Canon releases yet another model in its popular Powershot range – the E1 IS. This camera is a turning point as a sub range of Powershot designs, which are especially designed with the female user in mind. This range starting with the E1 IS, offers curvy designs and colourful body shades, for the stylish user to appreciate.

While this camera may not be for the professional or advanced hobbyist user, i don’t think it was intended for these categories in the first place. The company’s ‘designed by women for women’ slogan could also be suggestive that this is more of a style camera than a true model made thoughtfully keeping the photo capabilities in mind. That said and done, the E1 IS, is by no means a lost cause.

For those who love the 50s feels, the shape of the camera body could remind you of the early era’s refrigerator ends, or even a juke box, or a car fender from the time. We haven’t seen a Powershot as small as this, and it easily fits into a pocket, handbag or wherever it may be that is convenient to keep a camera. At the same time, the thoughtfully designed control locations and the hand grip make it child’s play to use the camera with one hand (the other tied behind your back?).  The 4x zoom offers you a 355mm equivalence of 35-140mm, most adequate for everyday situations – and considering the miniature packaging of this camera, it is more than you could have asked for. Optical image stabilization is another key feature of the Canon Powershot E1 IS (the IS stands for Image Stabilization of course).

The camera is powered by 2 AA size batteries, and this may seem like a drawback. However, we feel Canon has done well if you think of the target buyers as non-professionals who do not want to be bogged down with carrying chargers and chords on their vacations and outings. With the AA format cells, you are never far from somewhere you can pick up power for your camera.  It has a tiny optical viewfinder that you could use to extend battery life to a maximum. Shooting videos is yet another option with this camera, and the compact mode allows you to shoot 160 x 120 pixels, and these miniature files can easily be sent as email attachments – again this is something that could seem as low quality at first glance, but when you think about it, the company has offered a hassle-free solution to holiday shooting. After all, how many travellers really want to take time out to resize their video clips?

We simply love the fact that the same memory card clot on the E1 IS accepts SD, SDHC, MMC, MMC plus and HC MMC plus cards. So, you are never far from somewhere you can but additional memory either!

Unlike many negative reviews this model may have received, we believe the 10 mega pixels Powershot E1 IS is designed specifically for a niche market, and will do well with those users. This is just the model you want to pick up when your wife wants a lady-like camera!