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Canon IXUS 220 HS: Build and handling
In terms of design the Canon IXUS cuts a petite and attractive figure, encased in a smooth stainless steel shell available in the choice of red, silver or matte black.
One of its most obvious assets is its weight, or lack of, weighing in at a very modest 141g with battery and memory card installed and its small stature; exuding dimensions of just 92.2 x 55.9 x 19.5mm.
Although the camera is enviable svelte and lightweight it still manages to exude a genuine rugged durability and what is more it's neat positioning of adequately sized buttons and controls shouldn't faze those with larger digits.
Operating the camera is actually very enjoyable, mainly thanks to the intuitive menu layout, incredibly responsive shutter and quick processing times.
A 6.7 cm (2.7") PureColor II G tempered glass-covered LCD screen consumes the majority of the rear of the IXUS 220 HS, only making way for a moderate selection of buttons that include a D-Pad (four-way controller) style ring featuring: exposure compensation, flash, display, macro/normal/landscape shortcut and function/set button.
Flanking the four-way controller are four additional controls: movie record, shooting mode switch, playback and Menu. The arrangement lacks dedicated self-timer and erase buttons, but we found these could both be quickly accessed through the on-screen menu facility, which helpfully only stacks a sensible selection of options and settings; enhancing overall ease of use.
Overall there is nothing obviously out of place with the IXUS 220 HS and as far as feature-packed compacts go this is undoubtedly one of the easiest to navigate.
