 "The Best Compact Camera of 2006")
The ‘compact’ camera category is slowly diminishing with the ultra-compacts getting more and more common (and preferred), and other compact cameras slowly souping up their specs to superzoom levels. Still, that doesn’t take anything away from the great year that 2006 was for this category. Rest assured, it wasn’t easy selecting only three of the numerous great options available in the market today.
Second Runner Up
Fujifilm Finepix F30
It may not look like much, but the Fujifilm F30 boasts the best sensor for indoor and low light photography in compact cameras. The sensitive CCD in this camera is optimized for low light, which makes it the ideal camera to carry around for any kind of social occasions and get blur free photos without using the camera flash.
The reason why the F30 didn’t make it as the camera of the year is its lack of features and that it tends to overexpose in bright sunlight. Maybe the next model in the series will take the crown next year.
| Dimensions | 93 x 57 x 28 mm |
|---|---|
| **Weight | |
| ** | 185g |
| **Type | |
| ** | Compact |
| **Connectivity | |
| ** | Pict-Bridge/USB/Composite |
| Storage | xD Picture Card + Internal |
| **Battery Type | |
| ** | Li-Ion |
| LCD Type | 2.5", 230,000 px |
| **View Finder | |
| ** | N/A |
| Sensor | CCD |
| Effective Pixels | 6.1 Megapixels |
| **ISO Sensitivity | |
| ** | Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200 |
| Optical Zoom | 3x |
| **Digital Zoom | |
| ** | 6.2x |
| Shutter Speed | 15-1/2000 sec |
| Aperture | F2.8 - F5.0 |
| Format | JPEG |
| **Scene Modes | |
| ** | Snow, Text, Beach, Flower, Museum, Sunset, Fireworks, Landscape, Underwater, Night scene, Sports mode, Party/indoor, Natural light, Portrait mode, Natural light & with flash |
| White Balance | 6 positions plus manual |
| Flash | |
| Auto, On, Red-eye reduction, Slow, Off | |
| Self Timer | |
| 2 - 10 secs | |
| Video Resolution | 640x480 @ 30fps |
| Video Format | |
| AVI | |
| Sound | Yes |
| Street Price | |
| Rs. 17,750/- |
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First Runner Up
Canon PowerShot A710 IS
With 7.1 megapixel resolution, manual features and 6x optical zoom with optical image stabilization, this one would give some superzooms a run for their money. The Canon IXUS also made it in our “Top camera under Rs. 20,000” list earlier this year.
Making a choice between the A710 IS and our top compact camera of the year was a pretty tough decision, due to their similar nature, but in the end, the better specs and the better overall package won. Check it out on the next page.
| Dimensions | 98 x 67 x 41mm |
|---|---|
| **Weight | |
| ** | 120g |
| **Type | |
| ** | Compact |
| **Connectivity | |
| ** | Pict-Bridge/USB/Composite |
| Storage | SD/MMC card |
| **Battery Type | |
| ** | 2 x AA |
| LCD Type | 2.5", 115,000 px |
| **View Finder | |
| ** | Optical |
| Sensor | CCD |
| Effective Pixels | 7.1 Megapixels |
| **ISO Sensitivity | |
| ** | Auto, 80 ,100, 200, 400, 800 |
| Optical Zoom | 6x |
| **Digital Zoom | |
| ** | 4x |
| Shutter Speed | 15-1/2000 sec |
| Aperture | F2.8 - F4.8 |
| Format | JPEG |
| **Scene Modes | |
| ** | Snow, Beach, Indoor, Foliage, Fireworks, Landscape, Color swap, Underwater, Kids & pets, Night scene, Color accent, Portrait mode, Stitch assist, Night snapshot |
| White Balance | Auto, Cloudy, Daylight, Underwater, Fluorescent, Tungsten light, Fluorescent light (daylight) |
| Flash | |
| Auto, On, Off, Manual (Red Eye On/Off) | |
| Self Timer | |
| 2 - 10 secs | |
| Video Resolution | 640x480 @ 30fps |
| Video Format | |
| AVI | |
| Sound | Yes |
| Street Price | |
| Rs. 18,000/- |
__PAGEBREAK__
The Best Compact Camera of 2006
Canon PowerShot A640
There was absolutely no doubt here — the Canon A640 is the clear winner in the compact camera of the year category. The camera scored high with us on build, features, manual controls, and gave excellent image quality in most performance tests.
It’s the perfect camera to have around the house, and be sure that everyone, right from the kids to the enthusiast teenager will have a great time with it. It’s this mass appeal combined with great overall performance, that makes it our top compact camera of 2006.
Click here for our comprehensive review of the Canon Powershot A640.| Dimensions | 109x66x49 mm |
|---|---|
| **Weight | |
| ** | 315g |
| **Type | |
| ** | Compact |
| **Connectivity | |
| ** | Pict-Bridge/USB/Composite |
| Storage | SD/MMC card |
| **Battery Type | |
| ** | 4xAA |
| LCD Type | 2.5", 115,000 px |
| **View Finder | |
| ** | Optical |
| Sensor | CCD |
| Effective Pixels | 10 Megapixels |
| **ISO Sensitivity | |
| ** | Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 |
| Optical Zoom | 4x |
| **Digital Zoom | |
| ** | 4x |
| Shutter Speed | 15-1/2500 sec |
| Aperture | F2.8 - F4.1 |
| Format | JPEG |
| **Scene Modes | |
| ** | Auto, Snow, Beach, Indoor, Foliage, Fireworks, Landscape, Color swap, Underwater, Kids & pets, Night scene, Color accent, Portrait mode, Stitch assist, Night snapshot |
| White Balance | 6 positions, plus manual |
| Flash | |
| Auto, On, Off, Manual (Red Eye On/Off) | |
| Self Timer | |
| 2-10 secs | |
| Video Resolution | 640x480 @ 30fps |
| Video Format | |
| AVI | |
| Sound | Yes |
| Street Price | |
| Rs. 16,000/- |
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