Rating: 
Summary: Super camera!
Review: PROS: Great bright high quality pictures with massive resolution and zoom!
CONS: Maybe I havent set it up right (just got it), but to autofocus and then take an exposure it takes a whole 1-2 seconds.
Rating: 
Summary: Perfect for casual photo enthusiasts (travelers)
Review: I am a casual photo enthusiast who enjoys taking pictures of my friends and family wherever I go. Both photographic quality and portability are of paramount concerns and I think I found my holy grail with Canon S400.Pros:
- Extremely portable, yet very rugged
- Beautiful design with excellent overall ergonomics
- Typically excellent photo quality in all-auto mode with no redeye
- Very fast -- startup time, image processing and acquisition, menu response
- Long battery life
- Uses widely popular (and inexpensive) CompactFlash Type 1 memory cards
- 4 megapixel resolution (2272x1704)
- 3X optical zoom/11X max with digital
- Useful movie mode with audio (3 minutes at 320x240 or 160x120) Cons:
- Minimal manual controls (e.g., no manual focus)
- Cheap A/V/digital output cover
- Movie mode limited to 3 minutes (and no 640x480 mode may irk some)
- Proprietary battery
- Some barrel distortion when taking wide angle shots While S400 has some shortcomings, mainly lack of manual focus, exposure, and shutter speed. And some may be bothered by its use of proprietary lithium ion battery, although given its compact size, I think Canon engineers had to implement proprietary battery. On the plus side, the battery lasts a long time, capable of taking several hundred shots before running out of juice (and takes only a couple of hours to recharge). I've managed to fill entire 512MB memory card (32MB is included) on a single battery charge. Did I mention how beautiful this camera is? The photos do not do this camera a justice. At 3.4" by 2.2" by 1.1", the S400 is no larger than most compact cell phones. Inch by inch, it's only a tad larger than my tiny Sony Ericsson T68i cell phone and smaller than (although a bit thicker) my Apple iPod MP3 player. The ergonomics are consistently excellent. Although there are some learning curves (particularly given rich feature set), once mastered (comprehensive manuals make it easy), most will appreciate elegant menu layout and ideal number of buttons and layout. But beautiful design means nothing if it does not accomplish its main functions -- taking beautiful pictures. In full auto setting, which is what majority people might use, the pictures were consistently satisfying, although overriding the white balance to match the lighting condition improved the quality significantly in many shots. This is a great camera.
Rating:
Summary: excellent but watch out for ownership in the image gateway
Review: This is my second Canon P&S and like it's predecessor it is an excellent machine, perhaps too cute to keep easily but it does everything it says on the box and does it well. My only grumble (apart from the tacky chromed lens ring) is with "Image Gateway" service Canon offers with the camera. Hiden away within the long text of the users agreement is a clause tantamount to Canons unlimited right to use images uploaded there, so use at your own risk. Great camera sad about the service
Rating:
Summary: The Difference between the S400, S45, and S230!!
Review: Pros:
1) Compact Size
2) 4.0 Megapixel Camera!
3) 3x Optical Zoom, 3.6x Digital Zoom
4) CompactFlash media with High Speed CompactFlash support.
5) Improved Movie Record Mode (up to 3 minutes with High Speed CompactFlash card)
6) 9 point AiAF system (Artificial Intelligence AutoFocus) (S200 has 3 point AiAF system)
7) DIGIC processor (specialized processor made by Canon specifically for digital cameras... supposedly improves camera photo quality)
8) iSAPS (Intelligent Scene Analysis based on Photographic Space) for improved camera focus and white balancing.
9) Direct printing to DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) compatible printers.
10) Accepts the original Lithium-Ion batteries of the S110 and S300 cameras.
11) Adjustable ISO settings from 50 to 400
12) Self-Timer from 2 or 10 secs
13) Continuous Shooting mode
14) Stainless Steel Casing.
15) Built-in speaker
16) FUNC button like S45/S50 PowerShots for easier navigation through camera options especially in manual mode.
17) More rounded body gives a slightly sleeker look to the S400. Cons:
1) Short Battery Life but seemed better than S230
2) Flash is weak especially in nighttime settings with no additional lighting and at 3x zoom.
3) Additional Batteries from Canon are Expensive. J&R sells non-Canon brands for as low as $...
4) Tripod mounting now on far left side of camera (you are looking at the back of the camera
5) Minimal Accessories available for the camera My Opinion:...I brought 3 different camera with me. The S230, S45, and the S400 up to Boston while I do a bit of sightseeing between interviews. The reasons why I brought 3 of my camera was to see which camera will have the higest quality of picture. I took photos of the Cambridge area, the Northern docks, and of Fenway with all three cameras... and of close up and group photos with my friends in the area. The fastest camera to start up was the S400. In fairly close up photos and group photos in daylight or good lighting situations, there wasn't a discernable amount of difference between the three cameras especially after printing out the photos on a photo-quality inkjet printer. I noted differences in distance shooting (landscaping photos) and low light situations. Landscape shots of the Boston Harbor captured better details especially with objects in the far background with the S400 and S45. Distant shots of Fenway captured sharper details on the S400 and S45 as well. Nighttime shots were best captured on the S45... although not by a great deal over the S230 and S400. The range of manual controls were without a doubt better on the S45 and that allowed me to take better twilight landscape photos than the other two digital cameras. The surprise was that the S400 seemed the fastest to display the picture in the LCD after the shutter button is pressed and the continuous shot modes were also considerable faster to me than the S230 and S45.
Rating:
Summary: Superb little guy!!
Review: This little Canon is a dream. Enough manual features to allow your creative side to experiement and keep it interesting. Personally though, I mostly plan to use the S400 in auto mode for most pics though, as the shots are unbelievable for such a small camera in all settings. My former camera was a Fujii FinePix 6800 which is also a fine piece of electrical engineering, however, I prefer the 4.0 megapixel CCD as oppose to an interpolated system delivering 6.0 resolution derived from 3.0. The S400 is also much smaller, and feels more solid in the hand. Another plus is the unit is great at battery conservation, unlike some systems that drain the juice forcing you to not use the LCD. A real neat feature worthy of mention is the "Mini Movie" with sound feature which allows for two resolution settings and 3 minutes of capture. The only drawback with this little guy is the rubber cover for the AV and USB ports which in time will probably need to be replaced due to wear. I wish Canon designed a door type device for this purpose, but then again, rough users would probably break the door off. For this enigma, I suggest a CF card reader, especially if you do not use the AV ports like me. I just upload the files, and convert them to whatever format needed to play in whatever device I want, and burn them on optical media of choice, so I can leave the cover in place. None the less this is a camera I highly recommend for all users. The set-up is basically brainless for computer geeks, and simple for newbies. The S400 itself in usage is similar, in that newbies will take great shots in auto mode, and when they progress they will find the manual settings fun to play with. One of the useful manual features is the "Stitch Assist Mode" combined with the easy to use included software, "PhotoStitch" anyone can shoot awesome panoramic shots. Another neat feature, although fairly benign, is the "My Camera" mode which you can alter audio effects to make the camera sound like it has a mechanical shutter. You can even create your own sounds and personal pics to upload with the supplied software to replace factory effects. Lots of stuff in this "Little Guy" to keep you amused. Plus it takes superb pictures! PS Digital cameras of this size are a real pain to find proper sized camera bags, so here are two that I purchased for different uses. The first is a Tamrac Digital Series model #5690 that has a velcro strip along with a clip fastener in front for secure carrying. It also has a small zippered pouch in front that can hold a spare battery and two CF cards in their case. The second is Lowepro model D-Res 8S with a zippered opening. This is a more fitted case which has an acessory pouch within the bag itself that can hold one spare battery, and one CF card. You could probably squeeze another CF card in, but the fit will be a little tight. Both bags come with shoulder straps, belt straps, and are made of ballistic nylon that is well padded. Your Elf will not roll or shake in these cases. The Canon PSC300 cloth pouch is okay if you like the purple dinosaur color, and don't mind the lint it collects.
Rating:
Summary: The most powerful compact digital camera out there?
Review: Canon's S400 is the second 4 MegaPixel compact digicam from a major manufacturer on the market (I consider Minolta's F100 the first). Overall, the S400 is a winner for anyone looking for a basic point-and-shoot digital camera with a few added picture modes. While the overall build quality of the S400 is slightly inferior to Canon's 3MP S230 camera... the bevy of features compensates for this. On the plus side is the 4 MegaPixel photo capture, 3x OPTICAL Zoom (which is way more important than what level of digital zoom it has), built-in speaker and microphone, 9 point AutoFocus system, improved user interface with the new FUNC button, DIGIC image processor which speeds up photo capture and improves photo quality, improved battery life over the older Canon digital ELPH even the S230 camera, up to 3 minutes of movie capture in various resolutions, and voice annotations on photos. All of this in a camera that fits into your shirt pocket. You also have a few manual settings if you desire with manual exposure control, white balance (with several preset values), some photo effects (sepia shots, B&W, motion blur), and long shutter settings to name several user adjustable settings. On the minus side, battery life is somewhat short (150-170 in my use on a full charge), the flash is weak especially for low light and nighttime shots, you often will get red eye in your flash shots even with the red eye reduction (although it is greatly reduced), the off-center tripod hole makes it more difficult to have stitched photos, the limited manual controls versus other cameras in this price range, and the price of the camera. Overall, this a great compact digital camera best for vacationing and those who need an easy to carry camera with little operating hassle. If you desire more manual features and professional level features, look at Canon's S45 4MP digital camera with is the same price as the S400.
Rating:
Summary: The EveryPerson digicam
Review: I've owned four cameras in the ELPH series now - the S100, the S110, the S230 and now the S400. I've liked them all but the S400 is simply sensational!! Yes, some may nit and pic about some things but mostly they aren't reading the manual - it is not bigger than the S230, the usa.canon.com website lists it as 1mm deeper but show it to be the exact same size in inches!? Yes, they reduced the movie mode resolution (while lengthening the movie time) but who uses it much anyway and even at that it works just fine. I took a 2 minute sequence today of a mama Killdeer doing her wounded bird schtick and it looks fantastic on my computer monitor screen! Spring for an extra battery, a bigger CF card and the leather case for the old ELPH Jr APS camera and you have an unbeatable combination with no excuse for not having it in your pocket at all times to get that photo op that is always coming up to be missed because you hate carrying that bulky, heavy other digicam!! Hopefully next year they'll do it all over again in a 4X zoom, 5 megapixel same size upgrade - I'll be the first in line to buy it, the S400 ELPH series is one of the greatest, everyday, real world, practical cameras to ever exist. Buy it and take 10,000 pictures this year like I did last year with my S230. That's $2800 worth of film and processing in a film camera using a camera that only cost me ... for the camera, an extra battery and two 128mb CF cards - if you're a careful internet shopper like me!
Rating:
Summary: A winner right out of the box!
Review: I opened the box, loaded the battery & CF card, and started shooting pictures. The basic controls were easy to figure out in seconds. Some day soon I will read the manual to learn the advanced controls. 3x zoom is very useful. No red-eye. Automatic exposure control works well. A picture of large room was well lit and all parts of the room were easy to see. No dark areas. Like most digital cameras, you have to hold the button down and wait for the shutter and flash to fire. This makes action shots difficult. Cycle time is better than my previous two digital cameras. The only real down side is the proprietary battery. In the past I have purchased and loaded AA or AAA batteries anywhere. Now I have to recharge or carry a spare battery. The bottom line is: I use a digital camera for convenience. I purchased a Canon Digital Elph because its size makes it easy to carry. Therefore, I am more likely to have it with me when I want to take a picture. I purchased the S400 because I was disapointed in the 2x zoom of the S230 and 4 Mega Pixels gives me more cropping/quality options. I'm very happy with my choice.
Rating:
Summary: Clicks!
Review: Everything I want it to do without alot of extra gimmicks. All my photos look like prizewinners. Four megapixels seem to do the job just fine and there isn't the usual waiting time between clicks.
Rating:
Summary: AWESOME
Review: My First digital camera was S100 from Canon, upgraded to S200 and S230 (3.2 megapixel) This is my Fourth Digital Camera which is the best, the smallest powerful 4 megapixel around... There are other good digital camera but most of them are big and ugly... This one is perfect. Can Record 3 minute movie..., 3X optical zoom plus 8X digital Zoom. Never buy Sony Digital camera (Sony Camcorder is good but not the digital camera)... Canon is better and more powerful... Most of my friends have canon, only one person have Sony... and that will tell the difference... :)
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