The SD500 performs very well on speed and sharpness tests, and it's also got a fun My Color feature that will appeal to many types of shooters.

In design, the Canon PowerShot SD500 is comfortable to hold and control. One note however is that the tightly positioned buttons on the back are easy to press accidentally during one-handed shooting. This camera boasts a large 2 inch LCD with an optical viewfinder located directly above that keeps a smooth, bright and clear image when panning.

Apart from the 7.1 megapixel mark, the Canon PowerShot SD500 has most of the customary features of its group, including an f/2.8 to f/4.9, 7.7- to 23.1-mm (37- to 111-mm, 35mm equivalent), 3X optical zoom lens.

All the standard modes are available via the mode dial as well as through the menu system, including Playback, Auto, Manual (which lets you adjust white balance, ISO, EV compensation, and color effects), Macro, and Movie. The Movie mode lets you capture VGA video clips at 30 frames per second. Other modes available only via the menu system include Stitch Assist (for panoramas) and nine preset scene modes.

The Canon PowerShot SD500 has a very intuitive user control system. It also offers a very remarkable shooting mode called My Colors. You can make blues, greens, or reds more animated, or lighten or darken skin tones.

Fantastic effects are created with the Color Accent and Swap Options. Color Accent allows you to isolate the color of one object, while the color information for the remaining portion of the photograph is removed. The result might be the bright yellow sun in the middle of a black-and-white sky.

In Color Swap mode, you select a certain color in a scene on the LCD, and then select the color you want to swap it with. For example, you could isolate the bright red of one car and swap it with the blue from another. You have to make your color selections before you shoot however, so make sure you're not going to miss the shot.

Pictures are stored in SD memory cards with the CanonPowerShot SD500. There is also a direct connection to Canon CP Printers and select BJ Printers. This basically means that you do not have to have a computer to print pictures with these printers.

The Canon PowerShot SD500 makes use of proprietary lithium batteries. The advertised battery life is about 160 shots with the LCD on and about 550 shots with the LCD off. If a long battery life is very important for you, you can always pack along some extras - buy them at your local camera store.

Another unusual feature is an optional DC coupler, supported via a flap on the battery/media compartment door. This lets you run the camera off AC power (via an optional adapter) while you charge the battery in the included external charger.

Overall, the Canon PowerShot SD500 is a smart little camera for the value. A few notes however are that it has some difficulty finding the intended focusing point in Macro mode. Macro mode also has the fault of overexposing pictures when the flash is used except for the bottom area of the image that is dark due to the extended lens blocking the flash.

Another drawback is the mode dial design. Only the center (Manual) mode's label shows as level when chosen. The other labels (Playback, Auto, Macro and Movie) are slanted when you turn the dial.

In general, the Canon PowerShot SD500 is a smart choice for an ultracompact camera. It looks impressive and provides excellent image quality. With the addition of some out of the ordinary features, you have a smart little camera that is sure to be a top seller.