| | |  | | Home » Canon PowerShot TX1 7.1MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom | | | | | | | Description: | | CL) U) CANON POWERSHOT TX1 DIG CAM | | | Features: | |
• 7.1-megapixel CCD captures enough detail for photo-quality 15 x 20-inch prints and can also take 720p HD Video
• Ultra-compact 10x optical zoom lens; image stabilization
• Digic III image processor With Face Detection Technology; auto red-eye correction
• Vivid, high-resolution 2.5-inch PureColor LCD
• Compatible with SD/SDHC, MultiMediaCard, MMC Plus cards (not included)
| | | Product Details: | | | Product Length:
| 8.74 inches | | Product Width:
| 6.26 inches | | Product Height:
| 2.48 inches | | Product Weight:
| 0.5 pounds | | Package Length:
| 8.8 inches | | Package Width:
| 6.3 inches | | Package Height:
| 2.8 inches | | Package Weight:
| 2.2 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 90 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
 ( 90 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
130 of 132 found the following review helpful:
 Best Blend of Still Pix, Video, and Compact SizeJul 15, 2007
By J. Weber
After testing the Canon TX-1, this has been my experience:
PHOTO QUALITY: Excellent. Canon wisely uses in-camera noise reduction (blurring) lightly and preserves sharp detail. On close magnification, single pixel detail is present, which the Panasonic DMC-TZ3 that I compared blurred details into a gradient. Color saturation and contrast are excellent. Focus is fast and accurate. Overall, superb qualtiy still pictures.
VIDEO QUALITY: Very good. Quality is roughly midway between DV and a dedicated HD camcorder. Though criticized by some for their large file sizes, Canon's Motion JPEG compression codec yield video that is of excellent contrast, and good color saturation. I took video samples and re-compressed them using Canon's codec (included with their camera's software) and other codecs including MPEG2, QuickTime, and multiple other codecs from Adobe Premiere, and found that the Canon motion-JPEG, though theoretically not as efficient a compression scheme, ended up with the best quality video, while other codecs of similar file size were more washed out. Another advantage of this compression scheme is that you can get good quality frame captures, as each frame is compressed individually. It's not perfect: unlike my dedicated HD camcorder, the TX-1's video has a vague "shimmering" effect, from the JPEG compression varying from frame to frame. Also, with moving objects, the motion isn't quite as fluid with as with my dedicated HD camcorder. But for a combination still/video platform, the video of the TX-1 is remarkably good. File sizes are large, but they will be with any high quality video.
ERGONOMICS: In my medium to small hands, the camera is easy to hold. Some reviewers complained that they needed to use their left hand to stabilize the camera, but I always hold cameras with two hands. This one can be held with one, but any camera will yield less blurry pictures if held with two hands. If you have large fingers, you may find this camera too small.
CONVENIENCE: The LCD folds into the camera, and there is no optical viewfinder, so when the camera is closed, there is no vulnerable glass to scratch up on any side. And it is so tiny that you can throw it in a pocket or bag or purse and pull it out for an unexpected spontaneous shot.
FLASH: I was worried that the flash would be too under-powered. It is a weak flash. Unexpectedly, this turned out to be a good thing. I've noticed with past cameras that indoor flash pictures screamed "FLASH!" and were bright with a thin dark shadow next to foreground objects from the flash. This weaker flash ironically ends up making more natural shots as it doesn't saturate the shot and some existing light adds to make a more pleasing picture. The flash is too weak to brightly light up a large dim room that you are shooting from a long distance, or if you zoom in under dim conditions.
ZOOM: 10X zoom is really powerful; I can zoom in a lot more than I expected. The excellent image stabilization allows these zoomed in shots to not be blurred from camera motion.
LOW LIGHT: Like virtually all compact cameras today, the tiny CCD does not perform well in very low light shots without flash. The TX-1 is no exception. Fuji cameras are known for better performance in low light, but currently don't have optical image stabilization. The image stabilization in the TX-1 (and other cameras with this feature) help a lot because you can use much longer shutter speeds and make up for the small CCD.
PLAYBACK: It has been fun for me to plug the camera into my widescreen TV and watch the photos and video in a combined slide show. That format is fun for the family and allows everyone to enjoy the memories without having to sit by a computer monitor or wait for prints.
PROBLEMS: The only thing I've not enjoyed is that the small LCD makes it harder to see detail in composing a shot, especially in bright sunlight.
OVERALL: The TX-1 produces excellent quality still pictures, very good 720p video, is tiny, not easily scratched, has a huge zoom, great image stabilization, and will end up being something you will want to toss into a pocket or bag and capture a spontaneous, memorable moment. It is a rare camera that can record both stills and video without one of them being useless. I'm very happy with it. I hope you enjoy whatever you decide on too!
92 of 93 found the following review helpful:
Do not buy it for its camera features, but for its HD video capability...May 07, 2007
By M. E. Balzer
"What is Reality?"
Do not buy this camera if you are looking for either a great camera or camcorder, buy it as the best micro image recording device available.
As you will find in other reviews, the camera portion is average. What makes this camera stand out is the fact that it will do 1280 X 720, 30 frames PROGRESSIVE! This is simply amazing since this camera is no larger than a box of cigarettes. It is not perfect though. There are few manual controls, e.g. no shutter rate or ISO control, however you do have control over locking ASE and Focus, as well as white balance. Some reviewers have complained about ergonomics, but a small monopod or makeshift grip that attaches to the tripod mount will do the trick. I personally would have preferred a REC button in front of the camera. If I could also make a couple of wishes, I would also ask for an external 1/8" stereo external microphone connector, as well as LANC control that could be used for zoom, focus, record/pause and stop. Finally, low light levels are very noisy.
There are also concerns about battery power. I have been able to go an hour without a charge. Again, it is suggested to buy an extra battery. If you really need to have this camera running continuously, buy the external power adapter. If you need more remote power, buy one of those extra lithium ion external power packs that has an output of 3.5 volts and retrofit a coaxial plug to fit the external power adapter.
Some reviewers are complaining about Canon using the Motion JPEG file format for video. True it is not the best compression format for making small files, but the quality is better than most MPEG 4 or even MPEG 2 file formats. Plus, you get frame by frame editing. To make up for the poor compression, just buy a larger card.
There are also some questions if this camera can support more than a four gigabyte SD card. Yes, but it will need to be a fast SDHC card. This poses its own problems because it is not backwards compatible with SD card readers so you will not be able to use it with any card reader unless it specifically says it is compatible with SDHC. This is not too great of a problem since the camera uses a standard mini USB female connector and XP, Vista, OS X recognize it without additional software.
In my opinion, this has been my answer to a stealth high definition documentary camera. I will find many uses for this camera in the upcoming months. Look for my documentary "Gamer: The chronicles of Evanor" [...] to be released at the end of the year. It will contain footage from this camera.
I gave it a four out of five stars for not adding an external microphone adapter, LANC control, and a few more manual controls. This would have garnered a perfect score from me. I hope Canon is listening.
65 of 67 found the following review helpful:
Perfect for meJun 12, 2007
By P. Yoon
"race fan"
The TX1 is exactly what I'm looking for. In order of importance, I was looking for something (1) small that (2) takes good/excellent video on (3) flash memory that will (4) work with my Mac and (5) can replace my point-and-shoot camera. I'm not particularly fond of taking video so I didn't want to buy a camcorder that only took video and was large, or at least larger than the TX1. However, for those times that I do want to take video, this is perfect, and the picture quality, imo, is great. I can have it with me all the time because it's small. It's not as small as some cameras, but what do you expect for all that it does? This is cheaper than Panasonic and Sanyo equivalent camcorders, the small ones also with pistol grip.
Those hoping for video quality on par with an HD camcorder are looking in the wrong place.
Personally, I think the videos and still shots are fine for this type of device. The clips and photos I take with the TX1 aren't being broadcast, and they're not going in magazines. So for what I need, it's perfect. Actually, the video quality is better than my (older) MiniDV camcorder. And the truth is, I never use that older DV camcorder anymore. With my old camcorder I didn't like watching unedited clips from the machine itself, so I had to tranfer them to my computer, which was cumbersome. The clips from the TX1, while large, transfer via USB, so that's faster than the DV transfer. And like I mentioned, better picture quality. I've already used the TX1 more in the past 14 days than I have used my DV camera in the past two years. When I want to "serious" pictures I haul my D200 and lenses. If you want to take "serious" video, buy something dedicated, which will be more expensive.
As for photo quality, I have not printed anything, but viewing it on my computer, the pictures seem on par with other point-and-shoot shots. There is fuzziness and focus searching in low light conditions, but that's what I've come to expect with point-and-shoots; they're inherently limited machines.
One last thing, you can zoom while shooting video in the highest quality; you can zoom in any video setting for that matter.
21 of 21 found the following review helpful:
Great hybird with a few flawsAug 28, 2007
By H. Kim
"mac geek"
I purchased a Canon TX1 and have it about a week now and I'm very happy with my purchase. It's not perfect, it does have some pretty sticky issues, most that I've been able to work around though.
The camera itself is a joy to use. Great menus, easy to use, even in manual mode, and my smaller hands don't make this the ergonomic nightmare that tech critics are panning the camera work. There are a few things that could be changed, the shutter button could be placed maybe someplace else (not really sure where though so maybe it is in the best spot) but I've gotten used to it and it take pictures pretty well with it. The auto focus speed isn't terrible as others have noted unless your at full max zoom (and at 10x I can forgive a bit of auto focus speed issues). The 16:9 aspect photos are very clear, I hear the professionals talk about excessive noise in low light and at high ISO, but I haven't seen it so far with mine, but I'm also not a trained photographer nor do I have a trained eye for that. It takes photos, they're clear and in focus, the colors are accurate, that's really all i can ask for. In indoor lighting it is a little more difficult to take good photos, but it is possible. Outdoors though there are no issues whatsoever, it's just a fun point and shoot 7 megapixel beauty that I'm glad I own now.
Video is another story though. At 1280x720 30fps, the video is good in bright conditions. In medium indoor lighting or less, the video becomes very very grainy. Not surprising maybe, but a little disappointing. It's obvious from the LCD that the video is going to be grainy, and on my HDTV or on the computer, it looks VHS like grainy, the quality just isn't there. The resolution might be there, but things although in focus, look like upscaled SDTV or worse. Outdoor video shooting is similar to the photo quality, everything works great. It looks great on the HDTV. But indoor video is very grainy unless you have very well lit conditions. At the price I guess you shouldn't expect a product to compete with HDV camcorders though. And HDV camcorders don't do 7 MP stills.
Some people have complained about the MJPEG format for video. With an 8 GB SDHC card, you get get 27 minutes of shooting time. And bigger SDHC cards will exist in the future. MJPEG may not be the most advanced codec like AVC is, but it certainly is still useable and great to edit movies with and older computers can watch MJPEG with little computing power. On my old Mac, the H.264 files I converted the MJPEG films from choke my computer at full resolution.
One big flaw I find is that in OS X, when you plug in the camera, it does not mount the SDHC card, but rather iPhoto or Image Capture just grabs the images and downloads them. But there's no way to reverse the process without a dedicated SDHC card reader. I believe that holds true for many Canon models though, not just the TX1. Again annoying, but there are work arounds.
Overall I'm still giddy about my purchase. I love the product. It would have been a 5 if it had better indoor / low light performance. Other than that, this is a great product, and hopefully will only get better with the next version (please Canon keep updating this product).
25 of 26 found the following review helpful:
I LOVE ITJul 05, 2007
By Bruce R. Peterson
"MRP84627"
I took a chance on the TX1 and I am SO GLAD that I did. Just before leaving on an extended cruise I found that my digital camera had some issues so I decided to purchase a new one. Having suffered through dragging around several different kinds of still and video cameras on previous vacations and events, I resolved that whatever I came up with, it had to be extremely portable and not a hindrance to any planned activities. After the frustration of seeing Paris mostly through a video viewfinder a few years ago, I gave up taking video on vacations. But, a side of me still wanted to have HD video available when needed. So, after reading as much as possible about the TX1 on the internet (instructions, reviews, etc) I decided to make a leap of faith. I eventually found a vendor with one available and it arrived just a couple of days before we left for the cruise. Armed with a very fast 8 Gig card and a couple of extra batteries we set off. A couple of days into the cruise I was hooked. I carried it in my pocket the whole trip no matter what I was wearing (except when swimming obviously)! No bag over my shoulder or strap around my neck to get in the way. It was always ready to capture the moment. And capture the moment it did....in high form. I downloaded the photos and video to a laptop several times and we were all IMPRESSED with the high quality of the stills and videos that it captured. There are so many different scene options available to cover any situation that we wanted to capture. The colors of foliage and ocean are vibrant and true. And, when I, in hast, used the wrong settings, I was always able to make a simple correction of the colors in Photo Elements. The detail of the HD video looks great on out 52" HDTV as do the photos. I averaged a hundred still photos and about ten minutes of video per day for twenty days. I found that the battery life was much better than I had expected given some reviews I had seen, but a second battery would be a good investment if you like to take many photos without recharging. (Only about $12 if you look online) Some of the reviewers I have read simply must not have spent any time becoming acquainted with the camera or they expected it to be a "studio" unit because every "short-coming" I found listed in the reviews had a quick and simple solution in the menu settings or with a realistic view of the target audience for this camera. Without any doubt, the TX1 is the best camera I have ever found for my style of use. In summary it is extremely compact and easy to transport while delivering excellent high definition still and video output. But... If I say "I love this thing" one more time to my wife, I'm afraid she will bean me.
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