Canon built the IXUS 1000 HS to mark ten years of the IXUS line — and made it the first superzoom in the range. A 10× folded-optics lens reaching 360mm equivalent, packed into a 22.3mm-thick all-metal body that Canon accurately called the world's slimmest super-zoom compact. It shoots better in low light than anything else at this size, and the zoom gets you closer than you'd ever expect from a camera this thin. The wide end is 36mm — not ideal for landscapes, but that's the trade-off.
NO FILTER: SHOT ON IXUS 1000 HS
THE LOOKS
The pink variant is a two-tone finish — deeper rose on the front panel, lighter pink on the rear — with a glossy metallic finish across a stainless steel body. The faceplate is almost entirely flat, broken only by the mirrored chrome lens surround and a narrow flash strip. The lens folds completely flush when powered off. Also available in silver and brown.
THE SPECS
10MP back-illuminated CMOS. Canon 10× 36–360mm f/3.4–5.6 with 4-stop lens-shift Optical IS. DIGIC 4 processor. ISO 125–3200. 3.0" PureColor II G LCD (230k dots, tempered glass, wide viewing angle). 1080p/24fps Full HD with stereo PCM audio and optical zoom during recording. Super Slow Motion 240fps (320 × 240). Handheld Night Scene mode combines multiple frames for tripod-free low-light shots. 3.7fps continuous burst at full 10MP. Mini HDMI output. SD/SDHC/SDXC. 101.3 × 58.5 × 22.3mm, 191g.
DESIGN HIGHLIGHTS
- World's slimmest 10× superzoom at 22.3mm: the folded optics fit a 36–360mm range into a body that slips into a jacket pocket without protest.
- BSI CMOS rather than CCD: usable at ISO 1600 and printable at 3200 — a genuine generational step over the CCD-based compacts it replaced on shelves.
- Super Slow Motion at 240fps: a 2010 feature that still reads as a party trick worth pulling out — 30-second clips played back at a tenth of real speed.
THE VERDICT
The 10× reach in a 22mm body is the whole proposition, and it holds up — telephoto performance at that size was a real achievement in 2010. The BSI CMOS sensor gives it usable results at ISO 1600 that CCD-based rivals couldn't match. The 36mm wide end is the compromise you accept in exchange. The pink two-tone finish ages better than it has any right to — it's less candy, more considered.