Canon PowerShot SD800 IS First Impressions Review

Model Design / Appearance
The Canon PowerShot SD800 looks almost identical to the SD700 with its trendy design and “Perpetual Curve” frame. The slight curve in the side makes it comfortable for users to grip the right side of the camera while adding some visual interest to the camera. This PowerShot is constructed from stainless steel metal and comes in a traditional silver color. It isn’t an incredibly stylish camera, but it is small and classy.

Size / Portability
A wrist strap eyelet sits on the right side of the camera, and using it would not be such a bad idea. The camera weighs 5.29 oz without the card and battery, which is a good weight for the 3.52 x 2.28 x 0.99-inch body. It won’t bust a wrist, and it won’t fall off without users realizing it either.

Handling Ability
The SD800 IS has a “Perpetual Curve” design that makes handling a bit more comfortable, but the curved right side is about all there is. There are no changes in thickness of the camera body, like some manufacturers are doing with their slim models now. When holding the camera, the left fingers get in the way of the flash causing a few partially dark images. The thumb rests on a mode dial on the back of the camera that curves up slightly toward the right side to keep the thumb in place. There are not many handling features besides those; the Canon SD800 IS surely will not be known for its incredibly comfy handling.

Control Button / Dial Positioning / Size
Most of the buttons are properly sized, spaced, and labeled. I have a few complaints though. The zoom ring surrounding the shutter release button does not move very much and has a tiny nub with which it rotates; it is not very comfortable. The curved mode dial on the back has a similar problem because of its small size. The mode dial is not big enough tab to be able to comfortably turn it. The multi-selector is also a slight challenge because it is flush with the camera body.

Menu
The menus are typical of a Canon PowerShot digital camera. There is a Function menu accessed with the key in the center of the multi-selector, while all other menus are found with the Menu button. The following is the Function menu.

Mode	Manual, Digital Macro, Color Accent, Color Swap, Panorama Right to Left, Panorama Left to Right
Exposure Compensation	+/- 2 in 1/3 increments
White Balance	Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Custom
My Colors	Off, Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, Black & White, Positive Film, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Vivid Green, Vivid Blue, Vivid Red, Custom (Contrast, Sharpness, Saturation, Red, Green, Blue, Skin Tone all +/- 2 in whole increments)
Metering	Evaluative, Center-weighted Average, Spot
Compression	SuperFine, Fine, Normal
Image Size	Large, Medium 1, Medium 2, Medium 3, Small, Postcard, Widescreen

AiAF	Face Detection, On, Off
Slow Synchro	On, Off
Red-eye Reduction	On, Off
Self-timer	Custom (0-30 sec delay, 1-10 shots)
AF Assist Beam	On, Off
Digital Zoom	On, Off
Review	Off, 2-10 sec, Hold
Auto Category	On, Off
Display Overlay	Grid Lines, 3:2 Guide, Both, Off
IS Mode	Continuous, Shooting Only, Panning, Off
Date Stamp	On, Off
Long Shutter	On, Off

Mute	On, Off
Volume	Start Up, Operation, Self-timer, Shutter, Playback (1-5 levels for each)
LCD Brightness	15 levels
Power Saving	Auto Power Down (On, Off), Display Off (10 sec-30 min)
Time Zone	(select on world map)
Date/Time	M/D/Y, D/M/Y, Y/D/M, Date, Time, Daylight Savings Time
Clock Display	0 sec-3 min
Format	Low Level Format, OK, Cancel
File Numbering	Continuous, Auto Reset
Create New Folder	Auto Create (Off, Daily, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monthly), Time (0-24)
Auto Rotate	On, Off
Lens Retract	0 sec, 1 min
Language	English, German, French, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Italian, Norwegian, Swedish, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese, Russian, Portuguese, Korean, Greek, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Thai, Arabic, Romanian, Ukrainian
Video System	NTSC, PAL
Print Method	Auto, PictBridge
Reset All	OK, Cancel

Theme	Off, 1, 2, 3
Start Up Image	Off, 1, 2, 3
Start Up Sound	Off, 1, 2, 3
Operation Sound	Off, 1, 2, 3
Self-timer	Off, 1, 2, 3
Shutter Sound	Off, 1, 2, 3