Steve'sDigicams

mrobert · Mar 31, 2003, 5:32 AM

I'm new to digital photography, and want to buy my first digital camera. I read the review on the new A70 and now I would like to see some opinions from people how own one (pros and cons). I'm intrested in picture quality and manual options.

Thanks, Robert

jaydee · Mar 31, 2003, 1:57 PM

Cons, the software isn't the greatest, then again if I liked to read manuals it just might be better, red eye a bit of a problem but that can be fix in software.Make sure you get a 2 sets of NMH rechargeable batts (8 AA's) as it eats power like nobodys business. Pros, a very good camera for the price, Lens upgradable lots of manual control, as well as a great point & shoot camera, ergonomics are the best I have felt (that was important to me) I have only taken pics inside as of yet & all were very good, I took some macro shots of flowers pics turn out pretty good. It uses CF memory cards in which are the cheapest priced out there, & the fact that I can use double "A" batteries was a bonus too.
So all of this comes out be a pretty good camera. This is my first digital camera as well. My suggestion is buy it, the best bang for the buck.

El Indio · Mar 31, 2003, 2:59 PM

Pros:
1) Price vs performance is ahead of the curve (in the UK at least)
2) Nice design, feels solid enough, responsive.
3) Good quality photos straight from the cam. Low noise (@ISO64).
4) Decent(ish) software bundle

Cons:
1) 4.8 Apeture at full zoom is too slow for UK/Spring weather - unless you have a very steady hand.
2) The LCD is small and not very good.
3) No control over sharpening and some think its set too soft.
4) But, the killer for me (and I have read about others with similar problems) - The battery detect circuit is too sensitive. One set of my NiMHs (1500mAH) dont work at all, another set (different brand, 1600mAH) give about 50photos before the cam dies without warning.

srhaymes · Mar 31, 2003, 3:57 PM

Mrobert:

If you can live with the "softness" of the images that results in loss of detail and add blurry areas in the pic, then it is a good camera for the money with many nice features such as Av, Tv, and full manual controls. The soft images in the A70 have already been noted in other on-line reviews.

Personally, I have an A40, the predecessor of the A70 and I found the pics much too soft for my tastes. I plan to replace my A40 with another brand of camera as I do not like Canon's philisophy of soft pics that IMHO, make hilllsides of trees look like "blurry blobs".

You may want to use the search capabilities of this site to search back through the Canon forum to read about the A40's "soft and blurry image problem" which will include some of my comments and those of "MentorRon". MentorRon has provided both pics and info showing how other manufacturer''s digicams take sharper pic than the A40.

You may also want to look at posted pics of the A70 (and maybe A40) to decide if the soft pics are OK with you.

Good luck,

Steve

mrobert · Mar 31, 2003, 4:26 PM

Thanks for the replies guys

Now, would the Canon S230 be recommended rather than the A70 (as the price difference is for 50$), or should I look for different brand like Sony P8 or Olympus S300?

bobshell · Mar 31, 2003, 4:34 PM

If your set on Canon, the best bang for the buck is probably the S30. I think it's in short supply. Etronics.com has some for sale at $359.

Mar 31, 2003, 5:32 AM	#1
mrobert Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 7	Suggestions on Canon A70 I'm new to digital photography, and want to buy my first digital camera. I read the review on the new A70 and now I would like to see some opinions from people how own one (pros and cons). I'm intrested in picture quality and manual options. Thanks, Robert

Mar 31, 2003, 1:57 PM	#2
jaydee Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Posts: 59	A70 Cons, the software isn't the greatest, then again if I liked to read manuals it just might be better, red eye a bit of a problem but that can be fix in software.Make sure you get a 2 sets of NMH rechargeable batts (8 AA's) as it eats power like nobodys business. Pros, a very good camera for the price, Lens upgradable lots of manual control, as well as a great point & shoot camera, ergonomics are the best I have felt (that was important to me) I have only taken pics inside as of yet & all were very good, I took some macro shots of flowers pics turn out pretty good. It uses CF memory cards in which are the cheapest priced out there, & the fact that I can use double "A" batteries was a bonus too. So all of this comes out be a pretty good camera. This is my first digital camera as well. My suggestion is buy it, the best bang for the buck.

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

Steve'sDigicams

Recent Camera Reviews

Most Active Forums

Most Popular Deals

Latest Feature Articles

Mar 31, 2003, 2:59 PM	#3
El Indio Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 2	Pros: 1) Price vs performance is ahead of the curve (in the UK at least) 2) Nice design, feels solid enough, responsive. 3) Good quality photos straight from the cam. Low noise (@ISO64). 4) Decent(ish) software bundle Cons: 1) 4.8 Apeture at full zoom is too slow for UK/Spring weather - unless you have a very steady hand. 2) The LCD is small and not very good. 3) No control over sharpening and some think its set too soft. 4) But, the killer for me (and I have read about others with similar problems) - The battery detect circuit is too sensitive. One set of my NiMHs (1500mAH) dont work at all, another set (different brand, 1600mAH) give about 50photos before the cam dies without warning.

Mar 31, 2003, 3:57 PM	#4
srhaymes Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Posts: 12	Mrobert: If you can live with the "softness" of the images that results in loss of detail and add blurry areas in the pic, then it is a good camera for the money with many nice features such as Av, Tv, and full manual controls. The soft images in the A70 have already been noted in other on-line reviews. Personally, I have an A40, the predecessor of the A70 and I found the pics much too soft for my tastes. I plan to replace my A40 with another brand of camera as I do not like Canon's philisophy of soft pics that IMHO, make hilllsides of trees look like "blurry blobs". You may want to use the search capabilities of this site to search back through the Canon forum to read about the A40's "soft and blurry image problem" which will include some of my comments and those of "MentorRon". MentorRon has provided both pics and info showing how other manufacturer''s digicams take sharper pic than the A40. You may also want to look at posted pics of the A70 (and maybe A40) to decide if the soft pics are OK with you. Good luck, Steve

Mar 31, 2003, 4:26 PM	#5
mrobert Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 7	Thanks for the replies guys Now, would the Canon S230 be recommended rather than the A70 (as the price difference is for 50$), or should I look for different brand like Sony P8 or Olympus S300?

Mar 31, 2003, 4:34 PM	#6
bobshell Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 78	If your set on Canon, the best bang for the buck is probably the S30. I think it's in short supply. Etronics.com has some for sale at $359.