"Picky Details" for the Canon A75 digital camera
(Timing, Power, and Storage Info)
Timing
Since they're rarely reported on (and even more rarely reported with any precision), I measure both cycle times and shutter delay times, using a test system I designed and built for the purpose. (Crystal-controlled, with a resolution of 0.001 second.) Here are the numbers I collected for the Canon A75:
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(secs) |
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| Power On -> First shot |
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LCD turns on and lens extends forward. About average.
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| Shutdown |
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First time is time to retract lens, second time is worst-case buffer-clearing time. Average normal shutdown, fairly long delay for worst-case buffer clearing.
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| Play to Record, first shot |
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Time until first shot is captured. Average to a bit slower than average.
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| Record to play |
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Time to display a large/fine file after capture. Also about average.
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| Shutter lag, full autofocus |
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First time is at full wide-angle, second is full telephoto. On the slow side of average. (Average range is 0.8-1.0.) |
| Shutter lag, prefocus |
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Time to capture, after half-pressing shutter button. Very fast!
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| Cycle Time, max/min resolution |
1.78 / 1.78 |
First number is for large/fine files, second number is time for "TV" mode (640x480) images. Times are averages. In L/F mode, shoots this fast in for 5 shots, then slows to 3.6 seconds per shot. Buffer clears in 13 seconds with a 24x Lexar card. In TV mode, the buffer never fills, and clears in 2 seconds. Average, good for an entry level model, particularly given the 5-frame buffer memory. |
| Cycle Time, continuous High mode, max/min resolution | 0.59 / 0.55 (1.70 / 1.82 fps) |
First number is for large/fine files, second number is time for "TV" size images. Times are averages. Buffer clears in 13 seconds for large/fine images. In TV mode, the buffer did not fill in over 100 shots, but took 26 seconds to clear. |
The term that best describes the A75's performance is "average." Its startup and shutdown times are in the same range with most other mid-level digicams I test, but its full-autofocus shutter lag is on the slow side of average, with a shutter delay that ranges from 0.9 to 1.2 seconds. As with most other Canon digicams though, its prefocus shutter response is blazingly fast, with a delay of only 0.065 seconds. (65 milliseconds.) Cycle time is decent at 1.78 seconds, for up to 5 maximum size/resolution images.
Power
The Canon A75 uses four AA batteries for power, and does pretty well on battery life. The table below shows the power drain I measured in various operating modes, and the corresponding run times to be expected from a standard set of 1600 mAh NiMH cells. (Modern cells will do better than this, but I always report run times based on a true capacity of 1600 mAh, so the numbers will be consistent across all my reviews, regardless of when they were written. Modern batteries are available with true capacities of more than 2000 mAh, so you can expect longer run times than those shown here, depending on the capacity and quality of batteries you choose.).
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(@3.4 volts on the external power terminal) |
(two 1600 mA cells) |
| Capture Mode, w/LCD |
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| Capture Mode, no LCD |
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| Half-pressed shutter w/LCD |
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| Half-pressed w/o LCD |
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| Memory Write (transient) |
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| Flash Recharge (transient) |
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| Image Playback |
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The A75 displayed excellent battery life, with a worst-case run time of three and a half hours, with 1600 mAh capacity cells. (Expect correspondingly better run times with modern, higher-capacity batteries.) Battery life was an astonishing 16 hours when the LCD was left off in capture mode. Regardless of the A75's long battery life though, I still strongly recommend that you purchase several sets of high-capacity NiMH AA cells and a good charger to go along with them. To see which NiMH cells are best, see my battery shootout page. Read my review of the Maha C-204F charger, to learn why it's my longtime favorite.
Storage Capacity
The Canon stores its photos on Compact Flash memory cards, and a 32 MB card is included with the camera. (I strongly recommend buying at least a 64 MB card though, preferably a 128 MB one, to give yourself extra space for extended outings.) The chart below shows how many images can be stored on the included 32 MB card at each size/quality setting.
| Resolution/Quality 32 MB Memory Card |
Fine | Normal | |
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| 1,536 x 2,004 | Images (Avg size) |
19 1.7 MB |
34 928 KB |
68 467 KB |
| Approx. Compression |
6:1 | 10:1 | 20:1 | |
| 1,600 x 1,200 | Images (Avg size) |
30 1.04 MB |
54 582 KB |
108 295 KB |
| Approx. Compression |
5:1 | 10:1 | 19:1 | |
| 1,024 x 768 | Images (Avg size) |
53 599 KB |
95 336 KB |
169
188 KB |
| Approx. Compression |
4:1 | 7:1 |
12:1 |
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Images (Avg size) |
118 270 KB |
195 164 KB |
98 KB |
| Approx. Compression |
3:1 | 6:1 | |
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Download Speed
The Canon connects to a host computer via a USB interface. Downloading files to a Sony desktop running Windows XP. I clocked it at 491 KBytes/second. This is fairly fast for a camera with a USB v1.1 interface. (Cameras with slow USB interfaces run as low as 300 KB/s, cameras with fast v1.1 interfaces run as high as 600 KB/s. Cameras with USB v2.0 interfaces run as fast as several megabytes/second.)
A75 Test Images
A75 Specifications
A75 "Picky Details"
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