Canon adds pocket-friendly super-zoom compacts to line up

Canon PowerShot S600 HS
Look, it's red!

Canon has added two new super-zoom models to its range of pocketable point and shoot compact cameras.

First up is the PowerShot SX600 HS, which features a 16 million pixel CMOS sensor alongside a Canon Digic 4+ processor. It also features Canon's own HS (high sensitivity) system, which promises high quality images when shooting in low light.

It also features an 18x optical zoom, which is 25mm at its widest point and 450mm at the telephoto end of the range. The camera also utilizes 36x ZoomPlus technology (a sort of digital zoom) to take that up to a staggering 900mm, all in something which should comfortably fit into a pocket.

Canon is also keen to appeal to the Instagram generation and includes Creative Shot mode on the new cameras.

When using this mode, the camera will create up to six different versions of one image. You can select from four themes (Monochrome, Retro, Special and Natural), giving a total of 46 creative effects.

Hybrid Auto mode, something which has been appearing on Canon compacts for some time, is also included. This feature automatically records four seconds of movie footage before every still shot is taken, combining the clips at the end of the day for a record of the day.

Full HD video recording is also available, as is integrated Wi-Fi and NFC.

What else is new?

The second camera, the IXUS 265 (called the PowerShot ELPH 340 HS in the US), features many similar features to the PowerShot SX600 but slots into the more stylish range of Canon compacts.

To facilitate a sleeker design, it only features a 12x optical zoom lens, boosted up to 24x by ZoomPLus. It does still feature a 16 million pixel sensor though.

Other share features include Wi-Fi and NFC, full HD video recording, and Creative Shot.

The Canon PowerShot SX600 HS price will be £199/US$249 (approx AU$365), and it will be available from February.

The Canon IXUS 265 HS / Canon PowerShot ELPH 340 HS price will be £179/US$199.99 (approx AU$328), and it should be available from March.

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Amy Davies

Amy has been writing about cameras, photography and associated tech since 2009. Amy was once part of the photography testing team for Future Publishing working across TechRadar, Digital Camera, PhotoPlus, N Photo and Photography Week. For her photography, she has won awards and has been exhibited. She often partakes in unusual projects - including one intense year where she used a different camera every single day. Amy is currently the Features Editor at Amateur Photographer magazine, and in her increasingly little spare time works across a number of high-profile publications including Wired, Stuff, Digital Camera World, Expert Reviews, and just a little off-tangent, PetsRadar. 

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