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Canon PowerShot SX120 IS

Digital Camera Review
October 08, 2009 By Richard Baguley 0 Comments (add your own)

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Controls

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Kodak Z950 Comparison
Page 10

Design & Handling

Buttons are well placed and sized, but the grip is a bit small, and the camera can slip from the hand.

Handling (6.00)

We found that the SX120 fitted well into the hand, and felt comfortable to hold. But it’s a good job that Canon includes a wrist strap, as the small ridge on the front of the camera that the fingers wrap around is too small to hold onto tightly. As such, we did find that the camera could slip out of our grip a little too easily.

Handling Photo 1 Handling Photo 2

Buttons & Dials (7.25)

The buttons and dials are located on the top (shown below) and on the back of the camera body. Most of these are well placed: the shutter button falls under the index finger, and the zoom control is right next to that for easy use. The mode dial is also well placed so it can be turned with the thumb of the right hand for one-handed shooting. However, two is easier for this as the camera does tend to slip somewhat because of the loose grip mentioned above. The other controls on the back of the camera body are also well placed and labeled, but you will need two hands to use them. We particularly like the combination scroll wheel and 4-way button, which makes scrolling through long lists in menus and through lots of photos easy.

Buttons Photo 1 Buttons Photo 2

Menus (6.25)

The SX120 uses the standard Canon menu style, so users of other Canon cameras will feel right at home. When you hit the menu button, you are shown two tabbed sets of options: one for the shooting options, and one for the other settings. These tabbed sets are 3 or 4 screens long, but you can use the scroll wheel to quickly move up and down the list, then the Set button to choose the option.

The setup can be a little intimidating for new users, but overall it works well once you get used to it.

Manual & Learning (4.00)

The SX120 only comes with a Getting Started manual in the box, but a more extensive manual is available as a free download. The Getting Started guide covers the basic options, but we would have preferred to see the full manual in the box as well.

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Canon PowerShot SX120 IS
Digital Camera Review
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Previous: Page 9

Controls

Next: Page 11

Kodak Z950 Comparison