Canon PowerShot SD790

Canon PowerShot SD790 IS is a new, good quality point-and-shoot camera for people who want to carry their digital camera everywhere.

Intro:
Canon SD790 uses rechargeable batteries and has no internal memory so an SD/SDHC memory card is necessary. The camera features a 3x optical zoom lens, bright 3-inch LCD screen (but no optical viewfinder) and quite good continuous mode. What is probably most important, the overall image quality is good for this class of digital cameras.


Canon SD790 pros:
+ 3” bright LCD screen
+ Intuitive menu system
+ Fast power-up and continuous mode
+ Good Optical Image Stabilization
+ Good battery life

Canon SD790 cons:
- No viewfinder
- Noisy digital zoom
- Awkward button location which may cause accidental activation of unwanted features


The design:
Canon SD790 measures 3.61 x 2.24 x 0.82 in. (91.6 x 56.8 x 20.9 mm) and weights 5.47 oz./155g (camera body only) so it may seem a bit heavy but it only add to the impression of solid construction. The camera is made of high quality materials and does not produce any creaks or rattles. Canon SD790 has no viewfinder but thanks to the vivid 3” LCD screen most photographers would not use it anyway. Almost the entire back of the camera is dominated by the screen, but on its right you will find some controls. At the top and back there are buttons that resemble mobile phone keys and between them is the control dial, but unfortunately it is slightly too easy to change setting so sometimes you might do it accidentally. What I like about it though is the fact that it works like a joystick.

Performance:
Canon SD790 is a nice and quick performer. It takes less than 2 seconds for the Canon SD790 to power up and you’re ready to take some photos. The continuous mode allows you to take 1.5 frames per second until you run out of space on your memory card and also the flash does not take too long to recharge. The image quality, although not comparable with that which you can achieve with Sony DSLR-A700 or Olympus E-520, is very good. The camera has six different scene modes and twelve scene presets and of course the ‘auto’ mode for beginners and point-and-shooters. With such abundance of settings, autofocus, and optical image stabilization system it is really easy to quickly take high quality photos. The camera works surprisingly well even in low light, or at least moderately low light.

Menus / ease of use:
The menu system is really well-thought and easy to use so the camera is very user-friendly. However, it seems that some buttons found at the back of Canon SD790 are not necessary and the camera would not only look better without them, but would also be even easier to operate. Yet, all in all the camera is perfect for non-professionals who want to carry a digital camera everywhere and always be ready to take a fast picture.

Selected Canon SD790 features and specifications:
10.0 Megapixel, 1/2.3 inch type Charge Coupled Device (CCD)
Total Pixels
Approx. 10.3 Megapixels
Effective Pixels
Approx. 10.0 Megapixels
Lens
Focal Length
6.2-18.6mm f/2.8-4.9 (35mm film equivalent: 35-105mm)
Digital Zoom
4x
Focusing Range
Normal: 12 in./30cm-infinity
Macro: 1.2 in.-1.6 ft./3-50cm (W), 12 in.-1.6 ft./30-50cm (T)
Digital Macro: 1.2-3.9 in./3-10cm (W)
Autofocus System
TTL Autofocus
Viewfinder & Monitor
Viewfinder
N/A
LCD Monitor
3.0-inch TFT color LCD with wide viewing angle (PureColor LCD II)
LCD Pixels
Approx. 230,000 pixels
LCD Coverage
100%

Aperture and Shutter
Maximum Aperture
f/2.8 (W) - f/4.9 (T)
Shutter Speed
1/60-1/1500 sec., 15-1/1500 sec.; Long Shutter operates with noise reduction when manually set at 1.3-15 sec.
Exposure Control
ISO Sensitivity
Auto, High ISO Auto, ISO 80/100/200/400/800/1600 equivalent (Standard output sensitivity. Recommended exposure index)
Light Metering Method
Evaluative*, Center-weighted average, Spot**
* Control to incorporate facial brightness in Face Detection AF
** Metering frame is fixed to the center
Exposure Control Method
Program AE; AE Lock
Exposure Compensation
+/-2 stops in 1/3-stop increments
White Balance
White Balance Control
Auto,* Preset (Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H), Custom
* Control to incorporate facial brightness in Face Detection AF