Canon PowerShot A490 – very slow shooting performance

Thumbs Up:

Good Auto Mode; excellent picture quality as per cost.

Thumbs Down:

Low resolution display; slow shooting performance; very short battery life.

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

Canon PowerShot A490 is 10-megapixel point-and-shot camera that runs on AA batteries. Light sensitivity levels are ISO 80, ISO 100, ISO 200, ISO 400, ISO 800, ISO 1600 and ISO auto. The A490 features frame movie shooting mode, 4x digital zoom, and DIGIC III processor.

The PowerShot A490 has inbuilt 2.5 LCD display, mono microphone, lens shield and flash. Video capture resolutions are AVI 640 x 480 and AVI 320 x 240. Image storage resolutions are Large 367, Fine JPEG 3648 x 2736, JPEG 2816 x 2112, JPEG 2272 x 1704, JPEG 1600 x 1200, JPEG 640 x 480, and JPEG 3648 x 2048.

Shooting programs are Snow, Beach, Indoor, Foliage, Fireworks, Landscape, Low light, Kids & pets, Slow shutter, Portrait mode, and Night snapshot. The special effects include Sepia, Vivid, Neutral, Black & White, and Custom Effect. White-balance presets are Cloudy, Daylight, Tungsten light, Fluorescent light (daylight), and Fluorescent light (cool white).

There are two connectors: 1 x USB and 1 x Composite video/audio output. Maximum operating temperature is 104°F and minimum is 32°F.

Razzle Dazzle:

Canon PowerShot A490 is 3.7 inches wide, 2.4 inches tall, and 1.2 inches thick and weighs 6.7 ounces. It looks stylish with rounded corners. All the buttons are clearly marked in white over black background.

Inside Dope:

You may know that Canon has launched two digital cameras – A495 and A490 after splitting the previous A480 model into different categories. Canon PowerShot A490 costs $109.99 and offers 5-point Face AiAF auto-focus system and 13 scene settings for Smart Auto Mode. However, it runs on two AA batteries and delivers the same quality like its sibling – the A495. The PowerShot A495 has two newly added shooting modes, Face Self Timer and uses 18 settings for Auto mode. On the contrary, the PowerShot A490 does not have these features. Noteworthy that both A490 and A495 are not fast and has long shutter lags. However, the budget-conscious users will be attracted towards the PowerShot A490.

Like the A495, Canon has put the straightforward controls on its PowerShot A490. Power button and shutter release button along with other controls are located at right side of LCD display on the back. You will find Menu button, four-way directional pad with middle select button, shooting mode switch, playback button and zoom rocker on the top.

Narrow lens of Canon PowerShot A490 has 3.3x optical zoom. Low resolution LCD looks washed out in direct sunlight. The shooting options of the A490 and the A495 are similar. Program mode allows adjusting color effects, metering, white balance, and focus. Smart Auto mode disables all the settings and picks the appropriate setting based on available 13 scene types. It also allows selecting one out of 11 scene modes. Low Light mode captures 2 megapixels shot at ISO 500-3200. Like the A495, the PowerShot A490 is the best one for macro shots and close-up focus down to 0.4 inch. Movie mode allows recording VGA mode without optical zoom. The video quality is only good for small size print and online sharing.

The time from power-on to first shot is 2 seconds. Shot-to-shot time is 2.9sec and 7.1 sec with flash. The shutter lag is 0.6sec in bright light and 1sec in dim lighting. Continuous shooting speed is 0.6fps.

Canon PowerShot A490 delivers good photo quality as per its price tag. The photo quality is the best below ISO 200. The photos remain good up to ISO 800 with well balanced noise and its suppression. Noise is only visible on seeing the pictures are full screen.

There is little barrel distortion at widest position and no pin-cushioning even at fully extended lens. The PowerShot A490 delivers good central sharpness, but with little softness at extreme corners. Little purple fringing is noticeable in high-end contrast areas. The A490 reproduces good colors except light shade for some blues. The exposure remains good, but shows clipped highlights.

Canon PowerShot A490 runs on AA batteries and has short life of 150 shots.

Nitty Gritty:

Canon PowerShot A490 delivers good picture quality as per its low cost. If you have a limited budget then you can go for this A490.

If you are looking for better image quality, faster shooting performance, and rechargeable battery, then you can go for $40 more priced Canon PowerShot 3000 IS.