Canon intros S3 IS digital camera with optical 12x zoom

Lake Success (NY) - Canon today announced the successor of its S2 IS digital camera. Besides a higher resolution, which climbs from 5.0 to 6.0 megapixels, the S3 IS comes with a 12x optical zoom and integrated image stabilizer. The zoom performance of the camera is equivalent to a film focal length of 36-432 mm. And that is not enough, buyers can opt for a 1.5x tele converter and a 0.75x wide converter.

Instead of the S2 IS’ silver metallic body, the S3 IS comes in black casing that resembles the styling of compact digital SLR cameras. Among the features of the device are support for 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratios, a shutter speed that ranges from 15 to 1/3200 seconds, ISO ratings from 80 to 800 and a 2.0" LCD display that can swing out of the camera’s body.

The S3 IS can record movies in 640x480 VGA resolution and 30 fps or 320x240 in 60 fps. Continuous movie recording is possible up to a maximum file size of 1 GB or 60 minutes.

The camera will go on sale in May of this year for about $500.

Canon also introduced four additions to its Powershot A series of digital cameras : The A700, A540, A530 and A430 aim at the entry level point-and-shoot segment. Offering resolutions ranging from six to four megapixels, the cameras will be avilable in March for $350 (A700), $300 (A540), $230 (A530) and $180 (A430).