Canon PowerShot SD940 IS -Silver- An Excellent Ultra Compact Camera
Sum and Substance:
Thumbs Up:
Sleek looks, photo quality is good, capable of HD movie recording, HDMI out.
Thumbs Down:
Optical zoom cannot be used in movie mode.
Inside the Trunk:
Bundled softwares include Canon ZoomBrowser EX, Drivers & Utilities, Canon ImageBrowser, Canon PhotoStitch. Included cables – USB cord and A/V cable and a wrist strap.
The Whiz Kid Speaks:
Canon PowerShot SD940 IS is a 12.1 mega pixels camera, light sensitivity options include ISO 3200 (2Mpix), ISO auto, ISO 1600, ISO 800, ISO 400, ISO 200, ISO 100, ISO 80. It has 4x digital zoom. The camera has 2.7 inch TFT LCD.
Shooting programs include high sensitivity, night snapshot, stitch assist, portrait mode, digital macro, slow shutter, kids and pets, underwater, fireworks, aquarium, foliage, sunset, indoor, beach, snow. Special effects include darker/lighter skin tone, positive film, black and white, color accent, vivid green, vivid blue, color swap, vivid red, vivid, sepia. White balance presets include tungsten light, fluorescent, daylight, cloudy. Flash modes include red-eye reduction, flash off mode, slow synchro, fill-in mode, auto mode.
Maximum shutter speed is 1/1500 second and minimum shutter speed is 15 second. Videos are stored in H.264 format and pictures are stored in JPEG format. Memory cards supported are SD Memory Card and MultiMediaCard
Video shooting resolution options are H.264 – 1280 x 720, H.264 – 320 x 240, H.264 – 640 x 480. Photo resolution options are JPEG 4000 x 2248, JPEG 640 x 480, JPEG 1600 x 1200, JPEG 2592 x 1944, JPEG 3264 x 2448, JPEG 4000 x 3000.
The camera has Zoom lens – 5 mm – 20 mm – F/2.8-5.9, focal length is 5 mm – 20 mm, minimum focus range is 11.8 inches, macro focus range is 3 cm, lens aperture is F/2.8-5.9, optical zoom is 4x.
Additional features include I-contrast (Intelligent contrast correction) system, camera orientation detection, motion detection technology, scene detection technology, face detection AF/AE/FE/WB, display brightness control, blink detection technology, face detection self-timer, RGB primary color filter, 720p HD movie recording, digital tele-converter, USB 2.0 compatiblity, In-camera red-eye fix, PictBridge support, Exif print support, histogram display, direct print, DPOF support, safety zoom, FE lock, AE lock.
Connectors on the camera include DC power input, HDMI output, composite video/audio output, USB. There is slot for SD memory card. The camera is powered by Canon NB-4L li-ion rechargeable battery.
Razzle Dazzle:
SD940 IS is available in color options of brown, black, blue and silver. We got the black model in our test centers. The camera is sturdy but the body and the screen is prone to scratches so make sure you buy a good case to carry it around.
Inside Dope:
SD940 IS is the next installment after the SD780 IS from the same manufacturer. It is still the same compact and lightweight camera. SD780 IS had a viewfinder, this one doesn’t have that space is taken up by a bigger LCD for better viewing.
We thought the camera was really comfortable when using it for shoot pictures. Even large hands won’t have problems handling this device. We were a bit disappointed with the four way navigational button and we often ended up hitting the middle button when using the four way button because it is a bit small.
The help system was great while using the camera as it gave us tips and hints while clicking. Other than this, the help system also tells you what shooting mode you are in. We appreciate Canons effort in accommodating the help system in a small screen like this.
The camera has three modes for shooting which are movie, program/scene and smart auto. The latter picks from twenty two different scenes and is quite reliable. The Program has settings for autofocus type, light metering, white balance and ISO. The camera can capture movies of 720p resolution and there is a port for mini HDMI, if you want to connect the camera to an HDTV. The 4x optical zoom of the camera cannot be used for shooting video.
The camera is good when it comes to speeds, it takes about 1.4 seconds to wake up and start shooting. Shutter lag is 0.9 seconds in low light conditions and 0.6 seconds in bright environments. Shot-to-shot pictures take about 8.9 seconds with flash on and 2.9 seconds with flash switched off. The camera is good in continuous shooting at 0.6 fps.
The photo quality of the SD940 IS is good considering this is an ultra compact camera. Stay within ISO 200 for the best quality from the camera in bright conditions. The quality starts dipping as you go beyond ISO 200 but the dip is acceptable till ISO 800. For photo printing, stay within 4X6 size for best quality prints, if you go for a bigger paper, the quality will get inferior. Color representation on the images from the camera is very good.
Nitty Gritty:
Canon PowerShot SD940 IS is a great camera for light photographing for occasions like trips, parties, etc. The camera is slim, easy to carry and has great quality for photos and videos. Also is has most of the features that one looks in when it comes to ultra compact cameras.
