Canon PowerShot S40 4MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom

The S40 retails for $..., I paid a hundred less by shopping around. I did however buy it from a Canon authorized dealer which cost a lot more than the "gray market" cameras online. I don't trust those discount places, I never read anything good about them.

At first, I was disappointed with the S40 as I was playing with Canon's G2 right before I bought it. The S40 isn't as point and shoot as the G2 due to it's smaller size. It is much more sensitive to lighting conditions. Also due to it's small size, it is more difficult to hold steady. However, after a few days of playing with it and tweeking out the adjustments I was able to produce some very high quality pictures.

The auto mode on the S40 is terrible and almost can not be used. It always seems to focus on the wrong part of the subject. For some reason, it tends to focus on the background more than the object you intended to shoot. This is due to their 3 box focusing system. Very similar to their Automatic SLR's. But I didn't have this problem with my Elan EOS. However there is a counter to this problem. I simply use their Tv or Av mode. This allows for focusing only in one box rather than three and it allows you to adjust the aperature or speed at touch of a button.

This is truly a real camera and not only a point and shoot. It can be switched to full manual mode in just one click. I like the way it tells you exactly what f stop your are at and at what speed you are going to shoot. And with a simply push of a button you can change the f stop and speed very easily right before a shot. It's like a fully digital manual camera!

The flash is slightly inadequate but not as bad as some other brands that I have tried. Also the battery is very short lived. It uses a proprietary lithium ion battery and is rated at giving you 180 pics with the screen on and 420 pics with the screen off. Not bad considering my last camera gave me about 30 pics with a set of batteries.
It will however give you about 1 day of heavy usage, that's about it. You will almost definitely need a extra just to be safe.

One of it's best feature is the design. I like the fact that I don't have to fumble with a dangling lens cover. The S40 incorporates it's lens cover with a clam shell design. Just slide the cover over and it turns on automatically, snap it closed and it shuts off. I also like the all metal construction. I hate plastic cameras!

It also doubles as a camcorder. You can record short avi/mpeg movies. 30 secs in high resolution and 120 sec in low resolution. However this eats up memory in a hurry so if you like this feature, get ready to put out for some higher memory. The camera uses Compact Flash, which is slowly starting to turn into the industry standard in storage. It also allows you to use micro-drives if you are really into storing large batches of pics.

This is a good camera for those who like things small. It's a beutifully designed piece of equiptment considering it's size. Does it compare to it's bigger brother, the G2? NO. But it's not designed to. This is a good compromise for those who want 4.0 megapixel in a small package. For those who need and want the best pictures possible from a digital camera I would recommend the G2 but for those who don't need the very best from a picture, this is a very good and well made camera.