Review based on a production Canon A710 IS
Even in the 'blink and you'll miss it' world of compact digital cameras the budget-priced 6x zoom lensed Canon PowerShot A700 was a short-lived model; announced late February and replaced in August by the camera on test here, the PowerShot A710 IS. Aside from a design facelift and a few feature tweaks the biggest - and most welcome - change is that the new model adds optical image stabilization, something we bemoaned the lack of on the A700. There's also an extra million pixels ( up from 6 to 7MP) and the usual A series mix of manual and automatic features. So let's find out if the A710 IS a worthy successor to the popular A700, starting, as ever, with the headline features.
The A710 is more than a mere styling re-vamp (although it is a much better looking camera); it's actually a pretty significant upgrade, with the addition of an optical image stabilization system top of the list (this is the first 'A' series model to get IS). The only downside is the slight reduction in battery life (still an impressive 360 shots or so from a decent pair of AA NiMH batteries).
| Street price | • US: $316 • UK: £280 |
|---|---|
| Body Material | Plastic and metal |
| Sensor | • 1/2.5 " Type CCD • 7.1 million effective pixels |
| Image processor | DIGIC II with iSAPS technology |
| Image sizes | • 3072 x 2304 |
| Movie clips | • 640 x 480 @ 15/30fps. Up to 1GB or 1 hour |
| Lens | • 6x optical zoom |
| Optical Stabilization | Yes (shift-type) |
| Focus | • TTL autofocus • AF illuminator • 9-point AiAF or 1 point AF (any position or fixed center) • 1cm macro mode |
| Metering | • Evaluative • Center-weighted average • Spot (center or linked to focusing frame) |
| Shooting mode | • Auto |
| Shutter speeds | • 15 - 1/2000 sec |
| Apertures | F2.8 - 8 (Wide) F4.8 - 8 (Tele) |
| Exposure compensation | +/- 2EV in 1/3 stop increments |
| Sensitivity | • Auto • High ISO Auto • ISO 80, 100, 200, 400, 800 |
| White Balance | • Auto • Daylight • Cloudy • Tungsten • Fluorescent • Fluorescent H • Underwater • Custom |
| Image parameters | My Colors (My Colors Off, Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, B&W, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Positive Film, Vivid Blue, Vivid Red, Vivid Green, Custom Color) |
| Continuous | Continuous (1.7 fps) until card is full |
| Flash | • Auto, Flash On, Flash Off, SLow Sync, Red-eye reduction • Flash compensation: +/- 2EV in 1/3 stop increments • Second curtain • Range: 55cm - 3.5m (wide) / 2.5m (tele) |
| Storage | • SD, SDHC, MMC compatible • 16 MB card supplied |
| Viewfinder | Real-image zoom, optical viewfinder |
| LCD monitor | • 2.5-inch P-Si TFT • 115,000 pixels |
| Connectivity | • USB 2.0 Hi-Speed • AV out |
| Power | • 2 x AA batteries • NiMH recommended (alkaline supplied) • Optional AC adapter |
| In the box* | • Canon PowerShot A710 IS |
| Other features | • Up to 60 sec sound memo per image |
| Weight (inc batts) | 210 g approx |
| Dimensions | 97.5 x 66.5 x 41.2 mm |
If you're new to digital photography you may wish to read the Digital
Photography Glossary before diving into this article (it may help
you understand some of the terms used).
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Conclusion / Recommendation / Ratings are based on the opinion of the reviewer, you should read the ENTIRE review before coming to your own conclusions. Images which can be viewed at a larger size have a small magnifying glass icon in the bottom right corner of the image, clicking on the image will display a larger (typically VGA) image in a new window. To navigate the review simply use the next / previous page buttons, to jump to a particular section either pick the section from the drop down or select it from the navigation bar at the top. DPReview calibrate their monitors using Color Vision OptiCal at the (fairly well accepted) PC normal gamma 2.2, this means that on our monitors we can make out the difference between all of the (computer generated) grayscale blocks below. We recommend to make the most of this review you should be able to see the difference (at least) between X,Y and Z and ideally A,B and C. |
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This article is Copyright 2006 Simon Joinson / dpreview.com and the review in part or in whole may NOT be reproduced in any electronic or printed medium without prior permission from the author. For information on reproducing any part of this review (or any images) please contact: Phil Askey
Canon PowerShot A710 IS 7.1MP Digital Camera with 6x Image-Stabilized Optical Zoom | $499.99 |
Canon PowerShot A710 IS 7.1MP Digital Camera with 6x Image-Stabilized Optical Zoom | $499.99 |
Canon PowerShot A720IS 8MP Digital Camera with 6x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom | $539.99 |
Canon Powershot SD450 5MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom | $549.99 |
Canon Powershot SD550 7.1MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom (Beige) | $499.99 |
Canon Powershot S80 8MP Digital Camera with 3.6x Wide Angle Optical Zoom | $65.00 |
Canon Powershot SD30 5MP Digital Elph Camera with 2.4x Optical Zoom (Vivacious Violet) | $199.75 |
Canon Powershot SD30 5MP Digital Elph Camera with 2.4x Optical Zoom (Rockstar Red) | $249.99 |
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