Canon PowerShot A470 review

Shooting speed (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)

Typical shot-to-shot time

Time to first shot

Shutter lag (typical)

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W55

1.4

1.3

0.5

Canon PowerShot A470

1.4

2.1

0.5

Canon Digital IXUS 70

1.5

1

0.5

Samsung S850

2.1

2.1

0.5

Fujifilm FinePix F40fd

2.5

1.1

0.5

Image quality
Noise mars the A470's otherwise very presentable pictures. Grain starts to appear at ISO 200, and becomes quite noticeable at ISO 400. From ISO 800 to the camera's maximum sensitivity of ISO 1,600, fuzz saturates the picture, giving everything a felt-like texture.

Besides the noise, however, the camera's pictures look good. Fine details appear crisp and clear, especially for a sub-£100 camera. Minor barrel distortion appears on the edges of pictures at the widest lens position, but it doesn't seriously hurt picture quality. Colours look generally neutral, though they sometimes appear slightly cooler than usual. If you keep sensitivity low, the A470 will produce good-looking prints. Even at higher ISO settings, pictures look clear enough to email or post to the Web.

Conclusion
For the money, the Canon PowerShot A470 is a great digital camera. The chunky, £80 shooter doesn't have many bells or whistles, but it shoots quickly in brighter light and produces very capable pictures. It doesn't work very well in low light, but that's a flaw shared by most snapshot cameras in general. If you want to spend as little cash as possible for a decent camera, the PowerShot A470 is one of the best choices currently available.

Additional editing by Nick Hide