Canon PowerShot D10

Photo answers review

Photo answers rating

The PowerShot D10 is the camera for you if quirky looks are high on your wish-list. We’re not too sure if we actually like the design, especially the prominent chunk that houses the lens on the front of the D10. There’s no obvious reason for this molehill, as the zoom is  relatively short at 3x (35-105mm). It’s all a subjective thing, and we’re sure a 12.1 megapixel camera will appeal to many different people.
 
There are some clever elements to the design, which are worth a mention. You can attach the hand strap to any corner of the camera thanks to a neat bayonet connector, which although having few if any practical uses, is kind of neat. The camera is safe to use down to a depth of 10m, but don’t drop it more than 1.22m. At 2.5in, the LCD on the Canon is on the small side but is still a great screen.

Optical image stabilisation is a welcome feature as it helps to keep the shakes at bay, and the use of the latest DIGIC 4 image processor is a good sign. The movie mode is limited to VGA quality but there are plenty of shooting modes for still image capture. The Face Detection technology claims to be able to pick up 35 faces in one shot, adjusting the exposure and focus to ensure that each is captured correctly. More unusual technologies include Motion Detection that utilises the ISO sensitivity range to maintain a high shutter speed. This is effectively the same as the Olympus dual image stabilisation system, just under a different name.

The design has led to a rather unusual control layout, with the buttons being quite chunky, although this is good for underwater use. The zoom controls feel rather odd too, and take a little getting used to. They are also quite difficult to spot at first glance, and you may have to pick up the manual to find them.