Canon PowerShot SX700 HS Review

The latest top-of-the-line model in Canon’s lineup of compact high-zoom cameras is the PowerShot SX700 HS. Canon has squeezed a 30x zoom lens with a 35mm-equivalent focal length range of 25-750mm into a camera with tiny dimensions of 112.7 x 65.8 x 34.8 millimeters.

Thankfully, lens-shift Image Stabilization is also present. When paired with the sensor’s maximum sensitivity of ISO 3200, it should be possible to take clear pictures even at extremely long focal lengths and in low light. The sensor built inside the Canon PowerShot SX700 HS is a 1/2.3-inch back-illuminated, high-sensitivity CMOS chip with 16 million effective pixels combined with Canon’s most recent DIGIC 6 image processor.

See: Best Memory Cards for Canon PowerShot SX700 HS

Manual, Av, and Tv shooting modes, the Creative Shot mode, which captures a standard image plus five stylized variations, and the Hybrid Auto mode, which automatically captures a 4-second movie before each Shot and combines the stills and video into a montage, are just a few of the many available features.

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Canon PowerShot SX700 HS Digital Camera - Wi-Fi Enabled (Black)

• Built-in Wi-Fi connectivity with NFC, plus one-touch Mobile Device Connect button
• 16.1 megapixel 1/2.3-inch high-sensitivity CMOS sensor combined with DIGIC 6 image processor (Canon HS SYSTEM)
• 30x optical zoom, 4x digital zoom and 120x combined zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer

Last update was on: May 28, 2023 6:53 am

$219.00

More Info

• Built-in Wi-Fi connectivity with NFC, plus one-touch Mobile Device Connect button
• 16.1 megapixel 1/2.3-inch high-sensitivity CMOS sensor combined with DIGIC 6 image processor (Canon HS SYSTEM)
• 30x optical zoom, 4x digital zoom and 120x combined zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer
• 3-inch TFT color LCD with wide viewing angle
• Capture stunning 1080p HD video with a dedicated movie button

You also get wifi connectivity and NFC for wireless image sharing and remote camera control, which cost around £329, equivalent to €399 and $349.

Canon PowerShot SX700 HS Controls

SX700 HS is a zoom ring encircled by the shutter release button on the very top of the Canon PowerShot. You are in luck since the zoom ring has two different speed settings. This enables you to make precise adjustments to the focal length by moving the ring a bit, or you can give it a whole twist to quickly zoom in and out.

Holding the button on the camera’s left side grants access to the SX700 HS’s ingenious zoom assist feature. When utilizing the more excellent telephoto settings, this feature zooms the lens out to help with framing, and then it automatically zooms back in again.

A movie record button that can be activated with a single touch is next to the shutter release on the SX700 HS. This camera can record movies in Full 1080p at either 60 or 30 frames per second, and it can also record in 720p at 30 frames per second. At the other end is where you’ll find the pop-up flash.

A button on the camera’s left side expels the flash manually; however, doing so removes any possibility of the moment going off automatically when you aren’t expecting it.

When you turn on the SX700 HS, it comes to life in a little more than a second, and the on-screen display is straightforward if a little old; still, all of the information you want is quite simple to see. The menu’s user interface is similarly clear to browse; the Func/Set button displays the most frequently used shooting choices in a consolidated fashion.

The Canon PowerShot SX700 HS doesn’t spend any time autofocusing when you’re ready to take a picture, and it finds its target faster in dim light than you’d expect it to, even in bright sunlight. The system may become confused if you take photos of a macro subject that doesn’t take up much of the frame. Still, if you are taking pictures of anything else, you may keep the camera in auto mode and ensure it will focus quickly and adequately. When concentrating on macro subjects, a minimum focus distance of 1 centimeter is considered extremely good for cameras of this type.

The SX700 HS is also a speed demon when shooting continuously. Indeed, the camera’s frame rate of 3.1 frames per second isn’t precisely lightning-fast, but unlike many other compacts, it won’t give up after a few images and crawl along at a snail’s pace.

The burst rate may gradually decrease depending on the speed of your memory card. However, we discovered that the camera remained shooting at least two frames per second. You also can shoot at a more speedy 8.5 frames per second, albeit doing so will only allow you to fire off four rounds. Full high-definition video capture is available if this is insufficient to keep up with the activity you want to film.

When you’re in the mood to be creative, the Canon PowerShot SX700 HS provides a good selection of effects that are not overly extensive. Fish-eye and miniaturization distortions and the distinctive vintage look of a toy camera may be found in the shooting mode menu, in addition to the Creative Shot and Hybrid Auto settings discussed before.

These are combined with the standard photography modes, which also feature the helpful Smart Shutter function. This takes the picture for you when the camera recognizes a happy face and triggers the camera to take the picture. In addition, if you go to the My Colors menu, you’ll see that you can have your photographs automatically recorded with increased color saturation, sepia tones, or in black and white.

The lack of a touch-sensitive screen may be a minor inconvenience, but the three-inch display that comes as standard is more than adequate for the task at hand. It has good contrast, is bright, has excellent viewing angles, and has more than the satisfactory resolution at 922k dots.

A circular mode dial is next to the screen, allowing you to choose from 12 distinct shooting modes. The SX700 HS, to its credit, provides the entire range of PASM creative shooting modes. These modes are great for individuals who want to take more control of their photographs.

The aperture and shutter speed may be controlled via the relatively narrow control wheel on the back of the camera. Putting the camera into Creative Shot mode will take six pictures at once. The first picture is a straight-out-of-the-camera shot, but the subsequent five are all altered by the camera in various ways, both in terms of their aspect ratios and the color effects they apply, allowing you to choose the most interesting later on.

If you select the Hybrid Auto mode, the SX700 HS will continue functioning as usual. Still, in addition to taking pictures, it will covertly record a four-second video to accompany each Shot. A video and picture montage of your day is created from the resulting footage and stills, which are combined. It’s a cool trick that’s somewhat similar to the Zoe function that’s available on select HTC devices, and it will be one of those features that users will either adore or forget about.

As we move down the rear panel of the Canon PowerShot SX700 HS, we discover buttons that are a suitable size to control playback and a button that is specifically designated to activate the camera’s wifi mode. Installing Canon’s CameraWindow app on your mobile device and then connecting to the wifi hotspot provided by the SX700 HS will allow you to wirelessly upload photographs from the camera and control it remotely if you want to engage in some covert photography. You can also use the mobile’s GPS feature to provide a location tag for every photo. The system has a few hiccups here and there, but overall, we found the connection reliable and the image transfer times acceptable.

Canon PowerShot SX700 HS Image Quality

All the example pictures included in this review were captured using the camera’s default setting of 16 megapixels SuperFine JPEG, resulting in an average image size of around 7 megabytes.

The SX700 HS creates visually appealing photographs. The level of detail is excellent over the whole frame. It is not as vulnerable to the smoothing effects of noise reduction as it is in many other cameras with sensors of comparable size. As a result, delicate details in landscape pictures are captured accurately and do not get smeared or otherwise distorted, as is often the case with other cameras in this market segment. The reproduction of vibrant and full-bodied colors, faultless exposure metering, and consistent white balance contribute to the product’s overall allure.

Chromatic aberration, often purple fringing, is an optical phenomenon seen in high-contrast areas but rarely disturbing. Despite its extensive focal length range, the lens performs exceptionally well in terms of distortion. Shooting at wide angles exhibits only a trace of barrel distortion, but when zoomed in, there is no discernible pincushion effect.

Considering how well the SX700 HS performs elsewhere, it’s a shame that the image noise levels aren’t quite as good as they may be. Images captured with the SX700 HS are free of noise from ISO 100 to 400; beginning at ISO 800, a limited amount of noise and desaturation of color can be seen.

ISO 1600 produces rather noticeable noise, a blurring of fine detail, and desaturation of color. In contrast, the highest possible setting of ISO 3200 has considerably more noise but is still helpful for producing tiny prints.

Canon PowerShot SX700 HS Battery life

Battery life is a less exciting feature of the SX700 HS, but it is not unimportant. It has an average lifespan of 250 photos, but turning on Eco mode increases that number to an astonishing 360 shots per charge if you will be away from the charger for some time. This low hunger for power is mainly achieved by dimming the display after only a handful of seconds’ worth of idleness and then shutting it off shortly after. However, you may recover your life by pressing any button. The effect is comparable to the start/stop button found on many current automobiles and does not appear to have any drawbacks, provided that you do not have to wait for more than a few seconds before you can snap your picture.

Canon PowerShot SX700 HS Specifications

Canon PowerShot SX700 HS Final Verdict

• Product
• Features
• Photos

Canon PowerShot SX700 HS Digital Camera - Wi-Fi Enabled (Black)

• Built-in Wi-Fi connectivity with NFC, plus one-touch Mobile Device Connect button
• 16.1 megapixel 1/2.3-inch high-sensitivity CMOS sensor combined with DIGIC 6 image processor (Canon HS SYSTEM)
• 30x optical zoom, 4x digital zoom and 120x combined zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer

Last update was on: May 28, 2023 6:53 am

$219.00

More Info

• Built-in Wi-Fi connectivity with NFC, plus one-touch Mobile Device Connect button
• 16.1 megapixel 1/2.3-inch high-sensitivity CMOS sensor combined with DIGIC 6 image processor (Canon HS SYSTEM)
• 30x optical zoom, 4x digital zoom and 120x combined zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer
• 3-inch TFT color LCD with wide viewing angle
• Capture stunning 1080p HD video with a dedicated movie button

The next flagship travel-zoom compact from Canon has a lot going for it. Still, regarding features and performance, it isn’t quite up to par with one of its primary competitors and the camera we’re currently gravitating toward, the Panasonic DMC-TZ60.

The Canon PowerShot SX700 HS is easy to use since it has appropriate settings and menus that are easy to understand. You also have the chance to take greater control over the camera by utilizing the PASM mode, and the autofocusing, exposure metering, and auto white balance algorithms all function brilliantly.

We particularly enjoy the ingenious zoom assist function that, when utilizing the more excellent telephoto settings, zooms the lens out to help with framing, then automatically zooms back in again. This is a feature that we find very useful. However, the additional functions of the camera are a bit of a hit-or-miss proposition.

The reliable wifi connection and the Hybrid Auto and Creative Shot modes are undeniably cool. Still, we’d wager that a panorama mode and proper multi-shot HDR capture would be more helpful. But, of course, this is in addition to RAW shooting, a faster burst mode, a touchscreen interface, and possibly even a viewfinder.

The Canon PowerShot SX700 HS has excellent optics since it has a zoom range that can accommodate various shooting situations and produces minimal distortion. Nevertheless, its image clarity in well-lit environments is the true gem of its performance. In addition, impressive detail, color reproduction, and dynamic range combine to generate photos that are almost as good as you’ll get from a camera with a 1/2.3-inch sensor, thanks to the combination of these three factors.

If only the same could be true for pictures taken in bad lighting, which suffer from noticeable noise, blurring of fine detail, and color abnormalities when using an ISO setting of 800.

Canon PowerShot SX700 HS FAQs