By Leonard Goh
18/02/2009
URL: http://asia.cnet.com/reviews/digitalcameras/0,39001469,62051196,00.htm

It seems like not too long ago when Olympus was the only imaging firm to have tough cameras. Other companies have since jumped on the rugged camera bandwagon with Panasonic announcing the robust Lumix DMC-FT1 and Fujifilm's underwater FinePix Z33WP. With such a lucrative market waiting to be tapped, Canon clearly doesn't want to miss out on the fun?

Canon's first rugged camera, the PowerShot D10, sports a submarine-like shell that either invokes The Yellow Submarine by the Beatles or a PokeBall in the Pokemon anime. That said, the 12-megapixel D10 comes with robust features to go head on with the Olympus Mju Tough-8000. The Canon camera is waterproof up to 10m, freezeproof to minus 10 degrees Celsius and also shockproof from drops of 1m. If customization is your cup of tea, the D10's front cover is interchangeable, just like the early Nokia mobile phones.

Canon's Ixus point-and-shoots aldo get a major revamp. We also noticed the company has designed its new Ixus point-and-shoots with a retro theme in mind, resulting in an angular, boxy-looking chassis. HD video capture is a main feature in three out of the four new cameras. The 12-megapixel trio--Ixus 990 IS, Ixus 110 IS and Ixus 100 IS--are able to record 720p-quality videos. In terms of specifications, the highlight of this lineup has to be the Ixus 990 IS. It comes with 5x optical zoom and a large 3-inch LCD. The tradeoff? An optical viewfinder, which the Ixus 100 IS and IXUS 95 IS have. Those who want a wide-angle point-and-shoot will have to settle for the Ixus 110 IS, which has a 28mm lens. With its variety of color choices, the Ixus 95 IS replace the popular Ixus 80 IS.

Unlike the PowerShot SX1 IS which can record 1080p-quality videos, the new SX200 IS is capable of only 1,280 x 720-pixel movies. However, we think this is sufficient for most consumers as you'll need a pretty fast computer to process full-HD footage. The SX200 IS has a 12x optical zoom, 28mm wide-angle lens and a 3-inch LCD.

All of Canon's new shooters are powered by the DIGIC 4 image-processing engine, and their track record so far has been positive. Canon was unable to tell us when the cameras would be available, but looking at previous experiences, we're guessing mid-March to early April.

New products

Model name	In a nutshell
Canon PowerShot D10 Click for more info	Notable features: Waterproof up to 10m Freezeproof up to minus 10 degrees Celsius Shockproof from drops of 1.22m 12.1 megapixels 3x optical zoom (35mm to 105mm) Optical image stabilizer Interchangeable front cover 2.5-inch LCD Large buttons for easy operation
Canon Ixus 990 IS Click for more info	Notable features: 12.1 megapixels 5x optical zoom (37mm to 185mm) Optical image stabilizer 3-inch LCD 720p-quality video recording Creative lighting and zoom blur effect function
Canon PowerShot SX200 IS Click for more info	Notable features: 12.1 megapixels 12x optical zoom 28mm wide-angle lens 720p-quality video recording Optical image stabilizer Manual, semi automatic and program exposure control 3-inch LCD
Canon Ixus 110 IS Click for more info	Notable features: 12.1 megapixels 4x optical zoom Optical image stabilizer 720p-quality video recording 2.8-inch LCD
Canon Ixus 100 IS Click for more info	Notable features: Slimmest Ixus camera 12.1 megapixels 3x optical zoom (33mm to 100mm) Optical image stabilizer 720p-quality video recording Optical viewfinder 2.5-inch LCD
Canon Ixus 95 IS Click for more info	Notable features: 10 megapixels 3x optical zoom (35mm to 105mm) Optical image stabilizer Six color choices available Optical viewfinder 2.5-inch LCD