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

Side by Side

Here for comparison is the SD400 (center) alongside the 7 megapixel SD500 (IXUS 700) and Fujifilm's new ultra-slim compact, the Z1.

Canon PowerShot SD400/Ixus 50 Key specifications

Street price • US: $370
• UK: £230
Body Material Metal
Sensor • 1/2.5" CCD, 5.3 million total pixels
• 5.0 million effective pixels
Image sizes

• 2592 x 1944
• 2048 x 1536
• 1600 x 1200
• 640 x 480

Movie clips • 640 x 480 pixels @ 30fps or 15fps (clip length limited by card capacity)
• 320 x 240 pixels @ 30fps or 15fps (clip length limited by card capacity)
• 320 x 240 pixels @ 60fps (max clip 1 minute)
• 160 x 120 pixels @ 15fps (max clip 3 minutes)
• Motion JPEG (.avi)
• Mono sound (.wav)
Lens

• 35 - 105mm equiv. (3x digital zoom)
• F2.8 - F4.9
• 4x digital zoom

Focus • TTL autofocus
• 9-point AiAF
• 1-point AF (fixed to center)
• 3cm macro mode (Wide), 30cm (Tele)
Shooting mode

• Auto
• Manual
• Portrait
• Night Snapshot
• Kids & Pets
• Indoor
• Underwater
• Digital Macro
• Stitch Assist
• AE compensation -2.0EV to +2.0 EV in 1/3EV steps
Sensitivity • Auto
• ISO 50,100,200,400
Shutter speed • 15 - 1/1500 sec
• Slow shutter speeds of 1.3 seconds or slower operate with noise reduction
White Balance • Auto
• Daylight
• Cloudy
• Tungsten
• Fluorescent
• Fluorescent H
• Custom
Image parameters • Picture Adjust (Vivid, Neutral)
• Sharpness (low or normal)
• Color effects (Sepia, Black and White)
• My Colors
Continuous 2.1 fps approx
Flash • Built-in flash
• Auto, on, off, slow-synchro, Red-eye reduction: on/off
• Range (normal, ISO auto): W: 0.5m - 3.5m (1.6 - 11.5 ft)
T:0.5m - 2.0m (1.6 - 6.6 ft).
• Range (macro, ISO auto): 30 - 50cm (1.0 - 1.6 ft)
Storage • SD Memory Card
• 16MB SD supplied*
Viewfinder Real Image Optical
LCD monitor • 2.0" TFT LCD
• 118,000 pixels
Connectivity • USB 2.0 High Speed
• A/V out
• DC-in
Power • Rechargeable Lithium Ion battery (NB-4L)
• (Optional AC adapter)
In the box*

• Canon PowerShot SD400 Digital ELPH (IXUS 50)
• NB-4L battery
• Battery charger
• Wrist strap
• AV cable
• Interface cable
• 16MB SD card
• Software CD ROM (ZoomBrowser, PhotoStitch, PhotoRecord, ArcSoft PhotoSutdio)

Other features

• Spot (center), Center-weighted & Evaluative metering
• 2/10 sec self-timer + custom self-timer
• PictBridge, Canon Direct Print and Bubble Jet Direct-compatible
• Playback Histogram
• Optional Slave Flash (HF-DC1)
• Optional 3m All-Weather case (AW-DC30)

Weight (inc batt) 130 g (4.6 oz)
Dimensions 86 x 53 x 20.7mm (3.4 x 2.1 x 0.82in) Excluding protrusions

* Supplied accessories may differ in each country or area