The day I got the Canon IXUS 300 HS for a test drive, I brought it to the wall climbing gym and showed it around. That same night, long-time wall climbing monster buddy, Eloisa, said she can’t get it out of her mind. Can’t blame her. I mean, who can? The test unit is sleek, feels sturdy, definitely a looker, and it’s a shiny bright red. Ferrari red, I must say. Come to think of it, the contour of this camera reminds me of a well designed sports car exterior. Hot and fancy.

I skimmed through the cam specs and found these notable:

• f/2.0, 28mm, 3.8x lens with IS
• 240 fps Super Slow Motion Movie mode
• HD 720p movie recording (1280×720)
• ISO Sensitivity up to 3200
• 3.7 shots/sec at 10MP or 8.4 shots/sec at 2.5MP

Click here for a full list of specs and features

I have to warn you that what you are about to see could well be the best photos of the IXUS 300 HS on the Internet at this time and I wish I was kidding. For your safety, after the photos are links to the more trusted tech review sites on the web for a more in-depth say on this camera.

As I’ve mentioned, the f/2.0 on this camera got me interested. It gives the user a faster lens and the capacity to compose dramatic portraits and macro with noticeable depth of field to play with.

Now, I’ll spin around the cam for your viewing pleasure.

The last image above shows the battery and the SD/SDHC card slots. Below, you’ll notice the minimalist back-side of the cam with a “wheel” that you can use to navigate around the menu and saved images. The screen, I noticed, is a marvel to look at even under direct sunlight.

To compare, I fished out my Lumix ZS3 and positioned it along side the IXUS 300 HS, both 10 megapixel snappers (only, the ZS3 has 12x optical zoom while the 300 HS has 3.8x).

HS stands for “High Speed”. High Speed because the IXUS 300 HS boasts having a 240 fps Super Slow Motion Movie mode feature. I never knew about this during the test so I searched youtube for a sample vid and found… holy sh*t I must try this out for myself!!! It’s like watching a footage of somebody moving at zero gravity!!!

And here’s another:

Yes, it delivered on the Slow Motion but something in the quality of the video doesn’t feel right. Maybe it’s the low light or just that in order to deliver on the 240 fps, the video had to be sized small. Like QVGA small, it seems.

From the camera review gurus’ perspective, below are ratings given by more notable gadget review sites on the net:

• CNET Asia: 7.8 (out of 10)
• Trusted Reviews: 8 (out of 10)
• Photo Review Australia: 8.5 (out of 10)
• Photo Radar: 4 (out of 5)
• Wired UK: 7 (out of 10)

For users who are after camera features housed in a thing of beauty, then this one’s for you. At PHP24,950 SRP, however, the budget conscious may have second thoughts. The IXUS has for years been beefed up as the most compact and stylishly sleek line of Canon cameras. It came to no surprise that after ten years, they’ve still got game. The IXUS 300 HS comes in matte black, gloss white, and high gloss red. The gloss white model reminds me of Storm Troopers. Just saying.