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Canon Powershot SD400 5MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom |
If you don't need as much capacity, I had great luck with this camera and a high speed 1 Gig card. Be warned of 'incompatibility' issues and incompetent support.
My only complaint though is that mine died suddenly, just wouldn't start one day! No amount of charging or monkeying would bring it back to life. I believe it was some sort of lens error, but I really won't ever know. Handed it to customer service, the looked at it, told me it was broke and that I needed to buy a new one. That was upsetting...
Pros:
* Small
* Sleek
* Exellent picture quality
* Great video playback
* Good in-camera photo catalog
* Durable (This is my experience..remember 1 year 2 kids, and a good case.
* Good battery life & cheap batteries, I bought 2 extra batteries for like $20 on ebay.
* Simple user interface
Cons:
* Red eye could be better on this camera
* Get the 7.1mp version if you plan on cropping pictures and blowing them up to be large (using picasa2).
-it is a good value for the money
-it takes excellent photos
-I've enlarged photos to 8X10 size and they look beautiful
-it takes SD cards (also used in my PDA and can be fit into a $10 convertible USB memory stick)
-it is lightweight and small
-it has a lightweight, rectangular, rechargeable battery (I bought additional generic ones on ebay for $5 each)
-battery lasts quite long-maybe for 100 non-flash pictures
-battery charges quickly
-it is easy to send photos to your computer
The only thing I don't like about this camera is the photo quality when using the flash isn't very good. Sometimes the flash isn't strong enough and the pictures turn out grainy.
I hope you enjoy it.
The picture quality is bad. To save yourself some frustration, avoid this camera.
Mine has the infamous "Memory Card Error". Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Why would you want to take the gamble?
Aside from researching the camera model you are interested in, please also research Canon Customer Service Reviews. I would steer clear of these guys.
Please read for yourself and spend your money elsewhere: http://www.stevesforums.com/forums/view_topic.php?id=38477&forum_id=15&page=1
There are SEVERAL attorneys working on organizing class actions lawsuits against Canon due to their infamous "errors" that they won't admit exist. If these class action lawsuits apply to you, I encourage you to join.
Good Points:
-Quick power up to start taking pictures time
-Very small and easy to fit with in any pocket
-Fast shutter speed
-Very good sound quality on the video's
-Long battery life
-Great resoultion
Bad Points:
-Not good for dusk/low light shots
-Zoom leaves much to be desired
-Only a point and shoot camera not for anything more advanced.
In the end this is a great camera, as long as you are not trying for manual control or prfessional settings. For point and shoot and a good pocket camera it does not get any better than this. I am extremely fond of it and plan on keeping it for a long time.
(Note that this review also applies to the new SD450 which mainly has a larger screen.)
I had a Canon SD110 (2MP) camera for 3.5 years and I loved it. I took a while and did a lot of research to find it. I had been waiting for the right new camera and I finally found it, the SD400. I've had it for over 6 months and I've been meaning to write up this review.
I had taken over 9,000 photos with my SD110 in 3.5 years. With the SD400 in only 6 months, I've already taken over 1000 shots.
Back when I got the SD110 Canon was not as well known. Now people recognize that Canon is a top-tier digital camera brand.
My wishes for improvement over the SD110 were:
- longer movie clips (only 15 seconds) - now unlimited
- zoom in movie mode - YES
- limited close-up range - new Digital Macro mode
- higher resolution - YES
- better zoom - YES
The SD400 has all of this. The one thing it doesn't have enough of for my taste is zoom, but what can you expect from a camera .75 inches thick? I wanted zoom, but I didn't want to sacrifice portability. (I hate having a lens sitcking out of the camera.) In any case, it has a 3 x optical zoom which is pretty good.
The best feature of the SD110 was it's compact size. The SD400 delivers more in less space. I take it with me everywhere I go. If I see a shot, I can take it. If I see a moment, I can capture it in a movie. And no hassle with carrying a separate case. It fits in my front pocket, even my tight jeans. (Just be careful not to put anything else in there or you might scratch the screen or even crack it.)
One of the best features of the SD110 was the movie mode. It took great little clips of super high quality with sound too! Way better than any other camera. The only problem was they were limited to about 15 seconds in length. With the SD400, they are unlimited. You can trim them in the camera to save space too. It also can take 60 FPS for a high-speed camera effect. When you play it back at 30 FPS you get slow motion. The only issue is that you need to brace yourself to minimize camera shake. These movies are better than standard video recorder quality. They're close to HD TV quality if you use the 640 mode. There is no jumpiness period.
The other big advancement is the Macro mode. This thing is practically a microscope. It can take shots at under 1 inch from the subject assuming you have good lighting that close. Add to that the digital macro zoom and you can photograph a mosquito so close that you can count the hairs on its legs!
I love taking photos of flowers and always wanted to get closer. Now I can get as close as I want.
Lots of people will say you need more than 5 MP to go over 8x10. It's not true. I did decent 8x10 prints (with the bundled Canon software) using my old 2 MP SD110. With the SD 400's 5 MP I have done enlargements to 12x18 that are excellent.
The range of new settings on the SD400 are great. I would like more but they options are good. The best one is the ability to set the ISO speed. There's a focus lock and an exposure lock feature. I wouldn't know it if I didn't read the manual. Nice extras for sure. They're very useful if you're into photography.
The least satisfying thing is the auto-focus. It's odd, but I've gotten used to it.
Now, to be sure it's not perfect, but it is really good. I think it's better than 99% of the cameras out there.
I chose it over the SD500 because the 500 was thicker and I didn't feel I needed the extra resolution of a 7 MP camera. It was the right choice.
Note the following:
- battery life is excellent, and the charger is tiny, but if you don't want to be caught short on vacation or when you're out on a long hike, get a spare battery and charge them both. I did this for the SD110 and I never ran out of juice. The battery is so slim, you can carry it easily.
- do get a big memory card. I recommend the SanDisk Ultra II 1 GB. I have two of them.
CRITICAL - get something to cover the screen. It's large and easy to scratch in your pocket. Also in your pocket be careful to put the screen against your body to prevent it from getting poked and cracked. I would not put it in a back pocket either.
The biggest problem is holding still in low-light. I don't like flash and I like taking low-light shots. You will want a tripod or a mini-tripod if you do much of that.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Overall: It is the best camera available out there, so go and grab it if you find a deal.
You can make excellent quality prints upto 8x11. You may need higher resolution camera only if you are going to print beyond that size.
I use it mainly to snap scenaries, and it has never faltered even on a single photo. All of them have turned out excellently. I have snapped snow, dawn, dusk, photos on the run and all of them have come real great.
One of the attractive feature with canon is the "Stitch assist..", and people who take panoramic view pics know what I am talking about. It helps you to take excellent pan-view photos.
Buy the canon leather case as well, as the camera doesnt come with any.
Pros:
* Compact
* Flash is reasonable, I often hear complains from people who use other brands of similar camera of small foot print.
* "Stitch assist"
Cons:
* SD Card that comes with the camera is way too small. If you take Large size pics, you can snap only a two. Definitely upgrade it to whatever max the camera can support. (I have 512MB and it lasts for 100+ snaps)
* Zooming - if I zoom and take scenaries, the color depth goes down. I dont know how it comes in other digital cameras.
An excellent, compact, flashy camera altogether.
I like Canon SD 400, it has a very cool and slick design. It is very small, and I like the color. I don't like the Casio Z750 design as much, however, it does have a larger LCD screen, and it is thinner and lighter compare to SD400.
Since Casio Z750 is 7mp. and SD 400 is only 5mp, it is pointless to point out the image quality. However, Casio z750 took way better night time(or dark environment) pictures than this Canon SD400, and also the color is way way way better and way vivid than the SD 400. It also got way faster camera starting time(only a second then it is on and ready to shoot), and way way faster shutter time..This is a huge plus to me.
SD400 got very limited manual control and Z750 got tons of manual control which u can play around.
well, one thing I love about canon is the charger, way smaller and easier to carry around than Casio z750..I have to say that one thing I hate about Casio z750 is their docking system. You need to use their dock to charge the battery and also transfer images...However, you can buy sandisk SD card which they have one have built in USB to solve this problem...(not the charging part though)
The price are similar on amazon at this time, so I thought I could compare this two together.
The 640x480 30fps movie mode (almost DVD quality) is great (though the lack of image stabilizing makes things sometimes unavoidably wiggly looking).
My only real complaint is that with "auto" mode, outdoor shots of people sometimes have skin tone that's too blue, as if the camera guessed the wrong white balance. This happened with my older Canons too. It's easy enough to get around this by using manual mode though.
Other reviewers mentioned that the LCD was fragile, so the first thing I did was order a thick plastic protector from www.daproducts.com. It's not beautiful but it sure looks like it'll help with avoiding accidental damage (note: this is NOT the thin peel on/off protector that you can find advertised elsewhere, it is a solid thick piece of plastic).
UPDATE: After carrying on my belt for 18 months, the unit still works like new. This camera is with me at all times unless I'm carrying the XTi with 24-105 L series lens. Probably taken at least 2-3000 pix with the SD400.
Small and very versitile camera.
My issues are with delivery-why does it take WEEKS to deliver something so small? It's aggravating to have paid a large sum of $$$ to have the vendor continually changfe the date of arrival.
Mind you, the view finder is working, but I can't change any settings, can't see the shot's I've already taken, nor can I shut off the LCD power to save the battery.
Must say that I am a little disappointed in Canon. However, I am getting it replaced (thanks, Amazon!) and am willing to try again. My friends have had no problems with their SD series, so I hope this was a most unfortunate fluke.
Otherwise, its a cute, small camera that takes great pictures and video.
I'll let you know if the replacement is just as much of a bummer as the first one I bought in November.
The camera has a retractable lens that extends and has a lens cover that opens when the camera is powered on. When the camera is powered off, the lens retracts and the lens cover closes.
The camera has an on/off button on the top deck as well as a zoom rocker, large shutter release button. The bottom of the camera has a metal threaded tripod mount and a battery and SD card compartment lid. The rear houses a bright 2-inch LCD monitor, an optical zooming viewfinder, control buttons and a cool-looking menu control metal disk with a select button in the middle.
There is also a sliding switch between review, movie and still picture taking modes. This sliding switch has very well-calibrated effort - not too flimsy yet not too stiff, unlike the previous Digital Elphs, which had very stiff controls. The side has a metal cover, underneath which you can find a USB jack, A/V jack and a DC power input jack.
Just as SD400, the SD300 is incredibly easy to use. I have not read the manual (I have not even opened it), but was able to use the camera and all its features in no time. The camera can be used by any member of the family and by photographers of all levels of expertise from novices to advanced ones (albeit it will not give you much control over the shutter speed or aperture).
The SD300 comes pre-set to Auto mode. You do not have to do anything other than point and shoot - the camera takes care of the rest. The camera uses 9-area intelligent autofocus. You press the shutter release button halfway to make camera focus and the camera shows you (on the LCD screen) where it focused by displaying one or more green rectangles. Then you take the picture by pressing the shutter release button all the way.
If you want more control, you can select Manual mode, which is not a real manual mode where you would be able to select the shutter speed and aperture, but rather a mode in which you get access to selection of several parameters. In Manual mode, you can set the ISO (50-400), white balance (several presets and custom), use exposure compensation to make pictures darker or brighter, use picture effects, color replacement effects, etc.
The camera gives you instant access to the flash mode selection (flash off, red-eye reduction, night portrait, auto flash), macro or landscape mode as well as drive mode (single frame, timer or burst/continuous shooting) at a push of a button.
The camera uses the latest version of Canon DiG!C processor - DIGIC II. It is the same processor used in larger Canon digital SLR cameras and it gives this Digital Elph amazing speed. The camera takes less than a second to power itself on in review mode and only about a second to power on and extend its lens in shooting mode. It feels instantaneous.
The SD300 can capture images at about 2-2.4 per second in burst mode (I used Kingston Elite Pro SD memory card). In single-frame mode, the camera could snap pictures as fast as I could push the shutter release button (1-1.2 seconds per picture). The focusing takes less than a second (in bright light or in dark environments) and the shutter lag, when pre-focused, is almost unnoticeable. The focusing is slightly slower at telephoto, but still under a second.
The zooming from wide angle to telephoto (or back) takes less than two seconds and is responsive, but has less steps than I would like.
According to Canon, the camera can take about 140 pictures on one charge of its miniature battery (400 with LCD off). I have not validated this claim, but I took more than 60 pictures and 8 minutes of video and the low battery warning has not appeared yet (the camera has no real battery status indicator).
The flash is rather bright for its size. It has an effective red-eye reduction mode and is sufficient at up to 10-12 feet away. It has a recycle time of about 7-10 seconds.
The camera produces excellent photo with well-exposed, sharp, contrasty and richly-colored images (see the samples). The sample photo can be seen at
http://www.review-shop.com/Canon_SD300/Canon_SD300_Sample_1_1.html
(you can copy and paste the above address into your browser's address area)
The skin colors are true to life and pleasing. The photos taken with the SD300 are sharp from corner to corner with only the very edges of the frame being slightly softer than the center. This will not be noticeable in printed pictures however since corners normally don't make it to the print due to the aspect ratio difference and other factors. Plus, the blurriness is so small, you have to enlarge the image to 100% on the computer screen to notice it.
Usually, the smaller the camera and the higher the optical zoom it can provide, the softer the image becomes, especially at the corners of the frame as it is difficult to produce compact optics with high zoom levels. Surprisingly, the lens on the SD300 is so good, there is only a small amount of blurring in corners. Overall, the lens produces sharp results at all zoom levels and has impressive 3x optical zoom range.
The image noise is absent at ISO 50 and cannot be found even in the shadows. It appears (slightly) at the ISO 100 in the shadows, gets more pronounced at ISO 200 and gets worse at ISO 400. Still, if you are printing 6x4 or 5x7 pictures, the noise should not be visible at all and will only be slightly visible at ISO 400 with larger prints. With 4-megapixel shots it produces, you can print your photos at up to 11x14 inches with good detail (ISO 50-200).
Recommendation: I highly recommend Canon SD300 if you want a miniature, cool yet capable camera with 4-megapixels that produces excellent photos with print sizes of up 11x14 inches. It is extremely fast, easy to use and, dear I repeat it again, simply cool.
If you want more control, you might want to check out slightly larger Canon PowerShot A520.
The SD400 is a wonderful product on a many counts.
- It is ultra portable. It's compact design is not only a matter of form and asthetics. It is quite functional... making it easy to carry around without taking up space.
- The LCD screen is very vivid and clear.
- The controls are very intuitive so that picture navigation and editing on the camera are easy.
- It has a wide array of photo modes to suit your needs.
- It is very easy to customize what size and detail you want your pictures, depending on if you plan on printing them. (If you only make 4x6 prints, you will not need to use the highest setting on the camera. But if you plan on making an 8x11 print, you will need to increase the detail and size of the picture).
- Convenient battery charger and easily removed SD card.
- The picture quality is very good. I have made prints and taken many pictures with this camera. I have not noticed fringing problems or color problems.
Some things that are not as good:
- The LCD screen is a little fragile. Most digital cameras have this problem. But I did break it once... and it costs quite a bit to replace.
- Because it is so small, it is easy to accidently touch the lense or cover the flash when you are using it.
Things you will need:
- Get a carrying case to protect your camera.
- You may want to buy screen protectors.
- Buy an SD card. All digital cameras come with a memory card, but they are always too small (16MB).
My recommendations:
If you want to buy this product, remember to get familiar with the photo modes and consider the photo sizes you want. Also, I recommend that you only use the optical zoom, and not the digital zoom, because digital zoom decreases the image quality.
All in all, this is a very good product and worth buying. I am very happy with mine, and I am sure you would be happy with yours too.
As a college student, the camera was great for parties - the form factor allowed it to comfortably fit into the small leg pocket of carpenter jeans for quick deployment. I would also let my girlfriend borrow it and it fit easily into the small evening purse she used.
One of my first purchases on receipt of the camera was a 'da Oily Protector for the LCD screen. I have not used any other case and have not had a single problem.
Another great combo for this item is the Sandisk Ultra line of memory cards. The Digic 2 processor is extremely fast - so fast that using a regular card creates a bottleneck in turnaround time. Higher speed memory chips make this issue non-existant.
I have also noticed the "red-eye" issue, but a quick swipe of the red-eye tool in Picasa or any other photo editor fixes the problem.
I highly recommend the product - especially with the release of the SD450 dropping the price on this just-as-good companion.
The down side: The picture quality is not quite on par with the A610. It does not have as good of exposure control. Some pictures are too dark or too light depending on the lighting conditions. Some faces will wash out a little if the lighting is not well controlled. The flash is not as powerful, usually good for about 14'.
It has much more low light level noise. This is due to the size of the CCD which is smaller and must compact the same amount of
pixels on a smaller area which, I understand, is the reason for noise.
My wife loves the camera and, I must admit, we usually take it along with us because of it's small size and leave the A610 home because it is more bulky.
I don't think you will be disappointed in the little camera, but it does have some picture quality/exposure deficits as compared to the A610.
It produces pictures that are out of focus and extremely, extremely noisy (fringing is unbereable). Anything taken with ISO above 50 is useless.
Battery life is minimal.
I have several Canon cameras and have used their products for a long time but this one is a big dissapointement.
Canon repair and support is useless when it comes to SD 400.
Stay away from it!
For traveling, family pictures, party and every situation. Be sure to have at least 512MB SD card so you can also record small videos.
I'm not a professional, so I abandoned my reflex and carry this tiny camera everywhere.
The problem is that it is fragile. LCD screen stopped working, even though I bought a hard leather case and kept it in there while not in use. I never dropped it, I never did anything rough to it, but it still stopped working after little over a month of use.
THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS MODEL. Do some research and read review pages, there's overwhelming amount of complaint about LCD screen breaking. Oh, and warrenty clearly states it doesn't cover something going wrong with LCD screen or lenses or battery leakage (come to think of it, it probably only covers the strap). Customer services will only accuse you of dropping it, and refuse to do anything about it.
The only thing I can do now is to warn others. If you're thinking about buying this model, please reconsider. There are other digital cameras out there that are similar with competitive prices.
He just loved my choice and I too must say that it is an amazing camera and performs exceptionally well. Being sleek and compact it is easy to carry while traveling. I was surprised when I read about the different features this small camera offers. The color swap feature is great, it is easy to navigate and you can customize various settings for shooting using the Automatic Mode. The battery life is just too good.
My brother had taken the camera with him for him 2-day camping trip and in spite of taking tons of snaps he didn't have to recharge it. Moreover it tells you how many more snaps the SD card can hold. The feature of adding voice comments to your pictures is just incredible. But one thing that surprised him was that the camera doesn't show the battery status and the date.
A few things which could have made SD400 a better one are: 1) the red-eye reduction mode - It didn't seem to work. 2) The outlet door that holds the battery and SD memory is very flimsy and looks as though it will break within no time. 3) Flash range is limited and the quality of pictures taken indoor is not so good. 5) The zoom doesn't work while using the video.
I've heard about E18 error, E16 error and certain repair problems for the SD400, but I didn't have any problems like that and on the whole my brother and I are happy with it. It is a perfect camera for a budding amateur or an average person and I would recommend the Canon SD400 to anyone who is looking out for a quality digital point and shoot camera under 400 bucks
Now that I've sold you on a Canon, which one should you choose?
First off, let's see if you really need an SDxxx camera, or would be better suited with a cheaper non ultraportable camera.
The SDxxx Series offers several key advantages over less portable models:
-Beautiful, sleek design and metallic body will wow anyone who sees it.
-Gorgeous 2 inch LCD screens
-The excellent Dig!c 2 processor (other Canons only have dig!c 1)
-Much better movie mode than previous Canons
-Small light, easy pocketability
On the other hand, there are some significant drawbacks due to the components Canon had to use to get the camera so small:
-Few manual controls.
-Pictures are not as sharp as those of similar non ultraportable cameras.
-The flash is very close to the lens (lots of redeye problems)
-More purple fringing issues than other Canons
-Proprietary batteries that are expensive to replace
-The LCD is very fragile. Read the SD200 and SD300 reviews to see lots of unhappy people whose LCDs broke. Canon's warranty does NOT cover this either. My suggestion? Buy using a credit card that offers a warranty in addition to the manufacturer's. If your lcd breaks, many CC companies will replace the camera no questions asked!
If you don't need the ultra portability and flashy looks of the SD cameras, a slightly larger camera with more features might be right for you. I would highly suggest Canon's A510 or A520 if you don't need an SD model.
If you still want an SD model, which one should you choose? The SD200 with 3.2mp, the SD300 with 4mp, the SD400 with 5mp, or the SD500 at a whopping 7.1mp?
Your first instinct may be that more megapixels is better. Today, however megapixel ratings are similar to Ghz ratings in the computer world: They used to mean a lot, but they don't mean as much anymore. More megapixels do NOT mean a better image. They mean a larger printable image. Unless you have to have huge prints, you simply do not more megapixels. In fact, the 3.2mp of the SD200 is enough for anyone who doesn't plan on printing pictures larger than a standard 8.5x11 sheet of paper.
That having been said, there are some differences between each SDxxx model. In order to get the larger 7.1mp sensor in the SD500, Canon had to make the camera larger. Thus, it is around a quarter inch thicker and 30% heavier than the other 3 models. The larger size did enable Canon to pack more features into it, however:
Features unique to the SD500:
-1/4 inch thicker
-30% heavier
-50% longer flash range
-14% more battery life
The SD400 and SD500 also share these benefits over the SD200/SD300:
-New "Night Display" feature which brightens the LCD in low light
-My Colors feature lets you highlight or swap colors right on the camera
-USB 2.0 High Speed support
The following are shared by all the SDxxx Cameras:
Pros:
-Beautiful, eye catching design
-Great image quality, though not as good as non ultraportable models
-New Dig!c 2 image processor
-Excellent Movie Mode
-3x optical zoom is adequate for most people
-Excellent, intuitive manual controls
-Huge 2.0 inch lcd that looks great under various lighting conditions
-Uses widely available and cheap SD cards
Cons (most of these are minor quirks):
-Some purple fringing problems
-Proprietary batteries are expensive to replace and inconvenient at times
-Lots of issues with fragile LCDs
-No RAW support
-Few manual controls
If you do choose this product, the first thing you should buy is a larger SD memory card. The camera comes with a 16mb card (32 in the SD500), which is pretty much useless.
You should also immediately purchase a case and some screen protectors to protect the LCD.
ADOPT THE IDEA OF A DOCKING STATION FOR BATTERY CHARGING AND IMAGE TRANSFER!
-I got so used to this when using a Casio EX-Z55 that it should be the way to go for ALL digital cameras sold with rechargable batteries.
-In case no one has noticed, that flimsy plastic trap door on this Canon SD400 (and all other SD models) that holds the battery and the SD memory is absurdly destined to break one day. I am not one of those "bull in china shop" rough fast rippers that seem to break everything, BUT, I have to use the utmost tedious care when opening it to recharge the battery or if I want to use my card reader to quickly view the images without moving them to my PC's hard drive.
-I expect Canon to want a minimum of $100 to replace the battery door if it breaks. I paid $219 plus tax for the whole camera.
-Do it Canon! steal the concept like Nikon, HP, and Casio have done with the innovative Kodak docking station idea. (The chrome plastic pressure fit cover for the USB cable is fragile also!)
The greatest thing about this camera is the different modes you can take pictures in. If you're a beginner in taking pictures with a digital camera, or you just don't know how to set modes in the manual function, you can choose from different preset modes like "underwater" or "portrait". The best mode is "my colors" where you can change skin tone. You can also choose certain colors to appear brighter than others, or swap colors around in your photos. Another excellent point is the amazing battery life and how quick it takes to recharge.
A big complaint about this camera is the LCD screen. The screen is remarkable. It is a 2-inch LCD screen and the picture never shows any noise. The worst thing about it is how easily it can be damaged, but with proper care you'll never get a scratch or break the screen. Another con about this product is the red-eye problem. When you're taking shots with flash, most of the time they will result in red-eye pictures. There is a red-eye reduction mode, but it didn't seem to work that great for me. An additional problem with modes is the manual mode. There isn't much you can do when you switch over to the manual mode when taking pictures.
Uploading pictures onto your computer is very fast and very easy. You just plug the camera in and press a button. Editing pictures in graphic programs is also very simple. The best feature about opening a photo in a graphic program is the photo will rotate if you took the camera as a portrait. The automatic rotation saves a lot of time when it comes to rotating photos manually. As for the different modes, I find that the video mode works pretty well for a camera this tiny. Sound quality comes out well and the video quality is actually nice. You can also edit the video on the camera as well.
Overall, this camera is great and it's easy to find a use for it everyday! Snap a shot of your children or maybe that bowl of fruit on your kitchen table. Any picture you take can look just like a professional picture, as long as you have a steady hand and creative mind. Don't just use this camera to take pictures of family and friends, take time to capture the smaller things in life.
The 450 is just nicer- quiter, larger screen and the price went down right after I received the 400. They're both beautiful point and shoot digitals.
This is an update on this camera: I have now had the camera for just over a year, and just returned from a month vacation in Australia. I took the SD 400 with me and took approx 3000 pics and the quality on nearly all were excellent. The charger is dual voltage and the voltage in Australia is 240, the only thing is that I had to use a USA to Aussie electrical adapter. This worked out fine. I would move this camera up one more star as I had no problems with it. Just understand It is not a full blown model camera and it has its limitations.
flash fills the picture very well (does not over burn the photo like my S50 )
easy to use
very fast and responsive (much better than my S50, but not as good as SLR )
perform badly in low-light conditions
high iso (400) is worse than nothing
hard time focusing in low light env.
If you need low light support go for the s60/70/80 which do a much better job for that matter
battery/sd-card compartment of cheap quality (sd500 has a solid built)
same goes for the usb cover( like all other compact digicams)
I did a lot of research before I purchased this camera, and felt comfortable buying Canon, because of good things I'd heard. I knew that I wanted at least 5MP and some zoom capability.
All that said, I have had my camera for 4 days and have taken quite a few pictures, and a lot of them aren't that great. I am more than willing to attribute the poor quality to my lack of skill as a photographer, but am not sure this is why. I have taken some shots out in the backyard that are beautiful. All of the pictures I have taken of people have sucked though. I guess I just expected a little better since this camera was billed as "point and shoot" by so many.
The manual and directions are easy to read and helpful. I do not care much for the Zoom Browser software that accompanies the camera. It is very limited and the red eye reduction has yet to work for me.
The 300's LCD screen was pretty clean and neat.
I requested Dell to send me areplacement and they sent me one, not much improvement though, the LCD is brighter in the 1st one compared to the second one and the static is more in the first one. The 300 has much less static....But when I checked a SD400 at a near by best buy store it was much more clear and had less static so now am wondering what to do...return SD 400 and get a SD 300 or just get a SD 400 from a local store at a costlier price...
I guess I liked the 300 compared to the 400 because of the LCD.
I believee with the 300 you could take decent 8.5 x 11 prints and I would not need larger prints.
My beef with this camera is the burry images. People say you can compare apple to orange with pocket digital camera to larger camera. But what is the point if you only get perfect image with outdoor shot with a lot of sunlight. Living in Seattle's cloudy fall and winter season, 1/3 to ½ the images are blurry. Wow, no action mode means this little boy has a slow shutter speed. So taking pictures off a moving bus or car on a road trip is a joke. Anybody running too fast becomes blurry vision. Indoor shot with a flash is fine. Canon's images have the least amount of noise and pixilation of any brand. The image is very detail in perfect situation. For the best image quality for a pocket digit digital cameras out there now are the Fuji film FinePix Z1 and Casio Exilim EX-Z750.
Camera that I owned or used.
Best image, true color, sharpness, detail, under $500 - Panasonic FZ15 (large w/ 12x optical and image stabilizer)
Best color saturation, vibrant color, indoor shot/ night shot, features- Sony DSC-F717 (new CyperShot lack sharpness)
Cool factor, user friendly, little noise, blurriest- Canon SD400.
Nikon Coolpix is below average and Olympus is fine but has robust body design.
All in all, no regrets. I'm happy with it for what I paid!
1) Besides of being a good looking camera is really small and light, and most important, Canon makes no sacrifices in performance to achieve this. The zoom is very good. The resolution of the pictures is great.
2) The pictures it takes at night impressed me, it's awesome the quality of the pictures in places that are poorly illuminated.
3) The most outstanding feature is the MY COLORS MODE (the best are Color Accent and Color Swap), no other camera has something like this. Playing with colors is really fun and you can put your creativity to work. And you do it all from your camera, before taking the picture, not AFTER and having to use special software.
4) It also lets you set the begging and the end of a video (cutting it) and watch the videos in slow motion.
5) The software is useful and easy to use and install.
There's ONLY ONE THING I DIDN'T LIKE, it doesn't come with a carrying case. So I bought the Canon PSC-90 Deluxe Leather Case, which works great and it looks cool.
Also it comes with a really small memory card (like every camera in the market) you will always need to buy a bigger one. I bought the Sandisk SDSDH-1024-901 1 GB Ultra II.
You probably think that 1 GB is too much and maybe it is. But the size of a 2-minutes-video in the highest quality is about 190 Megabytes!
------------ IN COMPARISSON TO OTHER MODELS/CAMERAS -----------
*This camera has the same features of the SD450, the only difference is that the SD450 has a 2.5 inch LCD screen (instead of 2.0), but it usually cost between $70-$100 more and the controls in the back are smaller; so is not really worth it.
* Is very similar to the SD500, the main difference is that the SD500 has 7 Megapixels. But it is bigger and more expensive. And more Megapixels don't always mean its better. I mean with my SD400 pictures can be of 2.5 Megabytes (that's a lot), so you won't always take all your pictures at the full resolution and full size.
* I really thought about getting a Panasonic Lumix, mainly because of the Optical Image Stabilization, but I haven't had troubles of blurry pictures with my Canon and the MY COLORS MODE is a better feature.
1. This camera is small but has a relatively large screen. Very beautiful. I suggest an LCD screen protector for this.
2. The controls are easy to use. This little camera still has a lot more features than I use on a daily basis, but they're there when I need them.
3. The battery life is excellent. If you travel a lot, I suggest buying extra extended batteries from eBay. I bought some just before I went on my overseas trip this past summer and I'm glad I did.
4. I no longer need my camcorder. I know, the quality isn't as good as a dedicated camcorder, but I found myself not using the camcorder at all since it took a while to set up. With the handy movie feature of this camera, I can take videos of my family in a snap. I also suggest extra SD cards, preferably the 1GB or more cards, if you do plan on taking a lot of short movies.
5. The picture quality is excellent. One little caveat, though. Take as many pictures of the same subject as you can, so that you can have your pick. I've found that I really have to keep the camera steady in lower light conditions without using a flash, especially close ups and macro mode. Otherwise, the picture comes out blurred. It's a little hard to tell on the LCD screen. If you have a steady shooting arm then this won't be a problem for you.
6. When I travelled this past summer, I found that I was able to do away with a bulky camera, the camcorder, and the laptop for downloading all the photos. So, if you want to take lots of pictures and don't want to be bothered by juggling three or more devices, I suggest:
a. Buy the Mega View 566 PMC. It has a 20GB storage capacity, a screen, and an SD slot. I was able to store all the photos and movies from a full SD card, empty the card, and start over again. This will also fit in your purse or backpack without adding bulk.
b. In addition, buy two or three 1GB SD cards for those times when you can't stop long enough to download your photos. On a 3 week vacation, I easily took 20GB of photos and movies, and could have probably used more.
c. Buy extra batteries. They're relatively cheap. And you'll always have power when you need it.
d. But the CAnon leather case. Great for protecting your camera in your purse.
e. For places where there will be a lot of moisture, dirt or sand, like beach, rainy places, ski slopes, in the pool, buy the Canon all weather case.
f. Buy a little make-up case to fit the charger (it's pretty small too with input of 100v-240V), the batteries for both the camera and the PMC, and your extra SD cards. These will all fit in your purse or backpack nicely.
Well, that's my take on a camcorder free life. If they can make a camcorder the same size as the SD400, with a 5 MP or more resolution digital still camera, I'd switch. Until then, I'll stick with the high resolution photos, good quality video, and the highly portable size of the SD400.
I've never owned a camera of nearly this quality before, so I don't have much basis for comparison. I can't tell you if this is better than some similar camera, since I haven't used any others.
That said, I'm really liking this camera.
Out of the box, it's very easy to figure out how to point-and-shoot and use basic functions with all possible adjustments set to the default "automatic" setting. After that, you'll have to hit up the manual. Due to the compact design, there's no room for a verbose menu system, so everything is icon-based. To figure out how to access more advanced features, you're going to have to reference the manual.
The manual is quite comprehensive, though, and handily indexed so I've been able to find what I wanted without much trouble. The manual also does a reasonable job of explaining not just how to adjust the settings, but what the different settings mean, e.g., "ISO 50" vs "ISO 400". It tells you how to change it and a brief explanation of why different settings may be desired.
The picture resolution is quite spectacular. In fact, if you're just looking to take casual pictures to send to family members over the internet or a camera to take standard-sized photos with, you could certainly get away with a cheaper camera. This camera takes pictures of sufficient resolution to print as a small poster! (Or a very large glossy print.)
The video mode is quite nice as well. With a 1 GB memory card, you can record over 15 minutes of video at maximum quality, or over 45 minutes of video at a medium quality (or over 2 hours of video at lowest quality). The video also includes sound, though I have doubts as to the quality of the built in microphone.
The built-in flash is great and it has a red-eye reducer. The optical + digital zoom is fairly impressive and there other other features such as rapid-fire picture snapping (where you hold down the button as the camera clicks away) and macro mode (allowing you to take a magnified shot of something really close to the lens).
Transferring data to your computer is also quite simple, with the included connections and software. You can also, of course, review stored images using the camera itself and erase whatever you want from there.
As the camera only comes with a very tiny memory card, I advise getting a bigger memory card and an extra battery when you buy this camera. I got the 1 GB card and can honostly say it's more space than I could ever possibly want. 1 GB holds hundreds of top quality pictures -- or almost 2000 pictures at 1600x1200 resolution!
There are cameras that take even higher resolution pictures than this one, but unless you know for a fact that you want to use your camera to print large posters, you truely don't need more than 5 megapixels.
Thanks Mark
I purchased this camera when it first came out-probably one of the first off the shelf. I should have waited for all of the rebate offers and sales, however I wanted to replace my previous ELPH and pass it on to a nephew so I could get the newest Canon Digital Camera. I had read all of the reviews online and in periodicals that I like to read. It was unanimously agreed upon that this camera really packed a true bang for the buck!
I am a photographer and use typical SLR and Medium Format Cameras for the most professional work. I've incorporated digital photography for moments when I don't have the time to put the whole camera outfit together or when I am traveling and don't want to carry a heavy camera, lens, flash, etc. Recently I put the Canon to the test. I was called upon to photograph a Canadian Competition Bicycling team, from Toronto, that was training in sunny Arizona. The photo shoot went very well and I was comfortable that the photos would turn out great. In addition to taking my typical "35mm Film" photographs, I chose to use my Canon Powershot SD400 to see how it would compare.
I developed all of the 35mm photographs and had prints made for all members of the racing team. After I finished this 4 day process, everything from taking the photos to developing the negatives and finally making prints of the best photos, I turned to my new ELPH and used my laptop computer to view the pictures. I was totally astounded by the incredible performance of this small but mighty camera. I decided to take it another step higher and took my Memory Card to a Kinko's Copy Center and had enlargements made-everything from 5 x 7's to 8 x 10's.
The colors were brilliant and it was impossible for me to see any differences in quality between the original small prints and the 5 x 7's and 8 x 10's! As a semi-professional photographer, like so many others, I assumed that I would see a difference once the digital photos were enlarged. Not the case with this awesome digital Canon Powershot SD400 5MP Elph Camera!
I hung 2 prints on the wall, both 8 x 10's from my 35mm SLR Camera, and then placed the digital 8 x 10's from Kinko's just below them. It would take a very, very professional eye, with a very, very powerful magnifier, to discern any differences in quality. I've always been impressed with the Canon Digital Cameras that I have owned, but this 5 megapixel Elph is a true gem and the best digital camera I have ever owned. I ended up with 4 photos on the wall, that still remain there, as I enjoy showing clients the power of a high quality digital camera.
I hope this review offers some assistance to you. There are so many technicals points that I could have discussed with you, however I wanted to present an honest review as a result of a true experience I had with this incredible camera. There are so many to choose from, so many sales and specials and rebates, etc. If you're looking for a great camera that will guarantee you performance that even a professional would expect in a camera-then the Canon Powershot SD400 is the camera for you.
This is a compact camera that costs a lot because of its size and amount of options for a camera that small. It is not going to win you any photo awards, but as an amateur photographer or just snapping pictures for fun, it's perfect for your needs.
The movie mode, as well, in 30 or 15 fps (you have the option to choose), is just as high quality as any other camera on the market.
Pros:
- Image quality is fantastic so far, inside and outside.
- Movie mode is very easy to use and playback/upload to computer
- Blazing fast start-up speed
- Small, attractive design
- Canon is a reputable brand
- LCD screen size/viewfinder. People, you're holding this thing one to two feet from your face, you don't need a 2.5" LCD screen that eats up batteries and pushes out a viewfinder. This camera has a 2" screen WITH a viewfinder, which is great for me. It saves batteries, gives you the option to use a viewfinder if you're in extreme sunlight or something malfunctions with the LCD while you're on vacation and can't bring it in for repairs
Cons:
- I honestly cannot think of any cons that a typical consumer would find with this camera. The image quality is great (I was this close to getting a Sony T-1 but read reviews about how the image quality was very, very poor, which steered me away from that brand, as well as the insane cost of the Sony memory sticks).
- There are some negative reviews about error messages and LCD screen malfunctions with the camera, which I paid close attention to before making my decision. Ultimately, I decided to get my camera at Best Buy and got a warranty for 4 years. This way I'm covered, and I can go into the actual store and talk to someone in person. It's much more relaxing and I suggest that course for any camera that is purchased.
Overall, this camera is so well-worth the money for yourself or as a gift. [...] If you are interested in seeing sample images from a real person who has basically no professional photography experience whatsoever. I'll show you how well this camera takes photos.
My only complaint was in the zoom feature. Sometimes, I wanted to zoom in on details of different things, and the clarity wasn't always there. My scenic shots came out beautifully and in addition to the portraits of family and friends, that was the most important thing I was hoping would turn out. I took over 350 pictures and only a small handful came out blurry.
I would definitely encourage a friend to give this little gem a go.
After reading many reviews of the Sony T-series and SD 400 at Amazon and [...], I decided on the Canon SD 400 camera as it had many more features than the Sony T-series and was a bit lighter. Both the Sony DSC-T1 and T33 were the same price as the Canon SD 400 and about two ounces heavier.
I am more than delighted with the features of the Canon SD 400 and find the pictures great for such a small point and shoot.
Pros
The Manual Mode setting will let you customize various settings for shooting vs. using the Automatic Mode settings.
Stitching program in Manual Mode will assist you in stitching together a panaorama shot rather than software which is more difficult to match multiple images (get it right when you are there rather than trying to adjust images that are not going to look right stitched together because you stepped back or angled the shot by accident).
Ability to choose from 2 autofocus settings. The AiAF setting which is the default will take longer to focus, so you can turn it off and use a single vs. multiple focus read.
Continuous shots with little lag (as long as battery lasts and memory card has storage).
Easy to learn controls (the manuals that came with this camera weighed 10 times more than the camera) and features.
Viewfinder with LCD (most ultracompact cameras like the Sony T-series only have LCD screens and no viewfinder).
2 inch LCD.
Small Size (smaller than a deck of cards) --- carry it all of the time
Relatively long battery life.
Easy to purchase extra batteries (non-Canon) that are reliable and safe for the camera on E-Bay.
Cons
Viewfinder only shows 82% of the picture vs. the LCD (You won't see that extra tree that you will have to crop out later in Photoshop).
Manual is difficult to read (more a reference than a read as the camera is easy to use).
Not retaining exposure change adjustments and flash settings from various shooting modes.
Color swap features are hard to learn without reading the manual.
Get a 1GB secure digital camera and shoot 350+ pictures in the highest resolution (super fine) and size. Carry it and you will find that you take more pictures. However, for a special occassion where there is a need to capture more detail and more manual fe