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Canon PowerShot S30 A new shape, sleek design, direct support for a Canon inkjet printer, and three megapixels of resolution! Select a topic Reference: Datasheet PowerShot S30 Sample Images --------------------------------- 1. Intro and Highlights 2. Executive Overview 3. Design 4. Viewfinder 5. Optics 6. Exposure & Flash 7. Shutter Lag & Cycle Time Tests 8. Operation & User Interface 9. Camera Modes & Menus 10. Image Storage & Interface 11. Video, Power, Software 12. Test Results & Conclusion --------------------------------- Print-Friendly Review Version Additional Resources and Other Links Reader Comments on PowerShot S30 Review --------------------------------- Digital Camera Comparometer (TM) --------------------------------- <-- Digital Cameras (Home) <-- Digital Camera Reviews Index <<Executive Overview :(Previous) | (Next): Viewfinder>> Page 3:Design Review First Posted: 10/1/2001

Design
Similar in shape and style to a high-quality point-and-shoot 35mm film camera, the PowerShot S30 measures 4.4 x 2.3 x 1.7 inches (112 x 58 x 42mm) and weighs approximately 11.5 ounces (310.5 grams) with the battery and storage card installed. It has a "lavender-tint" metallic silver body comprised of molded polycarbonate plastic with a sturdy aluminum exterior. The sliding clamshell cover adds an attractive accent to the very sleek, streamlined design. While the S30 is a bit too long and heavy for a shirt pocket, it should fit easily into a large coat pocket or purse, and the quarter-inch wrist strap makes toting it around very convenient.

 

The front of the camera includes a telescoping 3x zoom lens, optical viewfinder window, and a light emitter lamp that serves multiple purposes, including autofocus assist, red-eye reduction, and the self-timer countdown. All of these items are covered by the sliding lens cover when it's closed. The built-in flash is positioned in the upper left corner of the front panel (as viewed from the back), and the lens cover doubles as a finger grip when opened.

It's often hard to tell how big a camera is in our product photos, when the camera appears by itself. To help get a sense of the scale of the S30, we've shot the photo above, with a memory card propped in front of it.

On the right side of the camera (as viewed from the back) is a single metal eyelet for attaching the nylon wrist strap. A small indentation at the very bottom of the camera on this side marks a sliding hatch that provides access for the AC power adapter cable.

The opposite side of the camera has a soft rubber terminal cover that lifts up in two steps: The top pulls back to reveal the A/V Out and Digital jacks, and the bottom pulls out further so the cover can swing out of the way to make connections.

The S30's top panel features a Mode dial on the right, with 12 Shooting positions divided into three basic categories: Auto Exposure, Image Zone, and Creative Zones. The Shutter button is located to the right of the Mode dial, and a Zoom button is located in front of it. On the left side of the top panel is a microphone for recording audio with movies and a speaker that plays back the recorded sound.

The majority of exposure controls are located on the camera's back panel, along with the optical viewfinder and LCD monitor. The eye-level optical viewfinder features two LED lamps that report camera status. To the left of the viewfinder are the Macro / Jump and Flash / Index buttons. To the right is a sliding Replay button that can be used to review captured images at any time -- when the lens cover is closed and the camera is powered off, or when the camera is turned on in one of the 12 Shooting modes. Next to the Replay button is a cylindrical-shaped, five-way Multicontroller that operates similarly to the round arrow pads found on other digital cameras. The left and right arrows press down on either end in a conventional manner, while the up and down buttons operate by rotating the cylinder up and down. Pushing down on the center accesses the Set button.

Other camera controls on the back panel include the Menu and Display buttons on the right of the LCD monitor, and on the left side are the EV button (Exposure Compensation / White Balance / Auto Exposure / Flash Exposure Compensation), Manual Focus / Delete button, and Light Metering / Audio button. The EV control is by far the most complicated of the group; however, since each of its functions is related to exposure, they all use a -2 to +2 EV bar to make adjustments (with the exception of the white balance bar, which gives you a choice of seven light-quality options). Exposure compensation is activated with one press of the button; white balance is activated by pressing the button twice, and so on. And like many digicam models, the dual-function buttons perform their first functions in capture mode and their second functions in playback mode. The Light Metering / Audio button allows you to choose between Evaluative Light Metering, Center-Weighted Averaging, and Spot (AE) Point metering modes. In Replay mode, pressing this button enables you to record up to 60 seconds of sound with individual images.

The S30's bottom panel is reasonably flat, with a sliding door to access the CompactFlash and battery compartments and a threaded metal tripod mount on its left (on the right in the photo above). The tripod mount is positioned slightly off-center, directly below the lens, making it easier to properly frame shots for panoramic series. Because the battery door and tripod mount are so close to one another, it would be difficult to make quick battery changes while working with a tripod, something we always look at. On the other hand, Canon's AC adapter uses a "dummy battery" design, with the cord exiting from a small opening on the camera's righthand side. - Thus, for studio use, there's a convenient way to get power to the camera while on a tripod.