Trying to decide between the ELPH 530 and ELPH 330

Hello, I am trying to decide between the ELPH 530 and ELPH 330, and need some advice. Or am I leaving out another great choice. I have had an A520 for many years and have been happy with it, but wanting a smaller size & higher zoom. I am not too concerned about price. I mostly take photos outdoors. I'm concerned about the ease of use of the touch screen, changing settings and such. Reviews seem to be better on the 330 than 530.

Here is what is important to me, in this order:
1. Small size
2. High optical zoom
3. Ease of choosing macro mode for very close up
4. Battery life

Please help me decide which camera.
Thanks
Ron

This won't be an easy choice.
The ELPH 530 is smaller than the ELPH 330, so if this is your number one priority, it's nothing to ignore.
The ELPH 530 also has a larger zoom range than the ELPH330, x12 vs. x10, so that's two out of two.
The trade off is that the ELPH 530 manages to pull off its zoom and its size together thanks
to the fact that it uses not all of its imaging sensor, but part of it, making it, essentially, smaller.
The meaning is that its image quality, especially in contrasty situations and in low light is poorer.
The ELPH 330 also has a wider lens than the ELPH 530 and a better battery life.
So you'll have to choose what's more important for you. I would choose the ELPH 330
since in my opinion it's small enough (definitely pocketable) and its x10 is close to the 530's x12.

-eyalg

The Elph 530 has undergone a change to a larger touchscreen on the back. Personally, I do not like this. I prefer to have some features readily available via dedicated buttons on the back of the camera, rather than having to navigate through touch screens.