offered, ease of use, beautiful pictures, and especially it fit into my price range. I don't enjoy buying a new product and find it mailfunctioning shortly after the purchase.

ULTRA POWERFUL SLIM AND STYLELISH
This camara is perfect for people who want performence but don't want to carry a big camera.

Outstanding quality pictures. Comes with everything you need to start taking pictures right away.

The only thing I don't like is that it lets you record only 25 seconds of video clips.

Totaly Recommended.

First Dealings with a digital camera
I am an old-school, amateur (hobby / relaxation now) photographer (Canon F1, Mamiya 645, and a 4x5 View camera) 35mm to large format. I did not have the funds to get an interchangeble lense digital.

I had taken a few photographs with friends Minolta, Kodak, HP, and Nikon digitals. The S330 is definitely above them. I would have given the S330 a blazing 5.0, but would actually rate it a 4.5 do to size of my hands vs. the size of the camera and the LCD size( glad I wear reading glasses) and the spot effect of the flash from a distance.

I shot a 12 exposure role of Kodak Gold Ultra ISO 400, after metering off of a gray card and keeping that exposure setting and compared to the same photos with the S330. The S330(on auto) was a little underexposed in the shadows, but not enough to not compensate with a competent graphics program. Landscape photographs out the van window at 60 miles an hour were good. There was some blur, but if you lead the shot as you would in shooting skeet, it was acceptable. Color was acceptable in all cases(not like the overt blue when shooting ektachrome.

When I ordered my camera, I also ordered a 32 meg and 256 meg CF card ( Simple Tech cards and Flash Link CF card reader ). I strongly suggest the average user to order a supplemental 32 or 64 meg CF card when they order this or any other digital camera. I just ordered a spare battery and will order the car battery charger and AC Adapter kit in September. The low battery feature should give an obnoxious warning, but it does not.

I have had no problems with the software that was included with the S330 of the CF Card Reader (running windows 2000). Strongly recommend this digital camera, as I have been well pleased. Point of note: READ YOUR MANUAL.

S330 Digital Camera
I've had this for a two weeks now. I selected the Canon for its small pocket size and 3x optical zoom. I keep it in my shirt pocket for immediate accessiblilty to photograph items and places at work. The S330 is not as slim as I wanted, but I chose it for its 3x optical zoom over the S200's 2x optical zoom. The all stainless steel exterior is a work of art. A little heavier and bulkier than I wished for, but the controls are simplier to use than my Nikon Coolpix 880 and the LCD display superior to my Coolpix 880. The tripod socket is not centered on the axis of the lens but is located at the far leftside. Sweet little camera. Somewhat bulky for my shirt pocket, so I ordered the Canon PSC-300 Soft Compact Case. Images are good to excellent for a 2 megapixel pocket (sorta big pocket) camera.

A lot of bang for the buck
A lot of people say this is a great camera but a little too pricey. I say this is a great camera at a great price. Sure there are other 2mp cameras that are a little cheaper but after using this one and its predecessor the S300, the others don't compare in overall ease of use, speed of use and quality of construction.

Although this camera can still give you better results with a little tweaking, the automatic settings are better than almost all others in this price range. And of course this is one of the most Pocketable cameras out there. Don't get me wrong there are some very cool manual features on this great little camera. My favorite is the slow shutter control. You can set the shutter to several speeds from 1 second to 15 seconds. And the camera comes with built in processing to eliminate hot pixels (those bright spots that appear on most long exposure digital pics). I have used this several times always with good results.

Overall there is little to complain about with this package. It comes with a good battery for general use, good software, all the cabling you need to get going and even a fairly well written manual. If you are planning on using this on long trips where you will not have access to an electrical outlet very often, then you will want to get the extra battery. And I highly recomend the Canon PSC-300 Case, it is perfectly sized for this camera and still has room for extra memory and battery.

Do yourself a favor and get a Viking 128MB compact flash card. The reviews I have read tell me this is the best memory for the dollar. Very fast and very cheap.

...These are bar none, the best digital camera reviews on the net.

Buy this camera and enjoy!

My first DigiCam!
I had a difficult time deciding between the S200 and the S330. After reading numerous reviews on websites, I finally chose the S330. As a college student, the price made me cringe a little but I figured that paying for the 3x Optical zoom will be better in the long run. After owning it for about two weeks, I can claim that it is small enough to fit in my purse and takes beautiful pictures. The reason why I only gave the S330 4 stars is that the camera did not come with a bigger memory card or a camera case.

Fantastic Pocket Camera from Fantastic Website
I normally shoot with an Olympus 3040 digital which has all the bells and whistles that allow 35 mm style photos. But I have missed numerous potentially great photos because I didn't have this somewhat larger camera with me. I wanted the Elph for about a year, but didn't get it due to short battery life and the 2-megapixel limit. The S330 uses the NB-1LH lithium ion battery (which can be used on older models too. After reading the reviews of the new S-330, I bought the camera. I haven't taken many pictures in the few days I've had the camera, but took some outside and a couple indoors. I printed out a 5X7 outdoor shot and was very impressed. The quality of the photo was every bit as good as with my 3-megapixel. Now I have a camera in my pocket ready for those formerly missed shots and I can count on great pictures to at least 5X7's... I also bought the Viking 128MB card, an extra NB-1LH Battery and the PSC-300 Soft Case. I would do it the same way again and maybe get the AC adapter for time hooked to the computer or for learning the camera better. The case is good but has a pocket that accommodates the charger and battery, so it is a little large for a jean's pocket. The ZoomBrowser software that comes with the camera is much better than I had for file storage and printing layouts. File naming, moving and printlayout are easy. I still use Photoshop Elements for my image editing and haven't tried the image editor that came with the S-330. A camera is a bit like a life jacket: it doesn't do you any good if you don't have it on you. If you want a camera that you will have with you, you will like this camera.

Slick Quality 2MP 3x OptZoom Camera!
After a long search, I decided on the PowerShot S330 based on extensive reviews on the quality of the image. It is an excellent 2MP camera! Minolta had an ultraslim 2MP, but avid digital camera viewers have said that the shape does not compensate for the poor image quality. As I have come across other 2MP contendors, the ELPH shape is by far the best. Shortly after I bought the camera, Konica came out with a slightly smaller 3.34MP (Konica KD-300Z) for about the same price. However there are few reviews and little product information available... The s330 has the cool Elph shape, is slightly thicker than its predecessors, but has a solid feel to it.

A few items of note to guide the (first-time) shopper based on 2 months of use:

1. BATTERY. Battery life is very good. I also bought a generic NB-1LH as a back up from SterlingTek; it is purportedly 800mAH, versus the Canon brand 840mAH and previous Canon NB-1L (680mAH)that first came with the s330.

2. MEDIA. Bought a 256MB TypeI CF card, and can now get ~256 photos at the highest resolution (vs. the 8MB that comes with the camera). I rarely take that many pictures at a time before a download, so there is also much room for video clips. Being the TypeA that I am, I also bought an extra 128MB at a good price that may come in handy when traveling for tourist-type photos.

3. MOVIES. The movie clip quality is as others have remarked, only satisfactory even at the highest resolution setting. (I almost do not notice a difference between settings). However, the clips do include SOUND and provide a TON of ENTERTAINMENT! The files are already at about 3MB size. It would be difficult to share larger files. (For better quality, one should consider a video camera.) The clips are best viewed at about the size of the 1.5" LCD screen. *DO* remember to record in landscape format (!) as you cannot rotate the clip for viewing.

4. DOWNLOADING. The software and USB cable method appear to work well. Although downloading directly from the camera will consume batter power, I don't feel compelled to by a CF reader or an AC adapter since I have the extra battery. Others have remarked on the flimsy rubber cover over the A/V out and digital out and speculate that it may not last the life of the camera.

5. IMAGES. The images are excellent. If they turn out substandard, you may be able to clean them up w/the accompanying software. If you're good with the manual settings, you can probably get the quality you are looking for. Definitely comparable to my old 35mm; and I don't see a huge difference from a friend's 3MP (Canon Powershot S30).

6. LIGHTING/OTHER. The camera has excellent compensation for different lighting (natural, cloudy, flourescent, tungsten, etc.) Alternatively, you can adjust this manually. The Elph line appears to have problems with red-eye reduction. Others have remarked that the red-eye reduction setting is less than satisfactory. Thank goodness for software editing (on CD that comes with camera).

7. ZOOM. I think a 3x optical zoom is a MUST for a 2MP camera. Turned off the digital zoom, as I don't want false hope of having quality zoom at the purported ~7.5x total zoom. The zoom is actually slightly better than my old 35mm.

8. OTHER MANUAL FEATURES. I've always been a point-and-shoot user, however, there appear to be many manual features that offer a lot of flexibility. I suggest practicing with these features, e.g. exposure, white balance, shutter speed, iso.

9. CASE. Doesn't come with camera. I bought the Canon PSC-300 case which has a small hole for the wrist stap to pass though and may be worn on your belt. I tried the PSC-20 case. It was just too large for me, I could also stick the USB connector in the bottom. I picked up a cheap case (under ten dollars) by Lowerpro which fits like a glove! It has a zipper pouch without the annoying velcro flap-over of the PSC-300 and PSC20 that would stick to my wrist strap.

I have to admit a bit of "pixel envy", but the 2MP and seems adequate for most of my cropping/enlargement needs, and printing 4x6s to 5x7s, possibly 8x10s. 3MP will likely provide more cropping/enlargement options considering the current optical zoom limits. My criteria were size and image quality for approximately three- to four-hundred US$. When canon comes out with a 3MP I will consider upgrading when the price comes down to current s330 prices. (Since my original writing Canon came out with the s230--I'm not totally sure which I would buy at this point.)

If you're looking for a compact 2MP camera, the s330 is the ONE for you!

Update... i just bought the s400. Love the new processor, smaller size, and 4MP.

Great camera, pity about the software
I bought a PowerShot S330 about three months ago and I am very pleased with the camera. I bought a 128 MB flash card -- which holds about 200 pictures, as I figured that more than 200 pictures would be impossible to remember. For printing up to A4 size I find the image quality good -- plenty enough pixels and a good range of tones. My wife loves the movie (with sound) capability, and the camera's memory is usually full with short movie clips -- so now I wish I had bought a 256 MB card. The camera really is a lot of fun. The down side is that the software for downloading images is really awful. I originally installed it under Win98 (first version) and I could only download pictures by crashing the software in a particular way (yuk!). I then installed Win98SE and reinstalled the Cannon software and things are better, but not perfect. My recomendation is to avoid the Cannon downloader by buying a ... flash card reader for USB and use the Windows file system to manage the images. Much better. Cannon's software for stitching images together to make a panorama is good, and I recommend having a play with that.

Great camera!
I got this camera a few months ago along with a 512meg flash card. It has been a wonderful camera. The flash card it comes with is a bit weak, but thats to be expected. Get a 128meg or 256meg card. I got a 512, but its way more than most people could use. I rarely fill it up, and I take the highest quality pics I can.

I use the camera to take pictures of things I build, modifications to my computer, and stuff like that most of the time. It gives me very nice, very sharp pictures that look great.
I also take some picture of my 6 and 12 year old cousins when I visit my grandparents. The small videos you can take aren't amazing, but they do let me remember some nice things.
My cousins loved to let me take short videos of them. The built in speaker on this model is great for replaying the video when you are out somewhere.

One thing that this camera has the the lower PowerShots don't have, is a 10x zoom on camera after you take pictures. On the little LCD screen I can zoom in very close to make sure I got exact details focused and everything. This works wonderfully. I used my dads old S100 and it doesnt do this, and it was annoying to use after I used this camera.

The size and feel of the camera is great. This was one of my major reasons for buying it, after its wonderful image quality and options. The one problem I had was finding a good case for it that was very small and light, and didn't stock me from taking it out quickly. Any cases I found to buy for it were to large.

I have had no problems with the software or anything. The battery life is also great. I thought it wouldn't be to wonderful, but I have never ran out of batteries at a critical time. Although I do wish the camera could warn you when you are about to loose battery power much eariler. If you act quickly you might be able to upload the pics to your computer, but not normally. A battery meter would help a lot..
I do suggest getting a second battery if you plan to use it for long periods of time.

This camera may not be the best for everyone, but for someone who needs nice quality pictures (but not the best), in a nice looking, easily caried form, this works great.
I have never seen another camera that looks and feels so nice. Its just gives it that high tech feel that impresses everyone when they see it.

This camera RULES!
This is easily my new favorite toy. Not only does it take unbelievable pictures, but there are so many options. I recently took it on a trip to some glacier caves in New Hampshire and shot some great photos. Neat part is, there's a sound feature that lets you record about 30 seconds of sound and attach to each photo. So you can really explain just what each photo is and save it as a .wav file. There's also a movie feature that lets you record about 30 seconds of moving action with sound. What's really amazing to me is the quality of pictures in a completely dark room. The flash does wonders! For a 2MP camera, this Elph is so worth the money.

great camera, but...
Great cam. for being socially active/outdoorsy (ski, camp, bars,etc)

BUT, it has a few too many bells and whistles for me right now that I never use. Couldn't find some of my needed features, however, in the lesser models so I guess I can live with these unused luxuries and maybe learn them too...

I do find it a bit slow on getting ready to take a flash picture in the dark as it has to adjust, in an almost "automatic" way that you wish you could more readily override, thus making your subjects wait a bit longer than they'd expect. (Hold that smile, everyone!) You have to almost hold down--as if to force--the button in order to finally get it to take a shot. I have had to re-press the button at times, and could miss action that a simpler point-and-shoot digital might have gotten. I have often decided to turn on the camera, instantly click certain settings to turn off the flash, and snap pictures without. I can often adjust them using Photoshop on my home system.

In skiing, I like to try to get friends doing jumps or other active shots, and so since this is mostly in the daytime, you dont need a flash and the cam does not start up forcing you to use it. In order to now get those "perfectly timed" shots, you can, with the S330, teach yourself to carefully "half-press" and the camera is now, in contrast to the above, sooo itchin' to take an instant shot that any jiggle at all could do just that, so be ready! (the little lights will flash as you stand alert...) Now when you finish pushing down the button , it snaps on command which is awesome because you can say, "I got you jumping in mid-air!"

Bought online a second battery (definitely recommended) but it was made by Optex (NOT recommended) because it empties in no time! I will buy another Canon --only.

To save power, I also often instantly turn off the display (although you get a more centered shot when using it to frame subject) which comes on as the default (I like cameras that it does not come on as the default).

seems as though the cumbersome software CD does not work with windows 2000ME, but maybe I should try reinstall a 4th time...or go with USB cards and reader. (that would give me more ease in travel)

In the end, it is the compact size, pic quality and style of this cam I like best. I can live with having to work around the other things and so it is great, but not as easy as say, an Olympus, to hand to someone else and say, "Can you just take a picture of me?" I guess I gotta do a lot of stuff at home with Photoshop to many of my pictures later.

perfect for the casual photographer
This is my first digital camera, and after checking many models, I chose th s330. I've had it for a week now, and have taken pictures and movies and downloaded them onto my laptop. I love the clean, compact design, the controls are easy to pick up, and the software set up was quick. I'm no photography expert, but the pictures look great. There are just enough features on the manual mode (exposure, ISO, white balance)that it gives you plenty of control without overwhelming a non-expert like myself. It's more than enough for any recreational user. The great thing about a digital camera is that you can take a bunch of pictures to try out the various manual controls without wasting film. Haven't tried taking night shots yet, though.

As many people complain, the 8MB flash card is tiny, but it makes sense to me. The 8MB is just big enough to get you set up before you buy the bigger memory. Sure, 8MB does nobody any good, but who's to say that the buyer will want a 128, 256, or a 512MB card? Let's say a 128MB card is standard. If I wanted a 512MB card, I would feel stupid paying extra for a card I wouldn't use.

This Camera is awesome!
After reading many of the customer reviews along with doing my own research I finally decided to purchase the Canon S330 and received it about a week ago from Amazon. I am delighted to report the postive reviews on this camera are right on! I know very little about digital cameras, downloading photos to PC, printing photos etc., but I was doing it all the same evening I unpacked it. The photos I have taken are great; the clarity and colors are amazing! All procedures are clearly explained from start to finsh. I have Windows 98 and downloading the photos from the S330 goes swiftly without incident. I also purchased the recommended (good advice) Viking 128MB Flash Card along with an extra Canon NB-1LH battery pack. I will get plenty of use out of the camera simply because it is fun, compact, easy to use, and I can view and print the photos whenever time allows. No more running out to buy film, batteries, get the film developed, or pay for photos that didn't turn out well. I also purchased the Canon MultiPass F30 Printer/Scanner/Copier which I am very pleased with as well. Taking pictures during the holidays is going to be a snap.

Gorgous and very handy camera
Just got my Canon S330 last month and has been taking countless pictures with it. Great camera! Have a good amount of manual options that you can play with. With enough light, it will take amazing pictures, for a 2MP camera.

It does has some issue with low-light conditions, however. My dad has an Olympus digital camera which does a much better job in low light. Probably because it has much bigger lense (bigger lense = more light gets to the CCD).

But there's no way I can take a bulky camera like that Olympus around like the S330. So, a little give and take. Over all, I'm very satisfied with it. Just have to know it's limitation and how to work with it to get great pictures in any situation.

The take anywhere camera that gives GREAT shots.
I did about three months of research before I settled on this camera. Photography is a hobby of mine, so I had been eyeing digital cameras for awhile. The MAJOR contributing factor that got this camera in my pocket was just that. It fits easlily into most pockets. I personally carry my camera around in my front jeans pocket. Family vacations, hockey games, just out around town. If you dont have your camera with you, you are not going to get the shot.
My other camera, a 35mm Canon, is not what I would consider a large camera, but I would tire of dragging it around in the Smokey Mtns with the strap either around my neck or around my waist. I would have to leave it on the platform at amuesment parks. But, with my Digital Elph, I just slip it in my pocket and off I go! The controls are easy, the pictures are great, and the construction is wonderful. The case is metal, so it feels to me as if it could take quite a beating.
I would highly recommend this camera to anyone from just getting into photography to a serious hobbiest. I do think that for anything over hobbiest you should go with a bigger, more professional series with more MegaPixels. 2 is good, itll get you an wonderfully clear 8x10, But for any needs over that, youll need a bigger camera.
Overall, this is an awesome camera, with great style, contruction, and performance. And like I said, if you dont have your camera with you, you wont get that picture.
Oh, and I seriously recommend purchasing at least a 128 MB memory card, and an extra battery. The 8MB card that is included gets you about 20 shots, while the 128 gets around 100 (depending on the settings). Also, while I have never ran my battery out, even after a full days worth of use, you cant just pop into any gas station to grab some full batteries. Other than those two items, you should be ready to rock right out of the box.

Great portable camera for the beginner/intermediate user
I was relunctant to get a digital camera for several years, because I wanted something that was comparable to the automatic 35 mm and APS cameras I was used to using. WOW! I guess that is the simplest review of the Canon PowerShot S330. I just got mine yesterday and couldn't put it down. There are tons of features. I had no trouble figuring things out (great manual) and the picture quality at 4x6 was nearly identical to film cameras I have used in the past. Perhaps the greatest advantage of the digital camera is that you don't need to shoot 24 pictures, then only use 4. Being able to preview shots and print only the ones you want is great. The portability of the S330 speaks for itself. It really does fit in your pocket. It is also very sturdy. One of my friends has a PowerShot from last year and like the repositioning of the buttons on the S330. It feels like a 35 mm camera without the film. For quality, manual control, and lens selection, nothing beats an SLR. For your everyday shooting (including quick videos), this is a great camera. Every review I read for this camera was excellent ). The only thing I wish it had was a 3.1 megapixel resolution and a bigger card (I would recommend the 128 MB). Here at Amazon, this camera is a great deal!

Fantastic Digital P&S Camera
The Cannon PowerShot S330 is my first digital camera. I had it for about six weeks so far and I just love it. As a result of getting this camera, in the past six weeks I've taken more pictures at family events then probably the last 6 years combined using conventional cameras. To me, the best thing about digital photography is the instant feedback. You can see your picture as soon as you take it. And if you don't mind wasting some battery, you can use the LCD screen to frame your shots so every picture comes out exactly the way you like it. And downloading the pictures also makes things easy.

Basic Features
The camera is capable of 2.0-mega pixel resolutions and it has a 3x optical zoom lens and 2.5 digital zoom. The camera is small, I would say a little bigger then a cigarette box and fits in your hands or pickets easily. Both the front and the back of the camera are finished in metal so it weights a little more then other cameras but not to the point where it is heavy to carry. The S330 also comes with a very bright 2.5" LCD screen in the back. Even in direct sunlight you should still have no problem seeing the screen. With the LCD screen on all the time, I estimate that you should be able to get about 100 to 150 pictures depending how much flash you use. The S330 doesn't come with an AC adapter kit so when you need to recharge, you have to take out the battery and put it in the special battery charger that plugs directly to the wall jack. I thought this was kind of awkward but has since gotten use to it.

Advance Features
The PowerShot S330 is very easy to use as a point-and-shoot camera but it also has a number of advance features like shutter speed and ISO settings if you need it. It also has a number of white balance controls which helps compensate the different lighting conditions such as fluorescent, cloudy and etc. I've tried to use this features a couple of times but haven't quite master it. I would imagine that most people would never need this feature but if you are a tweaker, there should be enough options in this camera to keep you satisfied.

Besides the regular camera like features, it also has a movie mode and stitch assist mode that are interesting. The stitch assist mode is for panoramic shots and it's best to do this with a tripod so at the points where the pictures are stitched together, the object wouldn't look warped. The camera does not stitch the pictures, that process is done separately when you connect the camera to the computer. The stitched pictures will have a stitch line linking them together indicating that these pictures were shot in stitch mode. Clicking on the stitch line would launch the software program to for the panoramic picture. And you can stitch as many pictures together as you want.

The movie mode is something I've only used a couple of time. The camera stores short film clips and it limits how long you can shoot depending on the resolution of the film. The clips are limited from 10 to 30 seconds and in 640x480 resolution (which is the largest), it would only record for 10 seconds and not 30.

Pictures
In terms of the quality of the picture, I am pretty satisfied with it. Sometimes the picture is a little soft around the edges or kind of fuzzy but that's not every single time. The color of the photo is decent but IMHO, not 100% true to life. There are quit a few pictures I've taken the found it to be too red or yellow. But most outdoor shots in daylight that looks just wonderful. The flashlight packs a big punch for something so small. Anything within 8 feet is no problem at all in dark situations. The focus light has a slightly shorter effective distance so sometimes the camera can't focus so when you push the shutter and nothing happens. This is kind of frustrating but just try to take a few steps closer to your subject and it should be fine.

Just about every picture I take with this camera, I take it in 1600x1400 resolution and in fine mode. This way, any pictures that I like I can have it developed and look just like it was taken from a conventional camera. In this largest format, the photo is about 1MB each. So with a 128MB compact flash card, you can still store plenty of pictures. Unfortunately, Canon only provides a 8MB CF card with the camera so make sure you buy a CF card if you don't already have it. Also, because of S330's small size, it is only capable of accepting Type I CF cards and not Type II. So like IBM's 1 GB MicroDrive is not compatible with this camera.

Issues
Maybe I've missed this in the user's manual but I have yet to find a battery meter that shows me how much juice is left in the battery. When the power is running low, the camera would just shut down with very little warning. I guess Canon just didn't think this is a critical issue since the pictures are all already saved in the memory so advance warnings on the battery running low is pretty useless. But just be prepared and the best solution is to have a second battery so you can just switch it when one runs out.

For such a well build camera it's very disappointing to see the cheesy flap it uses to cover the USB and video ports on the side of the camera. Not a major issue though.

Canon did not include any bag or pouch for the storage of this camera. Even though the camera is small enough to fit just about anywhere, the metal finishing is brushed and can be easily scratched. A soft pouch would be perfect to protect the surface but not included so protect your investment and get one on your own.

I am not going to complain about the 2-mega-pixel limit because it's more then enough for an average user. A well taken 2-mega-pix pictures developed on 4x6 film would look no different than if it's taken on a 35mm camera. So don't buy more then you need because the higher the resolution, the more memory it needs and more time it takes to save a picture. So take a closer look at the Canon PowerShot S330 because it might be just what you're looking for....

A Great Compact
This was my first digital, and a wonderful introduction to the world of digital photography. I'm sure I've taken more than 10,000 pictures sinceI got my S330 last spring, and I've recommended it to three friends who have bought the same camera. I routinely put my travel photographs on line, and the reviews have been very positive. The camera has proven to be durable and reliable, and I'm totally hooked on digital photography. I kept my old point-and-shoot film camera for the first few months after I went digital, but have since given it away and never missed it. It's all digital, all the time for me.

On the plus size, the camera is very compact (easily fits into a pocket), easy to use, and takes good quality pictures. It also has a very wide range of manual adjustments to increase the flexibility of your picture-taking, and the controls are very well thought out. The LCD display is very high quality, bright and sharp. I carry it with me everywhere, and wind up taking many pictures I would have missed with a larger camera.

There are some quirks and weaknesses I do need to point out for this camera. Color reproduction is uneven, depending on the quality of the light and weather, and on the color and type of subject. Many of my outdoor photos, particularly those taken on overcast or cloudy days, have a noticeable "cast" to them ... bluish or greenish. This is despite fiddling with the manual settings for "overcast." The camera loves red (you should see my pictures of the barns of coastal Maine) but hates green. I have never been able to take a picture of a lawn or tree that is anything near true to life, again despite attempts to adjust the manual settings. On bright days, again despite working with the manual settings, highlights are inevitably blown out (although I hear this is a problem with most digital camera). In addition, the flash is no more than could be expected from a compact camera. Flash pictures always look ... well ... flashy!

When taking digital photographs, you'll tend to take many more pictures than you would with a film camera, and erase the ones you don't like in the camera. So I'd recommend at least one additional battery (I have two) and 256 MB memory card if you're going to be doing travel photography without access to a computer to download the photos as you go. (I get about 360 pictures at highest resolution from a 256 MB card,) More tips: digital photography is MUCH easier if you have a Mac (it really is as easy as they claim in their ads to download and edit pictures); Adobe's Photoshop Elements 2.0 is incredible (and an incredible bargain), and Shutterfly.com is a great site for ordering prints.

I've got my eye on a 5 Megapixel 8x zoom for early next year, but I'll keep my S330 for its compact size and ease of use.

One great camera.
I am extremely satisfied with this digital camera. Personally, I like tiny little cameras that I can carry around evey day and Canon Digital ELPH is the best for this function. Since there had been so many reviews, let me just point out what I like this camera most and some of the downsides.

Pro
1. 3X optical zoom. DON'T purchase a camera with an optical zoom less than 3X, it's useless. This is one of the camera with the highest optical zoom availble. Not even the new ELPH 230 have this capability.
2. Very bright LCD and long battery life. I have tried at least 10 different digital cameras and this LCD is one of the brightest. Easily seem even under sunlight. And I can fill up my 128MB card withought recharging with normal LCD usage.
3. All metal!
4. Great manual functions for a small camera. I can easily take night and indoor pictures by increasing the exposure time.

Con
1. the macro mode is limited compare to other camera in the same price range. You cannot to close to the object.
2. comes with 8MB card!! Can you believe that?!
3. only 2MP. It is plenty for my need but 3MP seems to become the main stream these days.

All in all, I have taking a few hundred pictures with my S330 and the quality is excellent. Definately worth the money.

A Digital Wonder
...I finally came to choose the Canon PowerShot S330 for its features and specs. I love this little camera! The pictures are amazing and vibrant--more so than the Mavica (1.3 megapixels.)...I've also gotten use to using the view finder rather than the LCD screen--the battery lasts quite a bit longer. By using the viewfinder, I feel more like a photographer. I found, however, that you really have to get in close for the subject to fill the frame...

Canon s330 review
I had bought the s200 about a year ago and loved it. It was small, compact and was easy to use.

Then I lost it.

To replace it, I didn't want to buy the s200 again because of a couple things:

- zoom was not enough. (digital zoom ....)
- Size-wise it was too small. I couldn't take pictures with one hand and holding it with both hands was kind of awkward.

So I settled for the s330 instead because it had both features that I thought the s200 lacked: more zoom and a little bigger.

i really don't see the need for the voice memo and speaker but I paid the extra money anyway.

Both cameras are worth the money.

Awesome!
This camera is awesome ... I have never owned a digital camera before, but I am now hooked ... I'll never go back to a film camera ... I ultimately decided on the smaller, more compact, Canon Digital Elph S200, and returned the S330, but both cameras are incredible ... I like the smaller size of the S200, and the 3x zoom feature on the S330 isn't as important as I thought it would be (remember: both cameras have a digital zoom that magnifies the built in zoom, if necessary) ... The real differentiators, in my opinion, are the smaller size of the S200, and the "sound" feature of the S330 ... If you want something small, go with the S200 ... If you want to be able to "hear" your video clips, go with the S330 ... Either way, you're getting a great product!

decent performing digital camera
The S330 is a well constructed and relatively easy to use digital camera (and it's really small, too). It has a good set of features (e.g. video connection for slide shows on a TV, easily expandable memory by purchasing a higher capacity compact flash card, 3x optical zoom, etc.). I definitely recommend getting at least a 128MB compact flash card and a spare NB-1LH battery to make life a little easier. Beyond that, Canon provides all the needed cables and accessories.

I've found only two real shortcomings of the camera:
1) Autofocus is slow to react in low-light (e.g. indoors).
2) 2 megapixels is a little low if you want to heavily crop your images later. You may want to consider the S230, which has a 2x optical zoom, but with 3 megapixels.

Bottom line: The S330 is a very good camera for the price.

Top quality, always ready
I've had my Canon S330 for 2 months now and I love everything about it. It's solid construction and small convient size means I can carry it with me almost everywhere. The quick start up and "shot to shot" times means less missed photo opportunities. It is loaded with features that I use only ocassionally, and they are fun but the automatic features do a great job of allowing me to grab quick, quality photos at a moments notice. I use my Canon S330 on the job and at home to grab photos of my Grand Daughter flitting through the living room in her new formal. An extra battery and larger CompactFlash card will add to your photographic experience.

Compact and Feature-Rich Camera for the Photo Enthusiast
Sure, professionals and the exceptionally avid enthusiasts will want a camera with interchangeable lenses, more megapixels, and more features overall, but for its size and ease of use, the ELPH is one of the best digital cameras available.

Photos taken at its highest resolution (1600 x 1200) and lowest compression rate can easily be blown up to 8"x10" in size, certainly adequate for the average photo enthusiast. Automatic and manual controls allow for photography in most lighting situations. The camera even can record short digital videos including sound, and the camera's user interface is customizable with new sound "themes" and a start-up image.

Highly recommended accessories include a larger compact flash memory card or two; the 8-mb card included simply doesn't cut it unless you want to only take low-res pictures. Buy a 128-MB card and store over 120 images at the highest resolution; they're cheap these days. Secondly, you'll want a second or even third battery, as though the camera does include its own rechargeable pack, it will only last for 100 shots or so, and you won't want to waste time recharging when you're on the go.

If you want a camera you can carry in your pocket that will give you instant results without having to send off film to the lab for development, you'll want this camera. The ELPH is one of the best out there!

Great Camera!!!
I bought the Canon S330 and am glad to say im very pleased with it. It takes great pictures and has great features. The camera is stylish with a metalic brush finish. The LCD is bright and vibrant unlike some other LCDS on cameras. The software provided with the camera is easy to use and very user friendly. If you consider buying this camera you should also get an extra battery and carry that around its very small but is extremely usefull considering the battery life is so low.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this camera!!!
As the title indicates I absolutely LOVE this camera! I recommend it to all my friends. This is my first digital camera and I did A LOT of research before I bought one because I knew NOTHING when I started. Before this camera, I had/have a Pentax Zoom 105R (film) which I absolutely loved and still love. but, I'd been wanting a digital and one main reason was to take it on a ghost hunting tour. (The orbs and ectoplasm show up much better on digitals rather than film for some reason, and you get to see them instantly with a digital). :-) Anyway, the tour takes place primarily at night, and in some dark areas (dark pubs and graveyards) and I'd read that a lot of the digitals don't do well in low light situations. I bought this model because it had automatic settings as well as manual settings so I could adjust for low light. Well, the Canon took FANTASTIC pictures in almost complete darkness! And the pics I took on the tour in Sepia and Black and White turned out really cool! I didn't think I'd need a huge zoom since my film camera has such a huge zoom. I figured I could just use the Pentax when I needed a big zoom and the digital zoom on the Canon is generally sufficient. I don't use the Optical zoom at all because it starts looking grainy and fuzzy. I think if I was going to buy another digital, I'd go ahead and invest in this same type of Canon but with larger zoom because I've found I never take my film camera with me anymore and sometimes it would be nice to have a little more zoom capability. Generally this camera takes AWESOME pictures in almost every situation. I've compared ease of use and quality of pictures to my friends'cameras and I think my Canon blows them away. It is also small, so it actually fits in my jeans' back pocket. The LCD monitor is a nice size so I use it almost exclusively vs. the viewfinder. The movie/sound function is pretty cool too. I've taken movies of friends skiing, puppies running around and my cat flying thru the air chasing a bug, and they all turned out great. I do have to be careful about what I say as I am filming because the microphone is pointed toward the filmer not the subject, for some bizarre reason. For instance, I've got recordings of "me" saying "Oh crap" when I goofed up something while shooting a movie. :-) ---- I really like the brushed, silver metal body. I thought it might scratch easily, but 6 months later and there isn't a scratch on it. And it feels solid, so I don't worry about it breaking easily. ----- The software that comes with this camera is excellent!! You just plug one end of the cable to the side of the camera and one end to your USB port and the software automatically comes up on your screen! Once you've programmed it the first time to the folder you want to download to, about the only thing you have to do is hit "Next". It is so unbelievably simple! Much easier than what my friends have said theirs are. -------- The only things that are a little annoying are: 1) the battery cover is on the bottom of the camera directly below the shutter button which means your thumb is usually there to hold the camera. I've found that the cover slides off too easily and when it does, the power goes off. Several times, I've thought my battery was dead only to discover the cover was open. (Luckily it is attached so it won't fall off - and the battery has a little hinge over it so it won't fall out either). ---- 2) The Optical zoom is pretty much worthless because it gets so fuzzy when you get to it. (the zoom automaticaly goes thru the digital zoom settings, THEN to Optical). I just stop zooming when it digital zoom gets to the maximum. --- 3) There is a delay between when you first press the shutter button and when it actually takes the picture. I frequently take pictures of squirming puppies for my mother's website. As you can imagine, I've missed some shots because of the delay. Luckily, it's digital so I can just delete and keep snapping away. Go to [a website] if you want to see examples of pictures this camera has taken. Every picture on this site was taken with this Canon. Note: the pics that appear "blurry" around the edges were done that way on purpose with editing software. **** One helpful hint, as everyone else says, go ahead and invest in a backup battery. They are rechargable and the recharger comes with the camera so it's easy to be recharging a battery while using the other. I also bought a 128MB memory card. The camera comes with an 8MB, but believe me, once you start snapping pictures with this camera, that won't be enough. I've shot 128 pictures on the medium quality setting and still didn't use up my card.

Top Notch Camera
I highly recommend this product to everyone. What a pleasure to use. Simple to use, takes incredibly clear pictures, PC software is great. I can't think of one thing i don't love about this camera. Virginia

Great Product
No regrets. Great in every way. Sharp Pictures, fast, comfortable rechargeable battery system. Only advise: Get extra card. I am happy after having bought a 128 Kb. card. Very recommendable.

Great Camera... Digital Elph's are great...
I purchased the S330 a couple years ago, and I love it. I have taken it everywhere and taken almost 1,000 pics with it. I purchased the 128MB card and have yet to fill the card. I have not had any problems and it has been the best camera I've ever had. So much in fact, everyone who sees it wants one and is very impressed. I am now looking into getting one for my brother for Christmas.

Excellent quality rugged camera
Everyone wrote enough about it, so I will only add that this camera worked much better than expected for quite a long time, until during last trip, I dropped it really hard on cement.
The shutter button came out, the case kind of split in half (could see the guts inside), and of course the door for the memory card broke and the battery came off... I just pushed the camera back together and it snapped in place (kind off, still see inside), put back the shutter button (without the spring that came off which I lost), scotch taped the memory card door, and the camera seemed to work fine. Actually we finished the vacation taking pictures with it for a few more days. No quality difference noticed between the picture from before the accident and after.
Now I am back, unfortunately it would be too expensive to fix it, so I guess will buy another ELPH, perhaps 3-4M pixels and if it will be anything like this one, I am sure I will not regret it.

never failed me
I have been using this camere for almost 3 years. I am glad I have chosen this one.
Image quality is excellent if you are going to store images in your computer or print 4x6's. I even printed 5x8s with no image degragation.

We put this one on heavy test. It fell on fresh snow and covered with snow till I pick it up but do damage occured. It also fell on a rocky pavement from at least a 3 feets. Nothing happened other than some scratches, thanks to metal casing.

I am looking forward to use this camera for years to come.