Image Quality

All of the sample images in this review were taken using the 20.3 megapixel SuperFine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 8Mb.

The SX710 HS produces fairly pleasing images. Detail is crisp across the frame and isn't as susceptible to noise reduction smoothing as many cameras with equivalent sized sensors. Consequently fine details in landscape scenes are well retained and don't get smeared into a painterly mess as is all too common with cameras in this sector. Bright, punchy colour reproduction adds to the appeal, as does the flawless exposure metering and reliable white balance.

Optically there is some chromatic aberration (purple fringing) visible in high-contrast areas, but it's rarely distracting. Despite its very generous focal length range, the lens also fares well in the distortion department, with only a hint of barrel distortion at wide angle and no noticeable pincushion effect when zoomed in.

With such an impressive performance it's a shame the SX710 HS's image noise levels let the side down somewhat. The SX710 HS produces noise-free images at ISO 80-200, with limited noise and colour desaturation starting to appear at ISO 400. ISO 800 exhibits quite visible noise, smearing of fine detail and colour desaturation, and ISO 1600 is usable for small prints. The fastest setting of ISO 3200 should be avoided if possible.

Noise

The Canon PowerShot SX710 HS has seven sensitivity settings at full resolution. Auto mode uses a range between ISO 80 and ISO 3200, or you can switch to one of the creative shooting modes to manually select these settings.

ISO 80 (100% Crop)	ISO 100 (100% Crop)
ISO 200 (100% Crop)	ISO 400 (100% Crop)
ISO 800 (100% Crop)	ISO 1600 (100% Crop)
ISO 3200 (100% Crop)

Sharpening

We found that the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS images are already sharp, but do benefit from a little touch-up in post processing.

Original (100% Crop)	Sharpened (100% Crop)

Focal Range

The Canon PowerShot SX710 HS' 30x zoom lens achieves a maximum wide-angle focal length equivalent to 25mm, and is capable of a telephoto reach of 750mm (in 35mm-camera terms).

25mm	750mm

Chromatic Aberrations

The Canon PowerShot SX710 HS handled chromatic aberrations fairly well during the review, with purple and green fringing present around the edges of objects in high-contrast situations, as shown in the examples below.

Chromatic Aberrations 1 (100% Crop)	Chromatic Aberrations 2 (100% Crop)

File Quality

Every image size option on the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS is accompanied by two quality settings: Fine and Super Fine. Going for the latter will up the file size of each image from 5MB to around 8MB.

SuperFine (7.85Mb) (100% Crop)	Fine (5.00Mb) (100% Crop)

Macro

The close focusing of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS at wide-angle is a mere 1cm. It does mean that there's little light getting in when you do that and the edge definition drops off leaving around 50% of the image in focus.

Macro	Macro (100% Crop)

Flash

The Canon PowerShot SX710 HS' flash can only manage a relatively weak 3.5m range and hence there's some fairly obvious vignetting in our wide-angle test shot taken at a distance of 1.5m. The flash has four modes: Auto, On, Off and Slow Synchro, plus a separate setting to enable or disable red-eye reduction. Whether this is active or not, the camera successfully avoids any trace of red-eye.

Flash Off - Wide Angle (25mm)	Flash On - Wide Angle (25mm)
Flash Off - Telephoto (750mm)	Flash On - Telephoto (750mm)

And here are some portrait shots. As you can see, neither the Flash On or the Red-eye-Reduction settings caused any red-eye.

Flash On	Flash On (100% Crop)
Red-eye Reduction	Red-eye Reduction (100% Crop)

Anti Shake

As you can see here, disabling IS when shooting handheld at the upper end of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS' focal length range isn't a good idea. Keep the system on and it does a great job of counteracting the effects of camera shake.

Shutter Speed / Focal Length	Anti-Shake Off (100% Crop)	Anti-Shake On (100% Crop)
1/6th sec / 25mm
0.8 sec / 750mm

Night

The Canon Powershot SX710 HS's maximum shutter speed is 15 seconds, which is great news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 15 seconds at ISO 80.

Night	Night (100% Crop)

Special Effects

The Canon PowerShot SX710 HS offers several special effects modes, accessible via the dedicated shooting mode.

Fisheye	Miniature
Toy Camera	Soft Focus
Monochrome	Super Vivid
Poster

My Colors

In addition to the special effect modes, you can also set the camera to apply various colour filters as you shoot. Choose from: Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, Black & White, Positive Film, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Vivid Blue/Green/Red or Custom Color.

Vivid	Neutral
Sepia	B&W
Positive Film	Lighter Skin Tone
Darker Skin Tone	Vivid Blue
Vivid Green

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS camera, which were all taken using the 20.3 megapixel SuperFine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample Movie & Video

Product Images

Front of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Front of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS / Turned On

Front of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS / Flash Raised

Side of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Side of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Side of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Side of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Side of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Side of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Rear of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Rear of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS / Image Displayed

Rear of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS / Turned On

Rear of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS / Main Menu

Rear of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS / Function Menu

Rear of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS / Device Nickname

Rear of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS / Mobile Device Connect Button

Rear of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS / Transfer Images

Top of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Bottom of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Side of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Side of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Front of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Front of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS

Memory Card Slot

Battery Compartment

Conclusion

Virtually identical to last year's SX700 HS model, the new Canon PowerShot SX710 HS takes a few minor steps forward, namely faster burst shooting rates, more Auto Zoom options and 5-axis stabilisation for video, but one major step back, offering worse image quality than its predecessor.

The move to a 20.3 megapixel sensor has done the SX710 HS no favours, with ISO 400 already suffering from obvious noise, smearing of fine detail and colour artifacts. If you shoot mainly in good light, the SX710 HS deliver impressive detail, colour reproduction and dynamic range, but low-light shooting is disappointing. The Canon PowerShot SX710 HS's main rival, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ70, has dropped the megapixel count from 18 to 12 to try and offer better image quality (review coming soon...), so unless you're swayed by the number of megapixels, that camera may prove to be a better option.

Our other main criticism of the SX710 HS is the lack of progress compared to last year's model. While it remains simple to operate and offers a lot of features necessary in this class of camera, the SX710 HS continues to miss a panorama mode, proper multi-shot HDR capture, RAW shooting, a touchscreen interface and even a viewfinder. In short, we'd have expected to see Canon make a much bigger step forward with the SX710 HS.

In summary, the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS is still a well-designed, easy to use travel-zoom camera, but the lack of new features and inferior image quality means you should really look elsewhere (or even at last years discounted SX700 HS, if you can find one).

Ratings (out of 5)
Design	4
Features	3.5
Ease-of-use	4.5
Image quality	3.5
Value for money	3.5

Main Rivals

Listed below are some of the rivals of the Canon PowerShot SX710 HS.

Specifications

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