Canon A570IS - Looking for an "all around" camera for family use

[slitman]

Interested in feedback from those that have purchased the Canon A570IS. Have heard there is noticeable recharge lag; is this actually noticeable?

Getting a camera for someone at no more than $240 which will be mainly used to take typical family pictures, mainly of children. Looked at the Canon A570IS since it has the face detection and the IS, but seems the flash cycle can be slow and it sound like it is rather battery hungry.
Would appreciate any and all suggestions.

Looked at the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX07 and Fuji FinePix F20, but that is above the price cap. Maybe the Kodak EasyShare C875 since they already have a Kodak and the docking station.

[seo]

The flash recycle is a bit on the slow side when the flash fully discharges.

I am using 1600 mah batteries and I haven't noticed it being power hungry, just the opposite.

The flash recycle is my only complaint so far. I have shot some images as high as ISO 1600 which are useable at 4 x 6 after being run through NeatImage. So if you are in hurry, you can do that instead of waiting for the flash.

[slitman]

Is the flash cycle a big enough problem that if you were to do over, would you go with a different camera?

The flash recycle is a bit on the slow side when the flash fully discharges.

I am using 1600 mah batteries and I haven't noticed it being power hungry, just the opposite.

The flash recycle is my only complaint so far. I have shot some images as high as ISO 1600 which are useable at 4 x 6 after being run through NeatImage. So if you are in hurry, you can do that instead of waiting for the flash.

[surfstar]

Getting a camera for someone at no more than $240 ...

Looked at the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX07 and Fuji FinePix F20,

The F20 is $147 on Amazon, and may be even cheaper at Dell. Can't be beat for its indoor high ISO in this price range. Colors outdoors may not be as vivid as Canon's, though.

[slitman]

Currently it is only $139 at Dell.com, but crossed it off the list after I saw how it compared to the Canon for outdoor use.

The F20 is $147 on Amazon, and may be even cheaper at Dell. Can't be beat for its indoor high ISO in this price range. Colors outdoors may not be as vivid as Canon's, though.

[seo]

Is the flash cycle a big enough problem that if you were to do over, would you go with a different camera?

No, I am happy with the A570 so far (it replaced an S50).

I think Jeff will have a review up here in a few days. He has already posted test pics.

[griptape]

Canon is at the top of the list when it comes to efficient power consumption. You can comfortably cross that off your list of worries. Flash recycle and lag are valid concerns though. Both are on par with other cameras in its class though, pretty much no better no worse. I'm not sure why, but the Elph series confusingly enough is about twice as fast with both at about half the mass. I say this not out of specs I've read, but from owning all of them.

I really do love canon, but I don't think you should rule Fuji out. It's not that Fuji has poor outdoor performance, it's that it has ACCURATE color, and most people simply prefer their pictures to look more vivid that reality. It's nothing that can't be very easily controlled in post processing though, if you don't mind spending that small bit of extra time after you've taken the picture. When you're saying you're taking mostly family snapshots, unless your family spends a lot of time outdoors, I would seriously reconsider the Fuji for its indoor/low light performance.

Having said that, the continuous shooting mode on the Kids and Pets setting on my Elph has been an absolute joy to use, and it's done a fantastic job with shots of my fast moving 2 and a half year old. I don't recall if my A series had that or not.

[slitman]

Went with the A570IS for them and 2500 Nimh batteries.

Canon is at the top of the list when it comes to efficient power consumption. You can comfortably cross that off your list of worries. Flash recycle and lag are valid concerns though. Both are on par with other cameras in its class though, pretty much no better no worse. I'm not sure why, but the Elph series confusingly enough is about twice as fast with both at about half the mass. I say this not out of specs I've read, but from owning all of them.

I really do love canon, but I don't think you should rule Fuji out. It's not that Fuji has poor outdoor performance, it's that it has ACCURATE color, and most people simply prefer their pictures to look more vivid that reality. It's nothing that can't be very easily controlled in post processing though, if you don't mind spending that small bit of extra time after you've taken the picture. When you're saying you're taking mostly family snapshots, unless your family spends a lot of time outdoors, I would seriously reconsider the Fuji for its indoor/low light performance.

Having said that, the continuous shooting mode on the Kids and Pets setting on my Elph has been an absolute joy to use, and it's done a fantastic job with shots of my fast moving 2 and a half year old. I don't recall if my A series had that or not.

[Rob vdKam]

Using the A570IS and Eneloop 2000s. The flash time recharge is due to the AA instead of lithium, but since I rarely use flash, I can certainly live with it. I think AA is a far better choice of power supply.

For an independent review of Eneloops, check out
http://www.stefanv.com/electronics/sanyo_eneloop.html