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Canon SD430 Performance


Timing and Performance

Good to average speed for a consumer camera.

Operation
Time
(secs)
Notes
Power On -> First shot
1.2
LCD turns on and lens extends forward.
Shutdown
1.8 - 3
First time is time to retract lens, second time is worst-case buffer-clearing time.
Play to Record, first shot
1.3
Time until first shot is captured.
Record to play
2.0 / 1.6
First time is that required to display a large/superfine file immediately after capture, second time is that needed to display a large/superfine file that has already been processed and stored on the memory card.
Shutter lag, full autofocus
0.50 / 0.67
First time is at full wide-angle, second is full telephoto.
Shutter lag, prefocus
0.073
Time to capture, after half-pressing shutter button.
Cycle Time, max/min resolution
1.78
Cycle time is the same for large/superfine files or "TV" mode (640x480) images. Times are averages. In both modes, shoots this fast continuously, clearing the buffer after each shot.
Cycle Time, Flash exposures
6
(Flash at maximum power output)
Cycle Time, continuous mode, max/min resolution
0.82 / 0.62
(1.22 / 1.62 fps)
First number is for large/superfine files, second number is time for "TV" size images. Times are averages. In both modes, shoots this fast continuously, clearing the buffer after each shot.
Download speed
Windows Computer, USB 2.0
1,342 KBytes/sec
Typical Values:
Less than 600=USB 1.1;
600-770=USB 2.0 Low;
Above 770=USB 2.0 High

The Canon SD430 performs on the good side of average in terms of timing, starting with a fairly quick startup time. Shutter lag at wide angle and telephoto are both good, and "prefocusing" the camera by half-pressing and holding down the shutter button before the final exposure results in a blazing lag time of only 0.073 second. Shot to shot cycle times are average, at about 1.78 seconds for large/superfine JPEGs, though the camera captures frames continuously, clearing the buffer after each shot. Continuous-mode speed is a little sluggish, at about 1.22 frames/second, though it too captures frames continuously without filling the buffer. The flash takes about six seconds to recharge after a full-power shot, about average for this class of camera. Connected to a computer, download speeds are quite fast at 1,342 KBytes per second. Bottom line, the PowerShot SD430 is responsive enough for most average shooting conditions, though not zippy enough to handle super fast action. Still, the SD430 should perform well enough for travel and family shots.

Battery and Storage Capacity

Battery
Very good battery life with the LCD on, Outstanding when LCD is switched off; WiFi not fully tested.

The Canon PowerShot SD430 uses a custom rechargeable LiIon battery for power. Because it doesn't have a standard external power connector, I wasn't able to conduct my usual power consumption tests on it.

Canon's own numbers for the Canon SD430 (based on the CIPA standard test procedure) indicate that you should be able to get about 150 shots from a freshly-charged battery with the LCD on, or 500 shots with the monitor off, half of those shots using the flash. They also claim a playback time of 3 hours. These numbers do not include power consumption with the WiFi feature used.

Storage
A 16MB SD/MMC card is included with the SD430.

Image Capacity with
16MB SD Card
SuperFine Fine Normal
2,592 x 1,944 Images 6 10 21
File Size 2.6MB 1.5MB 744K
2,048 x 1,536 Images 9 16 33
File Size 1.7MB 943K 479K
1,600 x 1,200 Images 15 26 50
File Size 1.1MB 595K 314K
640 x 480
Images 56 88 138
File Size 281K 182K 116K

I strongly recommend buying at least a 128MB card, preferably a 256MB one, to give yourself extra space for extended outings.

 

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