Canon Powershot SD40 Review

By Movable Type Admin

Canon Powershot SD40




Review posted 12/8/2006





Click to take a QuickTime VR tour of the Canon Powershot SD40
Click to take a QTVR tour of the SD40




The fashion plate of Canon's Digital ELPH line, the PowerShot SD40 packs 7.1 megapixels of resolution into a
color-keyed, durable stainless steel body. Not only is it stylish, but fun and easy to use. From the virtuosity of its 7.1 megapixel CCD and 2.4x
optical zoom lens (38-90 mm equivalent) to its easy-to-read 1.8-inch backlit LCD monitor with 15 brightness
settings the SD40 Digital ELPH camera is Canon to the core.





Similar in design to its 5.0 megapixel predecessor (the SD30), this
new Digital ELPH model offers four new stylish shell tones to choose from: Twilight Sepia, Precious Rose, Noble, and Olive
Grey.

Canon also supplied the SD40 with an easy to use camera station that serves as a charger,
High-Speed USB 2.0 for direct printing and image transfer to a PC, and the supplied
wireless remote lets you display slide shows when sharing images on a television screen.
At a mere 0.94-inches thick with the lens retracted, 1.78-inches high and 3.78 inches long,
and a body weight of just 3.7 ounces, this camera can be carried or tucked away anywhere.

Thanks to the DIGIC III chip's more aggressive noise reduction, this model is able to shoot at
ISO equivalent speed ratings from 80 to as high as 1600. This increased sensitivity at the top-end allows the
use of faster shutter speeds, significantly reducing camera shake and subject blur during hand held low-light
photography.

Canon's new Face Detection AF/AE technology (working in concert with the SD40's 9-point
Autofocus system), allows it to detect, lock on and track up to nine human faces in a
scene simply by pressing the shutter button halfway. The face detection algorithm
automatically prioritizes and selects the optimum subject and not simply the closest face
(based on Canon's Intelligent Scene Analysis/iSAPS technology). It will then optimize the
focus and exposure to ensure the best possible results for easy picture taking moments.



Powershot SD40 Features:

  • 7.1 Megapixel CCD imager and 2.4x optical zoom lens
  • Pocket-sized, durable stainless steel body, available in 4 colors
  • 1.8" color LCD display/viewfinder
  • Advanced TTL AiAF 9-point autofocus system with Face Detection AF/AE technology and focus-assist lamp
  • Program AE automatic, 13 Scenes and a Manual exposure mode
  • Movie mode with sound 640×480 or 320×240
  • Continuous shooting at 1.6 fps
  • Evaluative, Center-weighted average or Spot metering
  • Exposure compensation: +/-2EV in 1/3-step increments
  • White Balance: Auto, 5 presets or Custom
  • Photo Effects: Low Sharpening, Vivid Color, Neutral, Sepia and B&W
  • Shutter speeds of 1/6000 to 15 seconds with noise reduction
  • Selectable ISO sensitivity from 80 to 1600
  • Rechargeable battery, Camera Station and wireless controller included
  • High-speed USB 2.0, Direct print and PictBridge Compliant
  • Secure Digital/SDHC/MMC card storage, 16MB supplied
  • Optional underwater/all-weather case


The PowerShot SD40 Digital ELPH camera is available now for an estimated street price of US$399.99,


Physical Views



Canon Powershot SD40



Canon Powershot SD40


Canon Powershot SD40 Canon Powershot SD40


Canon Powershot SD40


Canon Powershot SD40







Canon Powershot SD40

The SD40 compared to a standard CD disc.






Canon Powershot SD40

The Powershot SD40 and the 10-megapixel Powershot SD900






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Features & Controls


PowerShot SD40 Specifications

Camera Effective Pixels Approx. 7.1 million
Image Sensor 1/2.5-inch CCD (Total number of pixels: Approx.7.4 million)
Lens 6.3 (W)-14.9 (T) mm (35mm film equivalent: 38 (W)-90 (T) mm) f/3.2 (W)-f/5.4 (T)
Digital Zoom Approx. 2.4x
LCD Monitor 1.8-inch, low-temperature polycrystalline silicon TFT color LCD, approx. 118,000 pixels (Picture coverage 100%)
AF System TTL autofocus
Focusing frame: 9-point AiAF/1-point AF (fixed to center)
Shooting Distance
(From the front of the lens)		 Normal: 1.0 ft. (30 cm)-infinity
Macro: 1-1.6 ft./30-50cm (WIDE), 3.9 in.-1.6 ft./10-50cm (TELE)
Shutter Mechanical shutter + electronic shutter
Shutter Speeds 15-1/1600 sec. The shutter speed varies according to the shooting mode. Slow shutter speeds of 1.3 sec. or slower operate with noise reduction.
Metering System Evaluative, Center-weighted average or Spot (fixed to center)
Exposure Compensation ± 2 stops in 1/3-stop increments
ISO Speed Auto, High ISO Auto, ISO 80/100/200/400/800/1600 (Standard Output Sensitivity/Recommended Exposure Index)
White Balance TTL auto, pre-set (available settings: Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H) or custom
Built-in Flash Auto, Auto w/ Red-Eye Reduction, Auto w/ Slow Synchro, Flash On, Flash On w/ Red-Eye Reduction, Flash On w/ Slow Synchro, Flash Off
Flash Range Normal: 1-6.6 ft./30cm - 2.0m (W), 1-4.3 ft./30cm - 1.3m (T)
Macro: 1-1.6 ft./30-50cm (when sensitivity is set to ISO Auto)
Shooting Modes Auto, Camera M, Portrait, Landscape, Night Snapshot, Special Scene (Foliage, Snow, Beach, Fireworks, Aquarium, Underwater, Indoor, Kids & Pets), Color Accent, Color Swap, Stitch Assist, Movie
Continuous Shooting Approx. 1.6 shots/sec. (Large/Fine mode)
Self-timer Activates shutter after an approx. 10-sec./approx. 2-sec. delay, Custom Timer
Recording Media SD Memory Card, SDHC Memory Card, MultiMediaCard
File Format Design rule for camera file system and DPOF compliant
Data Type Still images: Exif 2.2 (JPEG)
Movie: AVI (Image data: Motion JPEG; Audio data: WAVE (monaural))

This digital camera supports Exif 2.2 (also called "Exif Print"). Exif Print is a standard for enhancing the communication between digital cameras and printers. By connecting to an Exif Print-compliant printer, the camera's image data at the time of shooting is used and optimized, yielding extremely high quality prints.
Compression Superfine, Fine, Normal
Number of Recording Pixels (Still Images) 640 × 480 (Small), 1,600 × 1,200 (Medium 3), 2,048 × 1,536 (Medium 2), 2,592 × 1,944 (Medium 1), 3,072 × 2,304 (Large), 3,072 × 1,728 (Widescreen)
Number of Recording Pixels (Movies) 640 × 480 / 320 × 240 (30 fps/15 fps) available up to 4GB, 320 × 240 (1 min. at 60 fps), 160 × 120 (3 min. at 15 fps)
Playback Modes Still Image: Single, Magnification (approx. 2x-10x), Jump, Auto Rotate, Rotate, Resume Playback, My Category, Histogram, Index (9 thumbnails), Sound Memos, Slide Show Movie: Normal Playback, Special Playback, Editing
Erase modes Still Image: single image, by date, by category, by folder, all images
Movie: part of movie, all of movie
My Camera Settings Start-up image, start-up sound, operation sound, Self-timer sound, and shutter sound.
Interface USB 2.0 Hi-Speed (mini-B), PTP (Picture Transfer Protocol) Audio/Video output (NTSC or PAL selectable, monaural audio)
Power Source Battery Pack NB-4L (Lithium-ion Rechargeable battery)
Compact Power Adapter CA-DC20
Camera Station CS-DC1a
Shooting capacity Still image: approx. 190 Shots
Playback time Approx. 300 min.
Operating Temperature 0-40°C (32-104°F)
Operating Humidity 10-90 %
Dimensions 3.78 × 1.78 × 0.94 in. / 96.1 × 45.1 × 23.9mm (excluding protrusions)
Weight Approx. 3.70 oz. / 105g (camera body only)
Other Camera Station with Wireless Controller for playback
(Specifications as represented by the manufacturer)




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