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Canon PowerShot A800 review

Our Rating :
Price when reviewed : £66
inc VAT

Features and performance are in line with the rock-bottom price, but it punches above its weight for image quality.

Specifications

1/2.3in 10.0-megapixel sensor, 3.3x zoom (37-122mm equivalent), 186g

http://www.play.com

Canon isn’t one to cut corners with its cameras, but it has trimmed the A800 down to its absolute bare essentials. The plastic, bulbous body is designed to accommodate two AA batteries (with rechargeables sold separately), the lens is a simple 3.3x zoom affair with no optical stabilisation, the screen measures just 2.5in across and has a lowly 115,000-pixel resolution, and videos are recorded at a basic VGA resolution.

Canon PowerShot A800

The 10-megapixel resolution may seem basic too, but it’s actually a positive move. It’s more than enough to capture plenty of detail, and its relatively modest resolution helps to keep noise at bay. Unlike other 10-megapixel sensors used by rival budget cameras, this one has the same 1/2.3in diagonal as pricier compact cameras, which makes a big difference for noise levels.

Canon hasn’t skimped with the controls and photographic options, which follow the same tried-and-tested design we’ve seen many times before. There’s a choice of metering modes and the ability to define a custom white balance – features many pricier cameras omit. The screen wasn’t much fun to use, though. We could live with its small size and low resolution but its weak colours and poor viewing angles made it hard to see in sunlight.

Performance is scaled back further than we’d like. Photos took over two seconds to appear on screen after capture, and this was the main culprit in the 4.8-second shot-to-shot time. Flash photography was really slow at up to 14 seconds between shots – a common side-effect of using AA batteries.

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Basic Specifications

Rating ****
CCD effective megapixels 10.0 megapixels
CCD size 1/2.3in
Viewfinder none
Viewfinder magnification, coverage N/A
LCD screen size 2.5in
LCD screen resolution 115,000 pixels
Articulated screen No
Live view Yes
Optical zoom 3.3x
Zoom 35mm equivalent 37-122mm
Image stabilisation none
Maximum image resolution 3,646×2,736
Maximum movie resolution 640×480
Movie frame rate at max quality 30fps
File formats JPEG; AVI (M-JPEG)

Physical

Memory slot SDXC
Mermory supplied none
Battery type 2x AA
Battery Life (tested) 300 shots
Connectivity USB, AV
HDMI output resolution N/A
Body material plastic
Lens mount N/A
Focal length multiplier N/A
Kit lens model name N/A
Accessories USB cable
Weight 186g
Size 62x94x31mm

Buying Information

Warranty one-year RTB
Price £66
Supplier http://www.play.com
Details www.canon.co.uk

Camera Controls

Exposure modes auto
Shutter speed auto
Aperture range f/3 (wide), f/5.8 (tele)
ISO range (at full resolution) 100 to 1600
Exposure compensation +/-2 EV
White balance auto, 5 presets, manual
Additional image controls contrast, saturation, sharpness
Manual focus Yes
Closest macro focus 1cm
Auto-focus modes centre, face detect
Metering modes multi, centre-weighted, centre, face detect
Flash auto, forced, suppressed, slow synchro, red-eye reduction
Drive modes single, continuous, self-timer