4.1The Canon PowerShot SD970 IS is a capable 12.1-megapixel point and shoot with a 5x zoom. We found image quality was consistently very good, and movies shot at 720p were impressive.
For the past year, Casio has gone from ordinary to innovative by pioneering development of high-speed photography in consumer cameras. The EX-FC100 brings this capability to the sub-$400 camera market, delivering up to 30 shots per second (at a reduced but still perfectly usable 6-megapixel resolution) and taking dramatic slow-motion videos that can capture anything from bursting balloons to suicide slides into third base with stunning detail. When it comes to the more mundane matter of shooting great photos, though, the Casio is at a disadvantage. While the Casio photos had marginally lower image noise, it trailed the Canon performance significantly in color accuracy and resolution, two of our most crucial tests. The Canon image stabilization system wasn't thrilling, but the Casio system actually made images shot at 1/30 second worse. And when shooting HD video, the Canon delivered slightly better color and far superior video sharpness.
The Casio EX-FC100 is slightly slimmer and lighter than the chunky Canon SD970 IS, but the beautiful 3-inch 461,000-dot screen on the SD970 versus the ordinary 230,000-dot Casio display outweighs a little extra heft. Neither camera has manual, shutter-priority or aperture-priority controls. And the list price difference is only $30, which is likely to be even slimmer at retail.
Bottom line, the Casio is the perfect camera for a certain buyer. We found the slow-motion video feature got old fast, but the high-speed stills are an extraordinary advantage when shooting sports or wildlife, and even comes in handy when trying to capture the perfect expression in a portrait shot. If your prime concern is taking the highest-quality stills possible, though, the Canon is a better investment.
