Canon revives its trending point-and-shoot compact – but it’s a pricier downgrade that belongs in 2016

Canon updates one of its cheap point-and-shoot PowerShots from 2016
Key features include a 12x optical zoom and compact design
The 2025 version is, in fact, a pricier downgrade

Canon has revived one of its cheap PowerShot point-and-shoots from 2016 with an updated model, the new PowerShot Elph 360 HS A – known as Ixus 285 HS A outside the US).

The almost 10-year-old original is one of a few trending compact cameras that are practically impossible to find after going viral (Kendall Jenner shoots with one, don’t you know).

So, the new ‘A’ version of the camera is good news for many empty-handed fans – there should be plenty of stock of the 2025 point-and-shoot with 12x optical zoom.

Canon will surely hope it has acted swiftly enough to ride that TikTok wave, with fresh availability of the Elph 360 HS A / Ixus 285 HS A set for October.

Trust me though, any success the 2025 version has won’t be because of its abilities. I can’t call this an upgrade – it’s practically a carbon copy of the original model, which wasn’t even one of the best compacts in the mid 2010s.

Worse still, there are a couple of downgrades, plus its limited to just black or silver colorways (the original came in purple too). There’s a higher price tag to boot, up from $359 to $379 (UK and Australia pricing TBC).