a540, a570 or A590 IS, & why ??

[expatCanuck]

Greetings -

Looking for an inexpensive, easily grabbed P&S camera for my 11-year-old boy. He's got a good eye & a steady hand. AA batteries a plus.

I'm inclined towards the a540 tho' also looking at the 570 & 590.

Thoughts, suggestions?

Thanks.

- Richard
oldWithoutMoney.com (http://oldWithoutMoney.com)

[Jon]

A570 or A590. Both of those, unlike the A540, offer M, Tv and Av so he'll be able to set aperture and shutter speed when he reaches that level.

[Nick_C]

The A590IS is the replacement for the A720IS which I use from time to time, its pretty decent quality for a P&S and being as im used to the 5D with an L lens thats not bad going for a camera costing a fraction of the price.

They have their limitations of course, but for an 11 year old boy if he does manage to take a shot that you really love, it will be good enough quality to print out at fairly large sizes.

Normally id say go for the one with manual controls as Jon quoted above, but im thinking at the age of 11 he might be better suited to just using auto, by the time he is ready for the other modes chances are you will be looking for the next upgrade anyway, maybe even a beginners DSLR.

As for ease of use, I put mine onto full auto & handed it to my old dad, he managed to take some shots without any fuss at all, its DEAD SIMPLE!!

[_aravena]

^Replacement? So now Canon downgrades their replacements. :rolleyes:

Anyone that has the A590, is the zoom really noisy? Tried on the other day and the zoom made a really loud noise like a non USM lens focusing. Managed to find a A720 instead, thank goodness, but still, just wondering.

[Yogesh Sarkar]

I don't think its a replacement, after all A720 is still in the market and it has more zoom and better video taking capabilities (640x480/30fps vs. 640x480/30fps of A590) than A590IS

[Nick_C]

My mistake, I thought it was a replacement because where I purchased my A720IS said it was now discontinued & in the slot where the A720IS used to be is the A590IS..

[JakeF150FX4]

I have a A570 IS and am happy with it.

Jake

[Nick_C]

^ yep the A570IS is pretty much the same as the A720, just less zoom really, I almost went for that camera, had it ordered and everything, then decided id go with the A720IS, mainly because at that time there was no CHDK for the A570IS.