Canon PowerShot SX500 IS

1416 reviews

Apr, 2024

Positive
usability (467)
portability (347)
zoom (345)
price (247)
performance (227)

Negative
low-light (32)
sensor (21)
viewfinder (20)
flash (19)
storage (11)

General overview
Price comparison

alaTest has collected and analyzed 1416 reviews of Canon PowerShot SX500 IS. The average rating for this product is 4.4/5, compared to an average rating of 4.3/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras for all reviews. Comments about the price and performance are on the whole positive. The zoom and portability are also mentioned favorably, whereas many are negative about the storage and viewfinder.

usability, portability, zoom, performance, price

low-light, flash, sensor, viewfinder, storage

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other Digital Compact Cameras the Canon PowerShot SX500 IS is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 89/100 = Very good quality.

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Review analysis

(Based on 1416 reviews)

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Features

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portability
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zoom
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performance
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Showing 1 - 551 of 669 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (462)

Consumer review (amazon.co.uk)

Amazon.co.uk review summary for Canon PowerShot SX500 IS

alaTest has collected and analyzed 80 user reviews of Canon PowerShot SX500 IS from Amazon.co.uk. The average user rating for this product is 4.3/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.3/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras on Amazon.co.uk. Reviews about the image quality and zoom are generally positive. The performance and usability also get good views, but many are less positive about the shutter and viewfinder. Comments about the flash and size are different.

portability, usability, performance, zoom, image quality

low-light, sensor, storage, viewfinder, shutter

100% of the reviews on Amazon.co.uk give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Consumer review (amazon.com)

Amazon.com review summary for Canon PowerShot SX500 IS

alaTest has collected and analyzed 446 user reviews of Canon PowerShot SX500 IS from Amazon.com. The average user rating for this product is 4.4/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.2/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras on Amazon.com. People are impressed by the image quality and price. The portability and zoom also get good feedback, whereas many are less positive about the exposure and viewfinder. The shutter and storage get mixed opinions.

usability, zoom, portability, price, image quality

low-light, viewfinder, exposure

92% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Consumer review (amazon.ca)

Amazon.ca review summary for Canon PowerShot SX500 IS

alaTest has collected and analyzed 15 user reviews of Canon PowerShot SX500 IS from Amazon.ca. The average user rating for this product is 4.3/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.3/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras on Amazon.ca. Reviewers are impressed by the design and price. The size and portability also get good comments, but many are critical about the low light performance.

usability, portability, size, price, design

low-light

93% of the reviews on Amazon.ca give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Expert review by : Joshua Goldman (cnet.com)

Canon's PowerShot SX500 IS is good, but not without sacrifices

This 30x zoom camera has more to offer than its lens, just not fast performance or great low-light photos.

The ; holds an ultrawide-angle 30x zoom lens in a very small, very light body. It offers more shooting options -- including semimanual and manual controls -- than most in its class, and has very good optical image stabilization.

Despite autofocus improvements, the SX500 IS' shooting performance might still be too slow for action shots, especially indoors. It's not a great choice for handheld low-light shots.

It has its limitations, but the Canon PowerShot SX500 IS is a good choice for zoom addicts on a budget.

Feb, 2013

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Expert review by : Joshua Goldman (cnet.com)

Canon PowerShot SX500 IS review

The most amazing thing about the PowerShot SX500 IS is that Canon managed to make a 30x 24-720mm lens, attach it to a body, and have it only be 4 inches deep and weigh 12 ounces -- with its battery.

The Canon PowerShot SX500 IS holds an ultrawide-angle 30x zoom lens in a very small, very light body. It offers more shooting options -- including semimanual and manual controls -- than most in its class, and has very good optical image stabilization.

Despite autofocus improvements, the SX500 IS' shooting performance might still be too slow for action shots, especially indoors. It's not a great choice for handheld low-light shots.

It has its limitations, but the Canon PowerShot SX500 IS is a good choice for zoom addicts on a budget.

Jan, 2013

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Expert review by : Kyle Schurman (steves-digicams.com)

Canon PowerShot SX500 IS Review

The 30x optical zoom lens on the PowerShot SX500 IS provides some very impressive telephoto capabilities in a sub-$250 camera. Canon also included some unique features and manual control options with this model. However, image quality is below average...

Nice to find 30x zoom in such a lightweight camera ; Lens moves quickly through its zoom range in still image mode ; Good mix of manual and automatic shooting controls ; Popup flash gives better performance than many built-in flash units ; Mode dial...

Camera has a cheap feel to it because of all of the lightweight plastic in the design ; Images have quite a bit of noise when printed at large sizes ; Shot to shot delays are very poor, especially when using the flash ; Shutter lag should be better...

Feb, 2013

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Expert review by : Matt Grayson (photographyblog.com)

Canon PowerShot SX500 IS Review

The Canon PowerShot SX500 IS is a super-zoom bridge type camera that sports a 30x, 24mm wide-angle zoom, lens, 16 megapixel resolution, 3 inch LCD screen, 720p movies, full manual controls and a Digic 4 processor. Other standout features include a...

If you're after a little compact that gives you most of the features and control of a prosumer/DSLR then the Canon PowerShot SX500 IS is perfect. It has the large zoom to cover all eventualities as well as auto and manual controls to either let you...

Oct, 2012

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Expert review by : Ken McMahon (cameralabs.com)

Canon PowerShot SX500 IS

The SX500 IS has a 3in fixed LCD screen with 461k pixel resolution and a pop-up flash, along with full PASM exposure modes in addition to Smart Auto, a range of scene modes and Creative filters which can be used for both stills and movies. The...

30x stabilised optical zoom ; Compact lightweight body ; Frame assist helps locate subjects at long focal lengths ; Versatile Creative filters

Very poor continuous shooting ; Lens suffers from Chromatic aberration ; Poor battery life ; Vertical streaking on highlights in video (due to CCD)

The PowerShot SX500 IS provides an unbeatable combination of massive zoom range in a compact lightweight body that, for now at least, is unmatched by anyone else. If you want a smaller camera, you'll need to make a compromise on zoom range and if you...

Sep, 2012

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Expert review by : Digital Camera-HQ (digitalcamera-hq.com)

Canon PowerShot SX500 IS

The SX500 IS comes in somewhere between the just-announced SX160 IS and the high-end SX40 HS, combining the price-cutting features found on the former with the zoom range on the latter. The 30x extended zoom is built into an impressively small body...

Aug, 2012

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Expert review by : Barrie Smith (digital-photography-school.com)

Canon Powershot SX500 IS Review

A year or so ago I was attracted by Canon's SX30 IS, a 35X digicam. So much so that I bought one for family use. And it turned out to be ideal for the purpose, especially in shooting video at the long end! … although this was somewhat tempered by its...

Then this feller turned up! Not as long a zoom. Sure! But smaller! And cheaper!

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Expert review by : Trusted Reviews (trustedreviews.com)

Canon PowerShot SX500 IS

The SX500 packs a powerful 30x optical zoom into a small, compact body but lacks Full HD movie capture.

Compact design despite large zoom, Full manual controls, Good image quality

Body doesn’t feel particularly solid, No electronic viewfinder, No Raw capture

Mar, 2013

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Expert review by : Mike Lowe (pocket-lint.com)

Canon PowerShot SX500 IS

It wasn't so long ago that a 30x optical zoom was unheard of in a compact. Now it's quite the norm for superzooms to have such far-reaching lenses, but the Canon PowerShot SX500 IS manages to squeeze its 24-720mm (equivalent) lens into a small body and...

Big zoom, small body, decent image stabilisation, good close-up performance (at wide-angle), full manual controls, reasonable price for the feature set

Image quality not up there with other Canon compacts, lens has issues with purple and green fringes (chromatic aberrations),

On paper the PowerShot SX500 IS sounds very promising. It’s well priced and has that significant 24-720mm equivalent lens with excellent image stabilisation technology too.

Sep, 2012

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Expert review by : Lexy Savvides (cnet.com.au)