Canon IXUS 980 IS Review

The Canon IXUS 980 IS is a stylish, 14.7 megapixel digital camera. It has a 3.7x optical zoom lens. It is one of the few digital cameras to have a viewfinder.

Why Buy the Canon IXUS 980 IS?

This camera will be attractive to people who are happy to pay more for better quality. There is a premium in the price for the way the camera looks and for a few extra controls when compared to more standard point and shoot cameras. Most importantly picture quality is well above average too.

Image Quality Canon IXUS 980 IS test shots

Outdoor 1 (Medium Zoom)

Looking at the brick work on the building in the centre of the shot reminds me why I like Canon digital cameras as much as I do. The clarity of the shot is very good indeed. The glare from the sun has caused some of the blue lines on the boats to take on a purple tinge. This is a common problem at this time of year, but there are cameras that can cope with the problem a little better than the IXUS 980 IS did.

Outdoor 2 (No Zoom)

This photo is sharper than I am used to seeing. Despite the fact that this is my toughest test for sharpness even the most distant parts of the photo show good levels of definition.



Outdoor 3 (Maximum Zoom)

As with the first two shots this is a sharper photo than I am used to seeing. The amount of detail showing is good right across the picture, even in some of the darker areas. When I take into account that this lens is shorter than many others I test the level of detail it is able to pick out is impressive.



Outdoor 4 (Building)

Taking all four of my outdoor distance tests into consideration the IXUS 980 IS is very close to 10 out of 10 for sharpness. This camera and others in the same range cope with buildings and brickwork particularly well, so if you see yourself taking lots of photos of buildings this camera could be the one for you.



Outdoor Portrait

I really like the lighting of this picture. It helps to give the shot a natural look. The colours are about right too.



Indoor Portrait with Flash

The IXUS 980 IS scores over a lot of cameras through is its ability to dampen down flash levels to suit the conditions. This means there is very little light reflecting back off the face. This helps to increase the levels of detail in the shot. It also means that the colours are well balanced and not bleached out.



Indoor Portrait without Flash

Even though the light was good when this photo was taken the camera still has a problem locking focus and producing a sharp shot. This goes to show you will need a lot of light to take photos without flash being required.



Colours

The colours work well for me. As I have mentioned above the portrait photos have a natural look to them and I prefer the colours in those tests than most cameras manage. Outdoors the scenic shots have plenty of punch with b, vivid colours.



Macro

The macro shot is another to show a high level of definition. You should be able to take good quality close up shots of just about any subject with this camera.



ISO 400 and ISO 1600

My higher ISO shots are inline with expectations. There is not much to report here. Noise creeps in to darker areas quickly and is also starting to show in lighter areas at ISO 400.



Overall

I am very happy with the quality of the photos I have taken. When it comes to picture quality this is one of the best smaller compacts on the market.

Shutter Lag and Recycling Times

Shutter lag times without flash are quite standard. There were 0.37 seconds for a single photo and 10.03 seconds for five. With flash turned on times were very slow indeed. A single picture took 2.25 seconds and five took 18.92 seconds.



It took 2.66 seconds to turn the camera on and take a photo.



You can compare this camera to other models by taking a look at the Shutter Lag Comparison Table.

Style

The IXUS 980 IS scores well when it comes to style. This camera is available in silver and black. It has a few more curves than most compact cameras.

Dimensions

96.7 x 62.2 x 27.9mm

Weight

160g

Batteries

Lithium ion (NB-5L). Both a battery and charger are included in the box.

Memory Cards

Canon supplies a 32mb memory card with the IXUS 980 IS. I only managed to take 6 photos before the card was full. It is compatible with SD and SDHC memory cards.

Ease of Use Rating

Good. I have never found Canon digital cameras quite as intuitive as some brands. Part of the reason for this is that they have a few extra options. It is not always easy to track down some of the options, such as how to set the time delay for the self timer.

Points I Like

Design - picture quality

Where it Could Improve

Slow when flash is turned on

Alternatives

A less expensive option that can still deliver excellent picture quality is the Fuji Finepix F60fd.

Verdict

Obviously I like the picture quality and this is the most important factor for me when choosing a camera. The big question is whether or not you are prepared to pay the premium price. If money is not so important and top quality is all that counts this is likely to be a good choice. If on the other hand you are not looking for the absolute best for your snapshots then there are cheaper options around that you are likely to be just as happy with.