Admittedly, appearance should be one of the last factors considered by prospective camera buyers but there is no doubt that the Canon 870 is a fairly attractive piece of technical equipment. The “gold” finished version is like a piece of jewellery. Size wise it’s about the same as a packet of poker cards and that means it can fit into a handbag or pocket.
Underneath the aesthetics, the Canon 870 contains some serious camera technology. A wider angle of view than most of its competitors is due to the lens being the equivalent of a 28mm-112mm lens. No longer is Canon’s image-stabilisation technology only available in high-end models. It’s been incorporated into the Canon 870 and that means that sharp images can be produced without a tripod down to approximately 1/25 of a second.
Also available in the Canon 870 is automatic face detection. This works well and also is able to detect faces in partial profile. A face self-timer function, although a bit gimmicky waits until you join the group before taking the photo. Nineteen scene modes have been added, including a 30fps VGA movie mode and a nifty macro setting.
Boasting Canon’s DIGIC 4 processing technology, the Canon 870 provides less noise at the top end of ISO settings though at 1600 there is still a lot of noise but still not bad for this class of camera.
Also, the Canon 870 features a 28mm wide-angle lens allowing for great photos of picturesque landscapes and delightful group photos. Viewing your favorite photos has never been so good with the awesome 3.0 inch PureColor LCD screen.
It’s not a “serious” camera in the usual sense and no one is going to mistake the Canon 870 for one. There is no manual mode and no optical viewfinder for example. But no biggie if all you want are fabulous photos, then this camera won’t disappoint.
Here are some related articles about the Canon 870 that you may want to also check out:
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