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(More customer reviews)I bought this camera (Canon A460) as a second camera and was looking for a pocket-sized, compact, digital camera that had zoom and video capabilities, took AA batteries and priced reasonably cheap [...] The Canon Powershot A460 is all that.
It's small enough to fit into your palm and fits into the front pants pocket easily and is light enough that the camera is not really noticeable after a few minutes. It seems to me that Canon designed it to be carried without a camera case because there is a lens shield that pulls into place to cover the lens whenever it is powered off. (The lens retracts into the camera body when it is powered off, and the lens cover pulls into place automatically). The body is well rounded with no sharp edges anywhere that might catch parts of clothing. The LCD screen is exposed but I pasted one of those see-thru LCD screen plastic protectors (sticky on one side) on it to protect it from scratches. All the camera's openings are well protected by covers. The only cover that I thought had a little more play than it should was the battery cover.
The camera powers up extremely quickly. You can focus with either the viewfinder or the LCD screen. One thing that surprised me was that when using the viewfinder, there is no information shown on the viewfinder other than a green light to indicate that the camera is in focus or a blinking orange light to indicate it is not. The LCD mode shows a lot more info (eg, ISO speed, current resolution, etc). But, I guess it makes sense since this is a camera that is meant to be simple, and what could be simpler than knowing when something is in focus or not. That's pretty much all the info that's needed. (Switching to the viewfinder will conserve battery power).
I bought a 2GB Kingston Secure Digital card for about $13 on Amazon for this camera so there's plenty of space. The card can be removed and put into a SD card reader that comes with most modern computers and laptops. (My laptop, the Toshiba Tecra A5 has it, and it was bought about 2 years ago). The computer will recognize the SD memory card as an extra drive, and the transfer rate is extremely fast. If your computer does not have a SD card reader, then the USB connector can be used to transfer the images to your computer instead.
In video mode, the zoom works only when in the highest video resolution (640 x 480). (This was a surprise to me too. On my Canon Powershot S1, the zoom works in all video resolutions). The video is a little more choppy compared to the Canon S1.
There is no dedicated zoom lever. Two of the buttons normally used in menu navigation also serve as zoom controls.(The Canon S1 (my other camera) has a dedicated zoom lever, which is nice). I guess, one of the reasons for reusing buttons for zooming is a more compact design--no lever sticking out that might catch your clothing). Once I got used to it, I did not have any problems using the 2 buttons for zooming.
The pictures taken are the usual Canon quality. You do have to pay attention to make sure that your hands are not shaking when you press the shutter since there is no image stabilizer (I've gotten spoilt by the Canon Powershot S1 which has a image stabilizer). [...]The buttons on the camera are designed and placed so that you could operate the camera with only the right hand if so desired. The left hand is used just to stabilize and steady the camera.
This camera uses a focus beam light that helps it to focus quickly and and has the much lauded Digic II processor. Both are technological improvements over the Canon Powershot S1 which does not have an autofocus light and only has a Digic I processor.
The camera uses AA batteries (either the rechargable or the normal type will work). Easily available power was an important feature for me.
I was very pleased with the Super Macro capability of this camera, which allows for extreme close ups. To access this mode, you have to set the camera to "M" (manual mode) on the dial, and then press the Func/Set button. This will open up a menu where you can set the camera to "Super Macro".
[...] This camera (Canon A460) has a "SCN" mode in which you can choose different scenes (Portrait, Night, Kids, Pets, Indoors, Foliage, Snow, Beach). I've used the "Snow" scene setting and my pictures came out great when I'm skiing and taking pictures. (To access the Scene setting, turn the dial to "SCN" and then press the Func/Set button, which will bring up a menu that allows you to choose the settings).
I'm really enjoying the Canon A460 and it has filled its role in my camera arsenal admirably. I needed a camera that I could take with me when I'm skiing or snowboarding that was light and small and cheap. It fits into my pants pocket and is pretty light that it does not interfere with my balance, etc. (The Canon S1, though a great camera, was a little too large to fit into my pants pocket or in a fanny pack. However, it is still my preferred camera when I'm able to have a camera case or back pack with me.)
Update (4/11/2007)--I've had this camera for about 2 months now and have accidentally dropped it twice from about 2 to 3 feet onto a hard surface floor. Also, have dropped it into a foot of snow while skiing and using the video. The camera is still working flawlessly.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Canon PowerShot A460 5.0MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Zoom (Silver)
Canon Powershot A460 Dig Camera
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