long zoom over 3x

i was using a canon sure shot 85 zoom for about 4 years and decided i wanted to "move up" to something newer and "better". i was sadly disappointed with this canon z155 camera. the 85 takes better or equally good pictures as the z155! the zoom is longer BUT the quality greatly diminishes when using that long zoom so basicly it defeats the purpose in my opinion... clear pictures are important to me! and especially if im going to pay $... for a point and shoot camera it especially better take goooooood pictures ya know? well, the close up pictures taken with little zoom came out nice and clear- as wil most any camera... but as i mentioned earlier when the zoom was used most of the way the quality was sad... the night shot mode was nice but that is included in a lot of cameras these days... i took a picture of a dollhouse lit only by a night light and the picture came out clear and lit. there were glares on my daughters eyes and other little things that all but ruin a good picture :( basicly i would NOT recommend this camera..(especially for as much as it costs!) if you really want more than about 80 mm zoom i would recommend going SLR. maybe canon will come out with abetter long zoom soon.. ...

I was surprised to read all the negative reviews about the canon z155. My own experience with this camera has been basically positive. Since purchasing the camera 7 months ago, the majority of my prints have been sharp, clear, colors bright and true to life. The only drawback i can think of is the pictures do tend to blur when using full zoom without a tripod. I dont think this is specifically Canon's problem, though, because photography books all recommend using a tripod when using a high zoom. At 155mm, one needs a very steady hand or the pictures blur. When I do use a tripod, even my pictures at the highest zoom come out crystal clear. I'd recommend this camera anytime!

Although my canon rebel SLR is incredible and we've had great canon's before, this one is very disappointing and inconsistent. I've had the same problems as others with blurry pictures and delays in taking photos after pushing the button. I'd recommend finding another camera or upgrading to a SLR from Canon (though pricey).