Canon PowerShot A3000 IS

Handling (6.00)

The A3000 IS is a small camera, but it fits well into the hand. A slightly raised area on the right side of the camera front gives something for the fingers to grip, but we’d still recommend use of the included wrist strap as the grip is not firm. Those with larger hands or longer fingers might also find that they end up touching the lens with their fingertips.

Buttons & Dials (5.50)

The mode dial of the A3000 is located at the edge of the top of the body, which makes it easy to reach and turn, although it is more comfortable to do so when using both hands, with the left bracing the camera. The shutter button is well placed, but it is composed of the same plastic as the rest of the body, so it is a little hard to find by touch, and we did find ourselves sometimes pressing the adjacent power button by mistake.

The zoom control is located on the back of the camera body, where it falls under the thumb. A small set of raised dots below this stop the thumb from slipping down onto the face recognition and play buttons, which are right below the zoom button.

The other buttons are the usual Canon layout that is convenient and provides for quick access to features such as the focus and flash mode. Two hands are required to use these controls, though.

Menus (5.50)

There are two menus on the A3000 IS: the traditional full-screen one and quick menu that holds the more commonly used settings. The quick menu appears on the left side of the screen when you hit the Func. Set button, and you scroll up and down with the directional buttons. When you reach the option you want, a left button press brings up the next level, which contains the option for the selected control. It sounds complicated, but it is intuitive and works well.

The main menu is a more standard full-screen affair, where the options are separated into tabs. Again, it works well and the combination of quick access to the shooting controls and a simple menu structure works well.

Manual & Learning (6.50)

A getting started guide is supplied with the camera, and there is also a full manual on the CD as a PDF file. Both are well written and explain the features of the camera clearly enough, with the first section dedicated to basic shooting features, and the more complex controls and features covered later on.