canon powershot SD400 camera review

Announced in February 2005, the SD400 (which goes by the names of Digital IXUS 50 in Europe and IXY DIGITAL 55 in Japan) is the latest in a long line of ultra-compact 'ELPH' or 'IXUS' cameras stretching back to early 2000 (and a lot farther back than that in the film camera world). Like the SD300 before it, the SD400 incorporates two UA (Ultra-high Refractive Index Glass Molded (GMo) Aspherical lens) elements which has allowed Canon to produced its smallest cameras yet to feature a 3x zoom. It may be smaller than a credit card, but Canon has still managed to cram a fairly comprehensive range of features into the SD400;

• 5.0 megapixel CCD


• 2.0-inch color TFT monitor


• 35-105mm (equiv.) F2.8 - 4.9, 3x optical zoom


• 640 x 480 movies at 30fps


• Print/Share button


• Fast Frame Rate movies (320x240 pixels @ 60fps)


• 'My Colors' feature


• Six special scene modes


• Custom white balance


• Spot, center-weighted and evaluative metering


• DIGIC II processor & iSAPS


• 9-point AiAF

The PowerShot SD400 has an average bundle. Inside the box, you'll find:

• The 5.0 effective Megapixel Canon PowerShot SD400 Digital ELPH camera


• 16MB Secure Digital card


• NB-4L lithium-ion battery


• Battery charger


• Wrist strap


• USB cable


• A/V cable


• CD-ROM featuring Canon Digital Camera Solutions, ArcSoft PhotoStudio, and drivers


• 193 page camera manual + software manual (both printed)

Canon includes a 16MB Secure Digital (SD) memory card with the SD400, which holds a grand total of five photos at the highest quality setting. That means that you'll want a larger card right away, and I recommend a 256MB card as a good starter size. The camera can use either SD or MMC (MultiMedia) cards, though only the former is recommended. The SD400 takes advantage of high speed SD cards and one is required for the unlimited burst mode or for the highest movie quality. Look for a card rated at 60X or higher quality canon nb-4l battery for best results.

The SD400 uses the same battery as the SD200 and SD300 (but NOT the SD500). That's the NB-4L battery which packs just 2.8 Wh of energy. That translates to just 150 shots per charge using the CIPA standard -- which is below average. The SD300 can take 140 shots per charge using the same battery, while the SD500 takes 160. Some non-Canon cameras do a lot better in this area. The Casio EX-Z57 takes a whopping 400 shots per charge, the Nikon Coolpix 5900 can take 270, and the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T33 can fire off 180.

My usual complaints about proprietary batteries like the one used by the SD400 apply here. They're expensive, and you can't put in a set of alkalines to get you through the rest of the day like you could with an AA-based camera. Then again, you'd be hard pressed to find an ultra-thin camera that uses AAs.

When it's time to recharge, just drop the nb-4l batteryinto the included charger. This is my favorite style of charger -- it plugs right into the wall (yes, I know some people don't like this). It takes about 95 minutes to fully charge the battery.

Overall I recommend the SD400, but if you can swing it, I'd buy the SD500 instead. While it's a bit bigger, it takes better pictures and has both a more powerful flash and a longer-lasting battery.

What I liked:

• Very good photo quality (though see issues below)


• Compact and very thin metal body


• Blazing performance


• First rate movie and continuous shooting modes


• Unique My Colors feature


• LCD visible in low light


• AF-assist lamp; good low light focusing


• USB 2.0 High Speed support


• Optional underwater case and external slave flash


• High quality canon nb-4l rechargeable battery

What I didn't care for:

• Images noisier/softer than I would've liked


• Redeye


• Some corner softness and purple fringing


• Cheap plastic door over memory card / battery compartment


• Battery life isn't great


• Can't swap memory cards while camera is on a tripod


• More manual controls would be nice


• Tiny memory card included

Some other ultra-thin cameras worth considering include the Canon PowerShot SD300 (4MP; missing the new features listed at the top of the review) and SD500, Casio Exilim EX-Z57,Fuji FinePix Z1, Nikon Coolpix 5900, Olympus C-630Z and Stylus Verve S,Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX7, Pentax Optio S5i, and the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T7 and DSC-T33.

As always, I recommend a trip down to your local reseller to try out the PowerShot SD400 and its competitors before you buy!