Canon PowerShot A80

The PowerShot A80 builds upon the success of Canon's A70, which stormed our last value digital cameras Labs (see issue 106, p126). Canon makes a good start by updating the resolution to four megapixels from 3.34, and we also appreciate a few well thought-out ergonomic changes to the control system. One of these is the 1.5in flip-out LCD, which rotates up to 270 degrees, making angled shots far easier to frame.

There's the same robust metal and plastic body, with no complaints other than the flimsy CompactFlash slot cover. The weight has increased to 250g, though, which is a shame, as it makes one-handed shooting more tricky. This bulk is partly down to the need for four AA batteries, but these are at least readily replaceable if you're caught away from a recharger. We had no problems with them running out after a couple of days' intermittent shooting, but note there's no battery gauge until you run out.

Features such as the speedy 2.5-second startup time and the full auto mode make it a great point-and-shoot camera. The latter takes care of settings surprisingly well, although low-light or fast-action shots benefit from manual intervention.

Quick changes are made easy by the mode dial, which handily allows access to both custom and preset settings. Then there's the excellent menu system, inherited from other Canon cameras. This offers access to the various filters and auto settings, as well as manual setup options. Four preset levels of white balance are available, plus evaluative and auto modes. The latter is generally effective, although, as is often the case, we found extreme low-light shots tended to cause a strong veer towards blue.

We've often been impressed by Canon's evaluative metering - where the camera assesses the image as a whole to judge exposure - and the A80 proves no exception. The flash is also generally quite forgiving, even in indoor shots, rarely being overpowering. The A80's nine-point focusing system helps with off-centre targets, usefully giving a visual indication of the focus area. There's a focus-assist beam to help in low-light conditions too. Other notable features include a continuous shooting mode, which will take up to five shots every 2.5ms.

Image quality was better than we expected, particularly given the price. Colour representation was excellent, with pleasingly natural and balanced tones throughout a wide spectrum. There was distinct noise grain, which was particularly noticeable in low-light shots, as well as occasional distortion at picture edges, although nothing to cause great concern. Chromatic aberrations were also impressively lacking, resulting in a solid performance overall.

Apart from the weight and bulk, criticisms are few. We were surprised to discover that the A80 only shoots at 360 x 240 in movie mode, especially as the A70 dealt with up 640 x 480, but it's a small price for otherwise great improvements. Add in the ability to attach a range of 52mm filters and lenses, handy utilities such as Stitch Assist and some decent software, and the PowerShot A80 fully deserves its place on the A List as our value digital camera of choice.

Author: Ross Burridge