Powershot sd750 vs sd850

[lsutgr]

I am a beginner and want to buy a good, but fast camera. I have looked tiredlessly for a good camera and think I have narrowed my choices to the Canon Powershot SD750 and SD850. Besides the little better pixels and zoom, I don't have enough knowledge to know which camera is the better buy. Keeping in mind I want a camera that is pretty fast, is the 850 worth the extra $100 or will the 750 do the job. thanks in advance.

[Photo-John]

There is no SD750. The US model names are the SD700 IS, SD800 IS, and the SD850 IS. They are all named IXUS outside of the US and the numbers are a little different. That's not a big deal, it just means I'm not exactly sure which cameras you're talking about. But my guess is you're looking at the 6-megapixel SD700 IS (IXUS 800) and the 7-megapixel SD800 IS (IXUS 850 IS). I am currently testing the SD850 IS (IXUS 950), which is an 8-megapixel model similar to the previous two. I've also used the SD700 IS. All of these cameras are remarkably quick compared to older digital point-and-shoots. And the image quality is also excellent. The SD800 IS and SD850 IS have higher ISO settings than the SD700 IS, and I believe the high-ISO performance of the SD850 is much improved over the previous two. At any rate, it's been impressive in my testing.

But back to your question. If you're looking at the SD700 IS and the SD800 IS, I'd definitely spend the extra money on the SD800 IS. And it's not for the resolution. The SD800 IS has higher ISO settings for better low-light shooting and it's also got a real, 28mm equivalent, wide-angle lens. For me, at least, that's a big deal. MOst compact digital cameras only have a 35mm equivalent on the wide end. And that's not really wide in my book. On the other hand, you give up a little on the telephoto end for the wide angle on the SD800 IS. The SD700 IS goes to 140mm and the SD800 IS goes to 105mm.

Here's a page comparing the features and specs of the SD800 IS and the SD700 IS:

Canon PowerShot SD700 IS vs Canon PowerShot SD800 IS >>

I hope that helps. If you're looking at different cameras, let me know. I am still workinng on my review of the SD850 IS (IXUS 900) so I'm thinking about these three cameras a lot.

[lsutgr]

Thanks John for the info. That was exactly what I was looking for. However, I do think there is a SD750. It is Canon's new model. It came out along with the SD850. It sells for $300 vs the SD850 at $400. The 750 has a 3" screen, 7+ megapixels, and 4x zoom. I have tried one out at Best Buy. The 750 is smaller and I really like the big screen. My main concern was the speed of the camera, but according to Canon's tech support you would be able to tell no difference between the two in speed. Now my question is, how important is the image stablization? Will it make a big difference in the quality of my pics? (The SD750 has no image stablization)