Canon's first Axx budget compact from 2001 — 1.3MP CCD, 3x 35-105mm zoom, CompactFlash, AA power.
The PowerShot A10 was the camera that opened Canon's long-running Axx budget line, released in May 2001 alongside the 2-megapixel A20 with an all-new body design. It replaced the earlier A5/A50 generation as Canon's entry point into digital photography, priced well below the S-series and G-series of the day.
It used a 1.3-megapixel 1/2.7-inch CCD behind a 3x optical zoom covering 35-105mm equivalent, with framing via a 1.5-inch fixed LCD or the optical viewfinder. Images were stored on CompactFlash cards, there was no movie mode, and the chunky body ran on standard AA batteries in keeping with the A-series formula.
As Canon's first Axx model the A10 is now mostly an early-digital curiosity: 1.3 megapixels limits prints to snapshot sizes and there is no video at all. The AA power, optical finder and simple point-and-shoot operation still make it an easy camera to hand to anyone, and the CCD's colour has period charm.
Used buyers need a small-capacity CompactFlash card and a reader, as a 2001 camera may reject large modern cards. AA power sidesteps dead proprietary batteries, but check the battery-compartment contacts for corrosion from cells left inside for years, confirm the LCD is free of bleed and that test frames show no sensor streaks.