The new Canon SX 150 camera should probably be subtitled, "Possibly The Best All-Around, Point-And-Shoot, Off-Road-Adventure Camera - Affordable - for the Average Person Today."

I recently bought this camera, the SX 150 HS, and I also have owned/used the earlier models in this same line for several years now - the SX 110, SX 120, and SX 130 - so I have several years experience with it, all of it very positive. Yes, it runs on AA batteries, but that is the GOOD NEWS! If you don't like that, then buy one of the 100 other cameras available that don't use them. Use some form of proprietary lithium-ion battery instead which will set you back $25 to $75 apiece for each spare battery, and it will not even last two functioning years. You will also need several of those batteries for any extended trip, and when you buy your next camera they won't fit it, so you can then just throw away that extra $100 to $200 in useless, expensive, non-interchangeable batteries.

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Because I wanted more optical zoom, I upgraded from a Canon Powershot A1100IS with 4X to the SX150IS with 12X. I am very happy with it with two exceptions. It does not have a view finder like the older camera, which makes it difficult to take pictures in the sun. Also, there is a new red button which instantly turns on movie mode. Unfortunately, the red button is in the spot where I place my thumb, so I have movies of trees standing still. Except for these problems, I think it is an excellent camera for the price and takes photos that are as good as the ones from my husband's $800 Canon SLR camera.

My camera was dropped and broke. I researched and researched which new camera to buy and ended up going back to a newer model of the camera I had broken. I don't think this camera can be beaten. They have improved it over the last couple of years with the fisheye effect and also the focusing. People often say I take wonderful pictures but I think it is really the camera. For a point and shot with lots of options..... this is the camera to have. It has one of the best zoom too. I couldn't be happier.