Will I Keep The Canon PowerShot SX280 HS ?

[@pentlandsailor]

apparantly the battery problem is in fact a software problem and there is an upgrade that can be downloaded at the canon website hope this helps.

[@geekanoids]

pentlandsailor Thanks, yes it did help.

[@marktibbetts3799]

GPS left on will drain the battery. Also,certain models will show that "battery needs charged" notice when the voltage sensor misreads the battery. Easy fix is to put a very thin strip of tape across the center copper tab on the battery. When charging though,you MUST remove the tape from the battery or they will overcharge and explode in the charger. Then put another strip on when reinstalling the battery. Very important not to forget!

[@geekanoids]

Thanks for sharing this.

[@ricke6854]

So, it's 2024 now, and I just found this hack and will try it to get a bit more use out of my old (but still like new) SX 280. Battery life is what has kept me from using this camera much. Thanks for the tip, especially about removing the tape before charging.

[@davedebruin752]

Love the camera the one thing you forgot the flash is the only down side as it is in the worse possible spot. Have to move my hand every time it comes up.

[@arnoudhugo5442]

What I miss in many reviews is: how does the screen perform in sunlight?

[@Sparks66]

I've owned this camera for a year now and I would highly recommend this as a compact camera. I found that by switching off the GPS function this greatly enhances the battery life. Having dropped it twice it stood up to its build quality. Great camera and now if you shop around this can be bought in the UK for under £130.00

[@spburnie]

Picked this up for $100 at Radio Shack. With the firmware fixes and the velcro fix for battery life, this thing rocks!!! Excellent review btw.

[@adamtowne1317]

Can you link me to where you paid that price? That is an incredible price.

[@ItsEdwinG]

Adam Towne just got mine today at Radio shack for 100 too. Just go to your closest radio shack store

[@michaelmercury1256]

Hi, please can you give me any details of this velcro fix for the bad battery life on this camera. Many thanks

[@iym413]

I've had the SX260HS for about 2 years, no problem with battery life, may be a bad battery, or just a software glitch. I don't see a need to upgrade to the SX280, not enough new features to be worth the cost. When I bought the SX260, I had planned to buy the SX40HS because of the zoom, but the SX260 was less expensive, and had a metal body. Along with being easier to carry, this was a no-brainer. I use the SX260 almost everyday, still works great.

[@ErikaMayX]

I am really glad that I ran across this review, it had all of the information that I was looking for. I'm also going to look into that Sony HX50 now that I saw you mention it in a comment.

[@alanbranch851]

No joke about the battery life, all I can say is from my own experience using the Canon SX280 HS you better have a handful of NB-6L batteries on hand because you will need every one of them.

[@geekanoids]

🤓👍🏻

[@Eyeswitch]

Have you tested the battery with ONLY taking photos? I'm thinking about getting this SX280, but I don't think I will be filming so much. Does it hold up with photos only?

[@HPad2]

I was actually thinking about the SX280 or the Nikon Coolpix S6800 but really not sure which to buy sadly.

[@jouda1851]

I'm watching this vd from 2024 😂

[@geekanoids]

Excellent. Many thanks ☺️

[@MrJohnnyMel]

Love the way an advert comes in when you are talking about screen lag! Very useful review and with the SX700 on the way it is now available for £139 new. It has to be worth a punt!

[@geekanoids]

Sounds good.

[@BlakeHops]

I just purchased this camera for the purpose of doing vlogs as an everyday sort of thing and so far I really like it! Now it's just a matter of getting use to talking in front of a camera haha. This review was helpful and thank you for the video! Cheers

[@davoid7914]

As far as I can tell, the Nikon S9500 doesn't have manual controls, just the usual 'scenes' etc. I have the Ixus 265 HS and the battery life isn't very good either. It uses a 800 mAh battery. I think Canon have focused on the smallness of the camera which reduces the available space for a larger capacity battery. 800 mAh is about the same as one AAA battery. Two AA batteries would be about 4800-5000 mAh, so a huge difference.

[@geekanoids]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this.

[@itsttanyajames]

Thanks for your reviews on this camera helped me make the decision to buy it 😊 the batteries charging now so excited to use it!

[@ProBenja5]

Im glad you liked it, i love my 240 hs, i also think the video kills the battery because when i take pictures i have no problems.

[@davidsuzukiispolpot]

Your main complaint was the "laggy" video screen when the stabilisation is on. Since this camera is a super-zoom, it needs super-stabilization. I can confirm that the stabilization is great- I have taken video of my son sailing on the other side of the bay without using a tripod. Smoothing out the direction viewed with the aid of a "gyro" is precisely what it is designed to do and what it does. Ironically, one of your main complaints is one of the greatest strengths of the camera. To test if the video truly is "laggy", determine the latency by moving your hand or something. If you oscillate your hand up or down with large smooth movements, and you can get to a point where your video hand moves exactly opposite to your real hand, and you count the number of times you move your hand in a second, you can measure the time lag for the video display. I would like to know the answer, as a true time-delay lag would make positioning the camera more difficult.

[@tronkel1]

All of the mainstream manufacturers make good cameras - often makes it hard to make a buying decision. One thing that tends to swing me towards Canon recently though, is the support it gets from the open source CHDK firmware project. Canon is the only make they cater to. Some people regard third party firmware as risky, but CHDK is the way to go - certainly for the cheaper end point-and-shoot models - in the unlikely event that something goes awry, it doesn't cost too much to replace anyway. One thing you can often do with CHKD is to enable raw file shooting - even on point-and-shoot models that don't have this out of the box. Live histogram is another. CHDK also allows you to display your battery status as a percentage. Could be that you have more juice left than you think - as might be the case in this video, where you are complaining about the short battery life. I've already had great success with this with the SX150 IS and SX160 IS Powershot series. Look here: chdk.wikia.com/wiki/CHDK

[@LisannevanRijn]

I have a Canon Powershot 220 but I fall on the ground so that my camera is damaged. I saw some video's on KZbin and heard your review of the 280. I doubt if there's a better one!

[@SillyRide]

As im looking into budget compact cameras that wil do 1080P @60 fps, this canon has also crossed my path. Although this is a old review, you or maybe others that are interested would like to hear the following: You mention the battery life of this camera and how it sucks, this is not actually the battery but some kind of bug in firm or hardware of the camera. The battey may still be full, but the camera indicates its not. Ihave seen a video where someone covered one part of the battery with a piece of tape and this helped solve the problem. However, this does remove the feature of knowing how much battery life you have got left. This is mainly the biggest obstacle which probably will result me in buying another camera although i like this one very much.

[@geekanoids]

SillyRide Battery life issue was fixed with a firmware update on this one.

[@SillyRide]

Good to know, Thanks!

[@Catastr0phicM1nd]

Where do I go for the firmware update? The battery on this camera is driving me crazy! I can't film more than 10 minutes of video without the "fully charged" camera dying :(

[@SillyRide]

I do not have this camera but a simple google search got me the firmware in the very first result. www.usa.canon.com/cusa/support/consumer?pageKeyCode=prdAdvDetail&docId=0901e024808f7d56 There you go. Learn how to google please.

[@geekanoids]

The SX280 would not improve much on this. It is most likely overloading the mics, so you are getting distortion. Only way around it is to perhaps try to cover the mic with something like the Rycote WindJammers.

[@Mctundra87]

I like the camera photos and abilities, but I don't like that the power button is right next to the shutter button! I've turned off the camera a few times instead of getting the shot! Also, because of the way I hold the camera, I would prefer if the flash was built into the front instead of popping up. But I'll get used to it. I'm really excited by how light and small it is. Thank you for your review. It helped me make my decision.

[@zassegaff]

Hi Noor. Yes, sound quality of the mics is bad, not the speaker as I mentioned above. You can see the sample of video in my channel and look for That XX - G-Dragon. I have to mention that I set the wind filter on at that time. Not sure whether it contributed to the poor sound quality or not but I just knew that we should not turn it on when there was no wind or during indoor shooting to avoid unnatural sound.

[@onesimusangel2461]

Definitely must say that this was a great video that displayed an impressive camera... I am currently using the Canon PowerShot S120 as my point and shoot camera... Thank you, for taking the time to make this video... I did not know the video mode actually increased the frames per second... Nice!

[@ajay60610]

Just bought this model of camera last weekend [on sale]...now i have to learn how to use it...thanks for the informative video........could you recommend a tripod for use with this camera...thanks.

[@geekanoids]

Just unboxed, testing now, seems a little more responsive.

[@trtepol]

very nice video. but you never mentioned SX270 HS which is a bit cheaper, and exactly the same as SX280, but without built in GPS and wi-fi.

[@eujeeves]

There's been a firmware fix for the battery. The battery warning no longer comes on sooner than it's supposed to.

[@geekanoids]

Yes, they fixed it :D

[@mohabalex4414]

Before you start use the camera for first time, make sure the battery is fully charged... Maybe that the issue in the battery right use it from the box...

[@MehdiRF]

I'm using SX260 and it records all the time sounds but you can hear zoom motor sound recorded in video! I think this is why Sam decides to off the sound when zooming!

[@RotiBlata]

There is a known issue with the battery indicator when using video .. u need to upgrade ur firmware from canon website !

[@Johnssca]

What battery would you recommend? (preferably on Amazon but if not that’s fine)

[@geekanoids]

Sorry I no longer have this, Neewer have always worked well for me or Hahnel.

[@PuravD]

Awesome video Dave, I have the Canon Powershot SX 220 HS so it was interesting to see how this flagship compares to last year's one (I think the SX 220 HS was last year's flagship anyway), similar to yours, the battery life on mine is quite horrendous especially when filming video, display isn't too much of an issue and the optical zoom is awesome :D Nice to hear you're keeping it, keep up the fantastic work! :)

[@geekanoids]

Great camera too, I am using it at the moment.

[@geekanoids]

Out of the two the SX280 is a better overall camera for control, the S9500 easier to pick up and use, end results about the same. However, the Sony HX50 surpasses both in terms of video & photo quality, especially good for video.

[@hugojof]

Just bought mine now as a travei camera based on your video! Thank you! Can't wait to get it. ;-)

[@RotiBlata]

Well... this video is uploaded on 1st jun 2013 and the new firmware that eliminate the battery incator is out on 04- jun-2013. I guess the video is outdated on the battery life part.

[@MehdiRF]

I don't think so, mine is SX260 and 280 uses the same Lens. I also noticed chromatic aberration in SX50. Unfortunately Canon doesn't use high-end lenses and bigger image sensors in compact cameras.

[@jindrix]

I bought the SX270HS a few days ago. Great quality in both photos and videos (at least for me) BUT I'll have to return it. Like with so many other users of this model, my camera has that battery problem, which the latest firmware didn't solve. Its simply impossible to use this camera, it always shut down when I try ti use it. It gets on my nerves. I'll probably trade it for the S110. PS: I covered the middle contact point of the battery and this problem seems to disappear, but I don't know if this is safe and it stopped showing the battery life gage.

[@wheretherainends1015]

Would you recommend this over the Sony WX350? Dont know if you have any experience with it but i've had the sony recommended to me for videos as well. Thank you so much for your videos! Theyre very informative and helpful for people like me who don't know where to start with these things.

[@aidenjonson315]

I am really confused between this camera and Nikon L830. Nikon 830 takes 16 MP pictures and has 36X optical zoom, But it requires 4 AA batteries and the weight is twice the weight of Canon SX 280 Hs.

[@SirSurreal]

Pity about the battery life as I'm looking for a compact travel camera to take to South America.

[@geekanoids]

Never used, sounds good from the reviews though.

[@RebeccaAlice]

I am looking to buy this camera but I'm a bit concerned about the battery life as I will be using it for vlogging and 'sit down and talk to the camera type videos'. How long roughly could I film for (total mount of minutes) until it dies? Would you recommended buying an extra battery? If so do you know how much extra batteries are? Sorry for the long comment, I just want to be 100% on the camera before I buy it :D Please reply to this!

[@smooths15]

I've been doing some tests after one charge, and so far I have got 30mins of video in short segments i.e 12mins, 8mins, 5min and 5mins. It probably wont last much longer though as the battery indicator was flashing for most of the last two 5min vids. I was using the zoom quite a bit however, so that probably chewed through the power. I would say, if you get a good copy and you dont use the zoom while recording, you should be able to go continuously for up to an hour.

[@onl9TheTruth]

trhough personal experience..Battery always die fast maybe 3 minutes and i really mean it..don't buy this camera

[@robertwiener8397]

Just got the camera today and SO APPRECIATE your wonderful comments!!!

[@geekanoids]

robert wiener Awesome, enjoy your new purchase.

[@anandv9327]

I have this camera as well. It seems that the vid. battery issue can be fixed with a firmware update. At first I was also looking at the Sony HX50V which has got more zoom. But after playing around with it for 5 min I didn't like it. I think the reason Canon is the number one camera manufacturer is because their software is great and the user experience eg. previewing photos, menu systems etc. are unbeatable by other brands.

[@AZ4N4774]

Just bought one. I noticed it doesn't have panorama wizard :(. Didn't know about the battery life. I hope it is acceptable if i take just pictures.

[@ProductionPeople1]

What camera are you using to film this video? Not the one your reviewing, the one you recorded this one with.

[@SkywardStorm]

How is the battery life? Does the firmware update fix the battery indicator problem?

[@Northisbest]

My accident little dropped mine red SX260 HS and the LCD badly damaged not worth to fix. So I decide pick SX280 or S120. Quickly say which is better

[@RotiBlata]

you are right when taking video it flash red on the battery indicator. and when u restart the camera it goes away .. it is a firmware bug. needs upgrade of firmware for this.

[@thejosephchoi]

What are your thoughts with the Sony CyberShot DSC-HX50V? Please do a review on this! Mixed feelings with both.

[@PavelEudave]

I´m between this one and the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX300. Which one do you recomend?

[@CocoAndTheCrazyCavy]

If the mircophone is on the front will that affect the sound if your talking behind the camera whilst its pointing at something infront of you ? Thanks

[@bosevalos]

Thanks for your review. but can i ask you for your opinion about SX270 HS in low light photoes and if SAMSUNG WB800F is better in low light photoes ??

[@MrAkihiros]

I'm surprised that you'd say the HX50 is better than the SX280 in terms of image quality because I've seen image comparisons (cameralabs) and the Canon is waaay better. Please qualify your statement please because I'm a fan of your site.:))

[@ebhaby26]

Hi. What superzoom camera do you recommend for concert video recording? (with great sound quality especially with the bass, screaming and thumping haha) thank you :)

[@MyWinterWarmth]

what is about it's battery? was it take 7 min in recording video ?

[@jencarns7378]

Thank you for your review. I just purchased this camera, because I am returning to school. (Nail Technology) Anyways, I needed a camera for school, because I am going for Nail Technology, which has been a life long dream. I am a little discouraged that the camera has such a crappy battery life, but wasnt surprised to hear you say that, since thats everything I have found out after googling it.... Im worried now that maybe I should return it for a better camera. The money is not an issue, but I chose to stay in the 200$ range, since it was only going to be used for school. I will be needing to record short video, but mostly need it for still pictures. I guess I could always use my iphone for the videoing, but do you recommend another camera that would suit my purpose better?

[@geekanoids]

The Sony RX100 M2 is epically awesome in every respect, even battery life, but you pay a premium for it. All of my daily videos are recorded with it. Check out today's video at 16:30 GMT ... some very crisp video for sure.

[@elesco4620]

What camera would you recommend for taking great quality photos of makeup looks, like up close eye makeup looks? I was looking at this one but I know that the video is the highlight of it so I wonder if you know of a camera that has GREAT image quality that's less than $200. Thanks.

[@geekanoids]

This would do a great job, or perhaps look at a Fuji X10 or X20.

[@JerTheGeek]

Hey Dave, I just ordered the Canon Powershot SX510 for doing youtube stuff and some photos. What are your thoughts on this camera?

[@geekanoids]

Great choice.

[@JerTheGeek]

Geekanoids Thanks!

[@ldman100]

Very good video for the model I have, I'm now hoping I can find a link to help me understand night time photos, in particular Moon shots. I struggled on Auto with last night's Blood Moon and wasn't happy at all with the results, I tried to go Manual with very limited knowledge but fumbling in the dark soon flattened my battery (as you correctly hi-light in issues relating) :[

[@geekanoids]

Thanks for sharing, it certainly is a great camera.

[@csp1322]

great video, you rock what ever happen do not stop reviewing the product

[@andeka2535]

Dear Dave,I'm trying to buy a digital camera,but i don't know which one do i have to choose,for me is really important to take pictures with good quality especially from far distance, could you please help me to choose one of this cameras below: 1-Sony Cyber-shot WX300 2-Panasonic Lumix TZ40 High Zoom Travel Camera 3-Canon PowerShot SX280 HS I really appreciate if you can you can help me,many thanks Reza

[@jenniemoon7183]

i have this camera TT_TT and its beautiful ! but the issue is the battery ...... it dies so soon

[@colleenkennealy3505]

Have the firmware updates that I've read about truly solved the battery problems (some say it's just an erroneous battery indicator problem) that you mentioned re the Canon SX280?

[@Fogmeister]

Hi Dave! I know this is a really old video (and camera) but I have a question if that's ok? I was wondering if I could use this camera as a way of recording straight to my computer? i.e. using it as a USB camera for Screenflow to record in? Does that make sense? If not could you point me in the direction of something I'm looking for. Currys PC World currently have this camera with £50 off (for £99.99) which looks like a bargain and if it does what I want then it's a must buy for me. Thanks!

[@RamilHuseynov]

Wich camera is better between Canon PowerShot SX280 HS and Panasonic Lumix ZS30/TZ40 ? I can't decide and I think as a specialist you can help me.

[@Prestige29]

How does this compare to the S120? Is there much difference? Seems like they are very similar to me? S120 being smaller, 280 having a better zoom... I think you can only use RAW files on the S120? I'm new to photography so i am not even sure how important i will find that

[@geekanoids]

The S120 video is much better, but the audio is not as good as the 280.

[@fiengoethals5973]

I want to buy a camera but I don't know which one is the best, the Nikon coolpix s9700 ore the canon power shot sx 280hs ? My budget is 220pounds

[@geekanoids]

Cool choice, it only has a few negatives.

[@JonBushell]

Cool vid. Is the Canon better than the Sony RX100?

[@RicaMOfficial]

I use the sony Rx100 I think it's the best camera right now, isn't it ? :)

[@HeyPsiu]

Hi .. what do u think cannon sx280 vs gopro hero3 ( just for vloggs and vacations )

[@uttaradit2]

Is it significantly better than the canon sx220 ??

[@geekanoids]

Sorry I no longer have this to check. From memory it was a great little camera.

[@lilveliciousG]

This is my favourite gadget review channel. :)

[@Saucin35]

Which camera is better in terms of image quality, this one or the canon powershot sx510 hs? Which one would you recommend me buying? Thanks in advance.

[@geekanoids]

NikeSoccer093 Both about the same.

[@Kimii99]

What about concerts? Like Rammstein which is very loud does this camera is good for this or not? Which camera is good then for under 200 eur :)

[@mrborges73]

Hi ,is this better than Panasonic ZS20 / TZ30 ? thanks

[@kevinstarr67]

Was this video made before the new firmware release that is supposed to have corrected the battery indicator errors?

[@TheSimonibb]

Am I going crazy?? I recently bought the SX280 HS. I really wanted to use the colour accent and colour swap features on this camera. On reviews and literature about this product, it mentions the colour accent and swap feature. However, this feature just does not appear on my HS280 hs. It's not in the filter menu where the Toy camera, fisheye filters are etc. please help, Does it exist on this camera? Thanks Simon

[@michaelpeck1358]

what webcam and lighting are you using to shoot this video?

[@515178]

Check out this video of Procyle/Cyclecross, and let me know what you think. camera was a canon powershot sx280 hs Jan Metselaar cycling (DRIVEN)

[@2luckynumber]

How long can you record with a 16gb sd card? How many hours or minutes?

[@hs4544]

do you have problem with battery indicator?

[@josh7631]

Another Amazing Video Dave!

[@msjazzyb456]

I wanted to ask, if you can recommend a camera to me as I want to start making youtube videos. So as a first camera would you recommend this?

[@isaacevans9980]

So if I'm a beginner KZbinr that vlogs would this be a better choice rather than my iPhone 6?

[@geekanoids]

+Isaac Evans Definitely, or the Canon G7X.

[@isaacevans9980]

+Geekanoids ok thanks!

[@wertak-pc7uf]

Canon deliberately blocks sharpness in the firmware on most of its cameras, you can take photos only with cameras that have sharpness settings in the full range

[@geekanoids]

Thanks for sharing your experience with this.

[@EVMANVSGAS]

They made the battery life a lot better when recording video through a firmware update.

[@caroly595]

I have a canon powershot sx280 but I'm just starting to use it. not sure why the battery starts to flash indicating it's low when I use the video mode. Then when I turn it off and on again it shows that it's charged. Could someone make a video on how to connect the camera to my computer using wifi, to upload pictures to my computer. I'm a complete amateur. Good review Geekanoids. Bought this to replace my Olympus Camedia C-765 which still takes great pictures. I just needed something smaller.

[@geekanoids]

Cheers for watching.

[@toddgilmore118]

is there a cheaper model without the GPS and wifi with the same image quality because I wouldn't dream of taking any photo straight from the camera onto Flikr without post editing in Picasa!! so those features are useless to me as far as I am concerned.

[@NickBishtVlogs]

I am not a professional photographer. I am lil confused. Which one of the following would you suggest for Prank Videos & VLog... 1. Nikon coolpix L820 2. Nikon Coolpix s6500,s6600 4. Nikon Coolpix s9400 5. canon powershot sx260 Or any other under this price range....? Thanks.

[@melomana91]

does the zoom or autofokus make any noise?

[@idksami]

do you know how to fix the issue with the battery in video mode?

[@nigelforshaw5847]

I have just had the lens replaced for my Canon SX280 HS and am now disappointed to find that when I am in video mode when I zoom in and out it does not refocus properly. I looked at some of my old footage which was fine but a whole lot of my recent videos are useless because of a focus issue. Still photos are perfect. I might have to take the camera back to the agents but does anybody have an idea of what he problem might be? I am not trying to use the digital zoom. Only the optical zoom

[@geekanoids]

Sounds like they did not fix the lens properly, I would definitely return it.

[@nigelforshaw5847]

​@@geekanoids Thanks for the video and reply. I am using the NB-6LH battery which is a bit better but the drainage of the battery in video mode is indeed annoying

[@geekanoids]

Video does eat battery on most cameras.

[@zassegaff]

Hi Dave, I'm using Canon SX260 HS at the moment and considering whether to upgrade it to SX280. My problem with the SX260 is the speaker. It is ok for capturing the sound of talking people. However, when I brought it to an indoor music concert, I started to notice the problem. It couldn't capture a clear sound of screaming people and music. It sounded like there was a really noisy wind sound captured. Do you have any idea about it? How to avoid the noisy sound? Thanks :)

[@marsama15]

I just ordered this camera through air miles, nice surprise to see it there. I tried the 270 and liked it fine enough but I don't like the MOV format of video, I prefer AVI. Any suggestions on what to use to convert these videos that don't take forever to do? Also I don't like where the flash pops up. I tend to hold camera there and then finger interferes with it popping up. Worries me now about the battery life, might have to buy an extra battery.