Canon PowerShot A80 Digital Camera Review

Auto Mode (7.0)
The auto mode of the Canon PowerShot A80 is accessed through the mode dial on the top of the camera. Characteristic of most point-and-shoot cameras, the Canon PowerShot A80 gives the user limited options for adjusting settings. The digital camera’s resolution, compression, and self-timer have multiple settings to fiddle with while the following functions can be turned off and on: flash, red-eye, AF assist beam, macro mode, digital zoom, and auto rotate. The auto mode of the Canon PowerShot A80 convinced me that a digital camera novice could use this camera without difficulty, which is a chief concern for many buyers.

Movie Mode (6.0)
The movie mode in the Canon PowerShot A80, accessed by the mode dial, can shoot movies at either 320 x 240 or 160 x 120 resolution. Once in movie mode you simply press the shutter button and the camera begins shooting and recording sound. Although this is a nice feature to have on a point-and-shoot camera, the Canon PowerShot A80 offers a mediocre 15 fps (frame-per-second) rate, which is pretty low compared to a lot of other cameras in this range that offer 30 fps.

Drive / Burst Mode (6.5)
The drive mode of the Canon PowerShot A80 offers two continuous shooting modes: standard and high speed. They are accessed through the function button. Standard mode captures approximately 1.6 frames per second and allows you to view the images as the camera shoots them. This feature obviously slows the rate down, so if you’re really worried about speed the high speed shooting mode is a better option. This doesn’t show you your images until after the burst is finished, but it captures at 2.4 frames per second.

In addition to the different continuous modes, the drive mode features two self-timer options that can be used in any shooting mode. I was a little disappointed that the Canon PowerShot A80 only offered 2 second and 10 second options. 10 seconds is a reasonable amount of time to run from the camera to the scene, but 2 seconds is practically useless. I would like to see more alternatives or possibly the option to assign the time yourself.

Playback Mode (7.0)
The Canon PowerShot A80, like many point-and-shoot Canon digital cameras, has a separate button designated for clicking between shooting and playback modes. The playback mode allows you to display information about the image such as image size, camera settings, date, and a histogram. If you press the function/trash button you can erase images one by one. This is kind of a pain if you’re trying to erase a few images quickly, but if you want to erase the entire card you can select the erase all option in the playback mode menu.

In the Canon PowerShot A80 it’s possible to view multiple images simultaneously on the LCD monitor in playback mode. By pressing the zoom lever located on a ring surrounding the shutter, your images will appear on the LCD in a thumbnail form. The Canon PowerShot A80 allows nine images to be viewed simultaneously, and selection of an image is engaged by using the four-way button grouping. To cancel out of this option, the user merely presses the zoom ring to the far left. To jump nine images forward or back, the zoom lever must be pushed to the right once, and the SET button must be depressed. While holding the SET button, the user will see a jump bar at the bottom of the LCD monitor. To disengage this option, the user merely presses the zoom lever fully to the left; the jump bar disengages, and the original thumbnail options are reinstated.

Within the playback mode of the Canon PowerShot A80, it is possible to zoom into certain sections of a previously shot image, an option that some other point-and-shoot cameras lack and which I personally enjoy. It is possible to move the zoom symbol throughout the LCD screen by using the four-way command buttons located beside the monitor. Once a certain section of the image is within the zoom frame, the user moves the zoom lever to the left, represented symbolically by the magnifying glass. By doing this repeatedly it is possible to magnify 2.5, 5, and 10 times original image. To cancel the magnified image, the user merely slides the lever back to the extreme right, thus canceling out the previous command. Movie frames and index playback images are not capable of using this option at all.

Custom Image Presets (8.5)
The Canon PowerShot A80 has fourteen shooting modes to choose from, which is very impressive. Canon divides the modes into two zones: creative zone and imaging zone. Automatic mode is left out of these categories because it takes all control from the user. The creative zone, featuring program, shutter speed priority, aperture priority, manual, custom 1, and custom 2 modes, offers the user varying amounts of control and flexibility. The imaging zone assists in capturing specific scenes or accomplishing certain styles; it features portrait, landscape, high scene, fast shutter, slow shutter, stitch assist (panoramic), and movie mode.

The Canon PowerShot A80 has an impressive six effects to choose from, accessed by pressing the function button. The effects include vivid, neutral, low sharpening, sepia, B&W, and no effect. They can be reached in every mode except auto mode. These modes give the user a few fun and easy-to-use options to fit their own style and to make their images a bit more unique.