Canon Powershot A400, A85 and A95

I think a major benefit of the A95, other that the ones you outlined at the end, is the use of AA batteries. You can have a pouch of AA NiMH rechargeables for the price of one proprietary LiON. Or you can go in the local drugstore in Bombay and find AA's. I heard today the 8 MP Canon P/S (with the L lens) has been discontinued...

This is the 4th Canon digital camera I have owned. (A70, 10d, 20d) and all I can say is Shame on Canon! The shutter lag and time between shots on the A400 is atrocious. We?re talking 2-3 seconds folks. The images straight out of the camera have nice color, exposure, and sharpness. Too bad 75% of them are shots 2 seconds past the decisive moment. I wouldn?t recommend the A400 to anyone who wants to take snapshots of their kids (the reason I bought this for my wife) as the lag is just unbearable for this type of situation.

I've also had some experience with a Canon A80 and like Brian I found the 2-3 second shutter lag to prohibit the ability to take pictures 'of a moment.' However, that said, all my experience with other Canon Digital cameras is excellent.

I have not found a digital camera that didn't have a noticeable shutter lag other than high end DSLRs. Ahh, the hopes that the future may fulfill...

I have to second Bob's preference for the A95 as the most tempting of the lot, though for a slightly different reason: size.

I bought an A80 last year after doing an awful lot of pondering whether to get that camera or the then-top-of-the-line PowerShot, the G5. What swayed me to the A80 was size: the G5 is not much smaller than a DSLR and a normal lens. For me, getting a compact digicam is all about trading away things like manual focus and interchangeable lenses for a camera so small and light I'll always have it with me.

Those tiny and pricey Minox spy cameras were invented so ladies and gentlemen could have a camera small enough to keep with them at all times. Compact digicams function as present-day "Minoxes for the masses". Not only are they a lot less expensive outright, they don't use a special, tiny, hard-to-find film format that you have to send out-of-town for processing! Quite a deal.

Getting back to the size issue, if I'm going to carry something the size of a G5 or G6 with me, I'll just as soon carry a slightly-bulkier SLR and get the ability to focus manually (and use quality prime lenses). The digicams smaller than the A80 don't offer things like aperture priority, shutter priority, or metered manual exposure modes. The A80/A95 sized ones really seem to be at a sweet point on the size/capability curve.

And yes, the AA batteries are a big plus. Not only are they inexpensive, they NiMH versions of them seem to last FOREVER in the A80 (and presumably this holds for the A95, too). (And as I tend to take lots of close-up shots, I make heavy use of the preview screen -- I almost never shut it off, in fact.)

I bought a Canon A85 partly based on this article and the Consummers Reports review. Overall I am very satisfied, this is my first digital camera and it has renewed my interest in photography. With the 4meg pixel image the CF memory is about as cheap as silver film and the 5x7 printed images are as good.

What I like best is the variety of modes and the robust auto focusing. If you prefocus (push the shutter down half way) the shutter lag is almost as good as my SLR. I really like PictBridge for quickly cropping and printing pictures. The macro focusing and manual modes are very useful. Movie mode and sound memos are a really nice additions to record the moment, and I like pluging it into the TV for a quick slide show. The battery life seems very good, I have never run out while shooting, only while reviewing and printing.

What I don't like is the learning curve, figuring out which modes work best for which situations. The manual is good but could be better, but the Canon email support has been quick (24hrs). I would prefer a wider angle lens, 28-90mm equivalent instead of 35-105mm. I am disappointed with the lense aperture, I accepted that wide open would be slow (f2.8-f4.8) but didn't realize the f8.0 was the closed limit. This really limits the depth of field control, but this is probably common in most digital cameras. As an SLR user, I don't like the viewfinder, but am growing used to using the display.

With the Canon A85 approaching $200 new, I would recommend this camera as a great value.

I bought A85 recently. I was choosing between A85 and A95. But the differences between them are very small except of 5MP sensor (Do you really need flip+twist LCD, 2fps continuous shooting?). You don't need more than 4MP senzor if you don't want to have really large prints of your shots (A3+). The difference between 4MP and 5MP picture is not so much in quality. So I don't thing that spending 100$ more for A95 is a wise decision. Regards,

I've owned an A95 for the past 7 months and am very glad I purchased it instead of the A85. I am constantly using the variable angle ability of the LCD screen, particularly when doing macro nature photography. It is a huge asset.

2009 update! Bottom line - stay away from the A-model Powershots. The 4-AA cell 2-digit A-model Powershots tend to have a defect that will cause the sensor to fail. The 2-AA cell 3-digit A-model Powershots have thoroughly pooched power management. Of course if you can pick one up for $30 - $50 bucks used, OK, it's perfect for a "throwdown" camera, say, one you might use in an underwater box where you don't want to risk your good stuff.

As for the 3-digit A-models, at least for the 2-AA cell A570 I bought when my A70 sensor died after only three years (the camera was out of warranty but Canon offered an "upgrade" for $100), power management is completely broken. This camera will only operate if the AA cell voltages are between 1.4 and 1.5V, which means you can opt for either freshly charged AA NiMhs - which are good for 50 or more exposures but will self discharge in a day below the point at which they will operate the camera - or AA alkalines which will only last for a few dozen shots.

Both cameras take good pictures at non-telephoto focal lengths. I shoot wide all the time, on the rare occasions I use zoom the optical quality is hazy. The latest Powershots have improved low-light noise, which was a problem on the A70 at higher "ASA" settings. Shutter response is improved in the A570 over the earlier models. But - what difference does it make what kind of pictures it takes if the batteries are dead half the time you grab it and go?