Canon PowerShot A620 Review
Simon Joinson, November 2005

Review based on a production Canon PowerShot A620
In August 2005 Canon announced two new A series digital cameras, the five megapixel A610 and seven megapixel A620 on test here. Both cameras replace the long-running, and very popular A95, and join the A520 as affordable, well-specified compacts for the enthusiast user on a budget. The A620 certainly looks promising on paper; newly kitted out with the fast DIGIC II processor and a 2.0-inch vari-angle LCD, it has a wealth of shooting options and 4x optical zoom.
- 7.2 million pixel CCD
- 35-140mm (equiv.) 4x zoom lens
- DIGIC II processor
- Full photographic control
- 2.0-inch vari-angle LCD
- 20 shooting modes
- 1cm macro mode
- Optional wide and tele converter lenses
Canon PowerShot A620 vs A95 (main differences)
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Canon PowerShot A620 |

Canon PowerShot A95 |
| Sensor |
• 1/1.8" Type CCD
• 7.1 million effective pixels |
• 1/1.8-inch CCD
• 5.0 million effective pixels |
| Lens |
• 35-140mm equiv. F2.8-F4.1
• 4x optical
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• 38-114mm equiv. F2.8-F4.9
• 3x optical |
| Storage |
SD/MMC |
CompactFlash |
| Processor |
DIGIC II |
DIGIC I |
| Top shutter speed |
1/2500*
* not all shutter speeds can be used with all apertures |
1/2000*
* not all shutter speeds can be used with all apertures
|
| Macro Focus (wide) |
1cm |
5cm |
| Max image size |
3072 x 2304 |
2592 x 1944 |
| Dimensions (excluding protrusions, but including grip) |
105 x 66 x 49 mm
(4.1 x 2.6 x 1.9 in) |
101 x 65 x 43mm
(4.0 x 2.5 x 1.4 in) |
| Connectivity |
USB 2.0 Hi-Speed |
USB 1.1 |
| Max flash range |
4.2m (W), 3.0m (T), ISO 100 |
4.4m (W), 2.5m (T), Auto ISO |
| Continuous Shooting |
1.9 fps, limited by card capacity |
2.0 fps, 8-27 frames max |
| Maximum Movie Size/Frame Rate |
• 640 x 480, 30fps (limited by card)
• 320 x 240, 60fps (up to 1 minute) |
640 x 480, 30 secs |
| LCD screen |
• 2.0-inch
• 115,000 pixels
• Tilt & swivel |
• 1.8-inch
• 118,000 pixels |
| Others |
My Colors mode
Underwater white balance preset |
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Canon PowerShot A620 Key specifications
| Street price |
US: $368
UK: £240 |
| Body Material |
Metal and plastic |
| Sensor |
• 1/1.8" Type CCD
• 7.1 million effective pixels |
| Image sizes |
• 3072 x 2304
• 2592 x 1944
• 2048 x 1536
• 1600 x 1200
• 640 x480
|
| Movie clips |
• 640 x 480, 15 or 30 fps, limited by card capacity*
• 320 x 240, 15 or 30 fps, limited by card capacity*
• 320 x 240, 60 fps (max clip length 1 min)
• 160 x 120, max 3 mins
• Motion JPEG AVI (with mono audio)
* max file size for a single movie clip is 1 GB
|
| Lens |
• 4x optical zoom
• 35 - 140 mm equiv.
• F2.8 - F4.1 |
| Focus |
TTL autofocus
AF illuminator
9-point AiAF or 1 point AF (any position selectable)
Manual focus
1cm macro mode (Wide), 25cm (Tele) |
| Shooting mode |
• Auto
• Program AE (with program shift)
• Shutter priority AE
• Aperture priority AE
• Manual exposure
• Custom
• Portrait
• Landscape
• Night Scene
• Stitch Assist
• Movie
• Foliage
• Snow
• Beach
• Fireworks
• Underwater
• Indoor
• Kids & Pets
• Night Snapshot
• My Colors
AE compensation -2.0EV to +2.0 EV in 1/3EV steps
|
| Shutter speeds |
• 15 - 1/2500* sec
• Noise reduction for shutter speeds slower than 1.3 sec
* Not all shutter speeds can be use with all apertures
|
| Apertures |
• F2.8 / F3.2 / F3.5 / F4.0 / F4.5 / F5.0 / F5.6 / F6.3 / F7.1 / F8.0 (wide)
• F4.1 / 4.5 / 5.0 /5.6 / F6.3 / F7.1 / F8.0 (tele) |
| Sensitivity |
Auto
ISO 50, 100, 200, 400 |
| White Balance |
Auto
• Daylight
• Cloudy
• Tungsten
• Fluorescent
• Fluorescent H
• Custom |
| Image parameters |
Picture adjust (Vivid, Neutral)
Sharpness (normal or low)
Color effects (Sepia, Black and White)
My Colors mode |
| Continuous |
• Continuous (1.9 fps) *
* Large/Fine with LCD off |
| Flash |
• Built-in
• Modes: Auto, On, Off
• Slow Sync: On/Off
• Red-Eye reduction: On/Off
• Range (wide): 0.45 - 3.5 m (Auto ISO)
• Range (tele): 0.45 - 2.2 m (Auto ISO)
• 2nd-curtain flash option
Flash output control (+/- 2.0 EV in 1/3EV steps) |
| Storage |
SD / MMC card
32MB SD supplied* |
| Viewfinder |
Real Image Optical |
| LCD monitor |
2.0 " TFT, 115,000 pixels
Swing out, tilt and swivel mount |
| Connectivity |
USB 2.0 Hi-Speed
A/V out
DC-IN |
| Power |
4 x AA batteries
NiMH recommended (alkaline supplied)
(Optional AC adapter) |
In the box*
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Canon PowerShot A620
Wrist strap
2x AA Alkaline batteries
AV cable
USB cable
32MB SD card
Software CD ROM (Canon Digital Camera Solutions & ArcSoft Camera Suite)
|
| Other features |
Spot, Center-weighted & Evaluative metering
• 2, 10 sec and custom time self-timer
• Sound memos (up to 60 seconds)
PictBridge, Exif Print and DPOF compatible
Playback Histogram
Built-in speaker and microphone
Orientation sensor
PC-controlled shooting with supplied software
Autofocus Illuminator
Optional 0.7x Wide (WC-D58N) and 1.75x Tele (TC-DC58N) converters
Optional 58mm filter adapter
Optional waterproof case (WP-DC50)
Optional High Power Flash (slave) HF-DC1 |
| Weight (inc batts) |
285 g (10.1 oz) approx |
| Dimensions |
105 x 66 x 49 mm (4.1 x 2.6 x 1.9 in) excluding protrusions |
* Supplied accessories may differ in each country or area

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
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This article is Copyright 2005 and may NOT in part or in whole be reproduced in any electronic or printed medium without prior permission from the author.
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