Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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386 of 393 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific snapshooter, if lacking in manual functions, June 14, 2004
For about 80% of people, this camera is going to be a dream come true.Simply put, it's the pinnacle of ultra compact digital camera technology. With a 4 megapixel resolution with a better sensor than almost all of its competitors in a body the size of a pack of cigarettes, the Canon S410 is fabulous. The buttons and other physical factors of the interface are all well designed: the zoom and shutter button are in the same place for ridiculously easy one handed operation. The function knob on the upper right provides easy access to several shooting & playback modes. Compare this to other recent sexy, ultra-compact powershooters by Casio & Fuji (Think Z4U and A340) and you'll understand why this is a superior camera. Other pros: -Canon STILL uses Compact Flash media, which is significantly cheaper than xD and sD, which a good 90% of other brands use. I have yet to see a downside in everyday use (don't ask me about extreme temperate conditions or whether the various media survive prolonged exposure to electromagnetic fields of varying strengths, as I won't know, and most people don't care). -I personally like Canon's picture quality far better than that of most of its competitors, within the same style of camera. -The auto-focus system is superior to all other cameras of this size and strength. VASTLY superior. Cons: -Canon's movie mode is growing steadily outdated. This is one area where you may be able to find another camera that serves better: This camera is limited to 3 minutes of 15 FPS 320 x 240 resolution motion capture, regardless of the size of your memory card. I do, however, think that if you're that serious about wanting to record digital movies, you should look to a device more aimed at that sort of thing, like the new Panasonic digi-video-cams that take still images as a secondary function. -Memory door is made of plastic, not metal like the rest of the camera, and I have seen it break. -1.5" LCD leaves something to be desired (esp. compared to Casio's line of 2" LCD ultracompacts). -No easy, pre-set scene modes like Fuji or Minolta have. Reasons why you would NOT like this camera: -If this is your first digital camera. I can understand how you may be disappointed by the fact that 99% of point & shoot digital cameras do not make film-quality prints. This is something you will just have to deal with, or not use digital cameras: short of a $700+ SLR digi camera, you will NEVER consistently get film-quality prints, and even then, you will not get the same quality as a comparably priced film camera. -If you are a photo enthusiast. Canon's Digital Elph line of cameras is designed around every day snapshooters that do not need or know how to use things like manual white balance, various aperture settings, add-on lenses, etc. The similarly priced Canon S45 is much more along the lines of what you're looking for, if you insist on remaining in the compact category. Otherwise, invest in a digital SLR camera, as you will be much happier.
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221 of 223 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A worthy buy, April 14, 2004
The Canon PowerShot S410 is a slightly upgraded version of the immensely popular S400 model, which has been discontinued and can be found for close to three-hundred bux. I think since the S410 is only slightly improved -- it is slightly faster than the S400 and sports a new print/share button which I'm not sure you'll be using a lot if you are the typical user -- the S400 is a much better buy.That said, the S410 will be the new standard bearer for 4MP digital cameras. It has a compact form factor, although not as small or light as offerings from Minolta or Pentax or Casio, and it's a bit heavier than you might have expected from the size. It puzzles me why Canon continues to use the older CompactFlash memory card as opposed to the more-standard Secure Digital format. Maybe they simply wanted to save money in upgrading the S4xx series. The plus side is, CF cards are a lot cheaper than SD ones for the same capacity, although the difference is shrinking as expected. Like the S400, the S410 produces excellent image qualities, both indoors and outdoors. It's got the best color and exposure balance from automatic programs among all the cameras I have tested/used. The S410 is slightly faster in taking pictures than the S400, but image quality is largely the same. You won't be disappointed. And as before, the S410 is easy to use, with buttons that aren't too small like on ultra-subcompact cameras from Casio or Pentax. Battery life is about the same as before, which is pretty good and should last you a whole day of moderate shooting. As always, turning off the LCD (via a simple press of the Disp button), turning off the flash, avoid zooming in and out frequently, and using a lower resolution and lower quality will all help preserve battery life (this comes in handy when you realize the battery is about to run out). I wish Canon had increased the optical zoom. 3X is standard but not adequate in a lot of situations, e.g., shooting a stage play your kid's in. But this is only a minor complaint for a camera in this price class. For another hundred bux more, you can get the 5MP S500 model. Should you go for this or the S500? I think for most consumers 4MP is plenty enough, with room for cropping and enlargements. 5MP is only necessary if you really crop a lot. The S410 strikes a great balance between pixel count and price -- it's a good value.
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62 of 64 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Camera for what it is meant to do!!!, May 6, 2004
I've owned the S410 for a couple of months and I give it 4 Stars. This camera targets a particular kind of consumer and it does a great job of it. I've seem some hard-core enthusiasts portray a negative picture of the S410 as well as it predecessor the S400, and I believe it is unfair.This camera was a gift for my wife. My wife will carry a camera only if, 1. It is relatively light in weight, 2. It is compact (fits in her pocket-book), and, 3. It will think for itself. The Canon does these well, and is meant for consumers like my wife. Switch on and shoot! My wife upgraded from the Canon Elph (APS) to the S410. If the SD110 had a 3x zoom, we'd probably have gone with it. The S410 is built in stainless steel and is built like a tank. You will feel this in the weight of the camera. It is not the smallest or lightest out there, but it's one of the best when it comes to balance between weight and size. It feels very comfortable in the hand. The buttons are sized and laid out very well. I like the mode-select wheel, which is particularly advantageous to people with large fingers. People who have not used Canon P&S cameras will be pleasantly surprised by the zoom controls. The zoom encompasses the shutter-button and is extremely intuitive. The menus are self-explanatory and relatively simple to use, though it does take a little getting used to the menu mechanics. The most used controls, macro mode, flash modes, metering modes and timer functions have hot keys and are selectable without accessing menus - a big advantage to accommodating last second changes. There is a short startup lag, so don't expect to just pick-up and shoot. The auto-focus is fast. There is a delay between depressing shutter and capture, but is about the same as other cameras in this class. There is also a slight lag between shots, but again, is the same as other cameras in this class. One glaring issue is that the red-eye reduction is not very effective. To speed up shot-capture, switch this mode-off. It really helps!! The photos are AMAZING! Indoors and outdoors, the photos are crisp, the colors vibrant and life-like, and, this was very surprising to me...the camera could capture depth. The photos are truly a pleasure to look at.......you can experience Canon's over 50 years of optic and technology expertise at work here. (FYI, I'm a NIKON person...it is huge for me to say this!!) Why only four-stars?!! 1. Strong, over-powering flash. The flash is SO strong that it hurts subjects 5 feet away. You can literally feel the heat. There is a high possibility of flash-spots or wash-outs in case your subject is in front of a reflective surface. 2. This might be related to the strong flash...the front of the camera body becomes "very warm" but not "hot" after taking a few photos (approx. 10), with the flash on, in succession. I guess the metallic body heats up. 3. Auto-Focus. The auto focus can get annoying at times, especially if two subjects are nearly the same distance from the camera. It'll keep shuttling between the two subjects. The multi-zone AF is one of the reasons I did not buy a Canon SLR a few years ago. I find it inconvenient. Overall, I think this is a great camera. It balances mega-pixel resolution, optics, technology, size, weight, price, and features-functionality in a compact package. If you're the kind of person who likes getting great photos without working for them, this is the camera to buy.
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