I bought the new Canon A2100 IS for 4 main reasons:
AA batteries
12 MP
6x zoom
small form factor

All those are exactly what I wanted and I got so much more. This is a very easy camera to use and its small size makes it easy to have along. I have always been happy with Canons and my PowerShot S2 IS has been a great camera. It is just a bit bigger than I wanted for traveling. The new A2100 takes equally great (or better photos) and there is not another small camera around that had those four requirements listed above. Zoom is important to me and getting 6x in a small camera is hard to find. The only very small drawback is that it takes awhile to be ready for the next photo when the flash is used - a small price to pay for all the other great features.

I take pictures of meetings and wanted a pocket camera with good low light handling because some people in the meetings don't like to be disturbed by flash. I have owned and still own many pocket size digital cameras. But I end up having to carry my bulky SLR to the meetings because the pocket cameras don't handle low light well. Another feature I want is the convenience of AA batteries instead of those special types. A2100IS meets both of my needs.

Other features, such as face detection, auto white balance, and button locations, are really great too.

Why did I remove one star? The low light pictures are still noisy, though acceptable (for the price). The flash does not reach far enough, so when I got a chance to use flash for a group of 8 people today against light, the picture turned out to be less satisfactory than the one without flash. You would normally expect dark faces without flash since it was against light, but the low light handling (along with face detection) turned out to work better than flash shooting.

This is Canon's cheaper model, so they delay applying the more recent technology. A larger CCD like the one they use for SD990 (1/1.7"), plus a larger lens (f2.8 or better) would make this camera a dream. If SD990IS uses AA batteries, I would have already bought it.

Still, this camera is the best in its class and price range. If you don't care about AA batteries and rather have a smaller and lighter camera to carry, and don't mind a spending little more money, consider SD990IS.

I bought my last digital camera way back in 2003, so it has been a long time coming. I've only had this new camera for 2 days, and so far I am really impressed with it, and only have good things to say about it. I'm not really a camera expert and really don't use the Program mode, but rather just keep it in Auto for now.

So here is the list of a few things I like about it so far.
It takes 2-AA batteries, so no more expensive specialty batteries.
The camera literally boots up in about 1 second, and you are ready to take pictures.
The 3" LCD display is crisp and clear.
The 6x zoom really brings in those far away objects.
In Auto mode it can automatically adjust to Macro if the object < 1' away.
You don't have to turn on the camera to view your pictures, just press the Playback mode button.
When in Movie mode you can zoom while in the middle of filming.

There is so many more good things to say about it, but the kids want me to go play badminton with them now.

I have no regrets buying this camera, and would recommend it to anyone.
-David

There are a lot of cameras out there, so I went directly to consumer reports for help on my search. This camera had all the whistles and bells for the buck! I also purchased a Transcend SDHC 16GB card which holds about 5000 pictures, or almost 3HRS of video! I use the camera for my construction before, during and after photos. Blowing threw a couple hundred pictures a day the space was needed. The camera was very easy to learn; just read the manual first and understand the funtions first, and soon you'll be on your way to some incredible photos! I used to be a point and shoot guy, but not any more. With a little practice, this camera could be your next best friend. P.S. No problems (fingers crossed).

This is an excellent point-and-shoot in the $200 price range. I bought it last week to get some extra features over my two-year-old Nikon Coolpix L11 without spending too much money. Two year's evolution in technology and about $60 extra bucks over the $150 L11 has given me a new camera that greatly improves on what I had in every way. One thing I want to mention is the "digital tele-converter" feature.

This is unlike "digital zoom" which merely crops a portion of the recorded image and reduces the size of the image below 4000 x 3000 pixels. The tele-converter feature increases the effective maximum focal length of the optical zoom from the 35mm film equivlent of 224 mm to 432 mm without reducing the size of the image from 4000 x 3000 pixels. I have only tested this in good sunlight, but I see very little reduction in image quality like I would expect had I used traditional digital zoom.

I can think of only one down-side to a camera like this that uses two AA batteries and that is for people who want to take flash shots in rapid succession. Those folks should look for cameras with a bigger battery pack which will take less time to recharge the flash unit. This is not a problem for me, and I like the convenience of the commonly available batteries.

In short, I am very happy with this camera.

ETA (8/30/09) This camera sold from Amazon in early July for around $210. Now, it is being offered here though 3rd party resellers at more than the Canon suggested price of $250. It's still a good camera, but I would refuse to pay more than retail for it, just on principle.

ETA (10/20/09) Gee, this camera has been discontinued (Canon seems to be phasing out the A-series) and replaced by something better at the same price point, the Canon PowerShot SX120IS 10MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Zoom. I don't own the new model, but it ups the zoom to 10X, and more importantly, adds aperture priority, shutter speed priority, and manual exposure modes. Even the reduction from 12MP to 10MP is a plus in my book, since I would expect this to give some improvement in dynamic range.

I wasn't really in the market for a new camera. I had a nice Lumix FZ-20 digital SLR that took good pictures, although it was falling behind current technology, being only a 5MP camera. However, after spending a wedding taking pictures with the smaller Lumix TZ5, I was hooked. I knew I'd be doing a lot more photography, and having a lot more fun, if I could carry a camera in my pocket, rather than having to strap on a camera bag. I sold my SLR the next day and started reading the reviews for compact cameras in the $200-250 range.

It seemed clear from the reviews that Canon had the edge in this market, however I still had some loyalty to my old Panasonic Lumix, and had liked the compact Lumix I had shot the wedding with. The decision came down to either a Lumix TZ5, or the Canon A2100. Both were high resolution cameras, and both had image stabilized zooms, although the Lumix had a longer zoom range than the Canon. After reading literally 100's of user and pro reviews, I stumbled onto [....] and found examples of full resolution pictures taken with both cameras of roughly the same subjects. The clarity and color rendition of the images taken with the Canon, especially when enlarged, were startlingly superior to the Lumix. The Canon pictures captured detail, texture, and a superbly natural color rendition, whereas the Lumix appeared grainy, darker, and flat. The A2100 was able to capture the clear edges of metal structures photographed against a bright background, while in the shots taken with the Lumix the details were completely washed out.

Another great resource was the CNET review site. CNET uses a standardized test for all their cameras to determine how clear the image is at increasing ISO values (for the non-technical, this directly relates to what your photos will look like when you shoot either in low light or when you need to use faster shutter speeds to capture things in motion). Here again, the Canon was VASTLY superior to the Lumix. Print on a book page and the smallest markings on a tape measure were easily legible even at an ISO of 800, and the white balance was perfect. By contrast, in the exact same shots taken with the Lumix the white balance was off, turning the white page a dirty beige, the print on the page is virtually illegible even at ISO 100, and the hash marks on the ruler are almost invisible by iso 400. I was convinced.

I've had the Canon A2100 camera for a month now, and really like it. The images are clear with very little noise or grain, color rendition is stunning, and the camera is exceptionally easy to operate. Face detection works well, as does the i-contrast system for ensuring that faces are appropriately exposed. On Auto mode, the camera almost always selects the correct mode for the shot, but you can always override it and choose the mode you want. Having the Program mode available allows those of us who have been shooting for years more leeway in setting individual parameters for special shots. The camera seems to have an exceptional ability to capture shots without using the flash (which I hate to use unless absolutely necessary). Even shots taken outdoors at night on the special ISO 3200 setting are clear and show almost none of the grain or noise you'd expect at this high an ISO value.

Some users have expressed concerns about the battery life with this camera. Admittedly, when I used standard alkalines, I got a low battery alert after about 65 shots. I then switched to Energizer "Ultimate Lithium" batteries, and have taken over 500 shots- and they're still going. I consider this very good performance for both the battery and the camera. I heartily recommend this camera for those who want an easy to take along, easy to operate camera that produces excellent quality photos.

I really like this camera. The features on it are great. Buttons are well placed and similar to other cameras from other brands I've owned so this camera was easy to pick up and use. The zoom is very nice. In the fully automatic mode the camera does a great job in choosing settings that make up a great picture.

This camera is incredible. I researched alot of cameras and this one is by far the one to have. It takes fantastic pictures and is very easy to use. We bought it for our vacation this year and it captured every highlight beautifully. The picutres are very vivid and clear and the color quality of the pictures is incredible. It is very light weight and fits right into your pocket. This is by far the best camera we have ever owned. You will not be disappointed.

Great little camera. Has many features and I haven't used a lot of them yet because the Automatic Mode is so foolproof and produces such great images that I just point and shoot. I bought the camera to take on a trip to Europe because I didn't want the hassle of a big SLR. I just thread it onto my belt and forget it's there until time to shoot a pic. I priced this camera at Walmart's online store and it was cheaper at Amazon.

I was extremely happy when i took initial pictures but then i noticed that it takes abt 8 secs(yes 8-10 secs!!!!) between each snap when the flash is on. This is something too critical for me as i try to take my baby's pics and 8secs is a lot more for a baby! So eventhough i very well like the rest of the features, not able to take a pic at the right time made me return this camera.