I love my A620. It has more options than I will probably ever use but I enjoy trying new settings. Setting it to Auto takes great pics too. I love the option to take video as well. I haven't done much research on this, but more expensive, "higher end" cameras don't take video. My camera is currently in for repairs due to a possible failure of the CCD due to exposure to hot/humid conditions. This is a well documented problem in other Canon cameras, but the A620 is not on Canon's list of cameras that are known to have this problem. However, after using my camera in the bathroom with the shower running, it quit working. Canon is fixing it for an $89 flat rate, although I'm still holding out hope that they find a problem with the CCD and as they do for other cameras, fix mine for free.

Before purchasing this camera 5 years ago, I researched online the pros and cons of this camera. Based on the numerous positive reviews, I purchased this camera for around $400. Plus, the only other camera that I've ever had was a Canon AE1 manual that lasted for 22 years. Canon has sold it's cameras based on it's reputation for quality, affordability and service.

Initially, the camera took fantastic pictures - no problems with the camera at all. Then it died. It started out with the lens - slow to open and retract. It started going through batteries like crazy. Then the lens started sticking. (Mind you, I have taken excellent care of this camera. It's never been dropped, maintenance performed regularly.)

Eventually, the lens stuck closed, the LCD screen went black. I contacted Canon about repairing the camera. $199 to repair it. That's when I started reading that in some of the Canon models, they had used faulty parts from China in manufacturing. There are 2 class action suits against Canon for manufacturing faulty cameras and selling them.

Research on line for problems with the Canon Powershots and their other lines of cameras. After paying good money for a camera that supposedly has a good reputation and should last longer than 5 years, I am thoroughly disgusted with Canon and will never buy a camera from them.

If you want to replace your camera every 5 years, then buy the PowershotA620.

I have had this camera for just over 3 years.
I think it takes amazing pictures and the software has always been very easy to use

I know there's many people complaining about the noise levels at certain ISO's and other problems with this camera, but one has to remember that this is not an SLR or a DSLR! If you really want high quality, then just bite the bullet, but if your are like, this is probabaly the better option. As a digital camera, it definitely is high end and has plethora of modes and functions to keep amateurs, enthusiasts, and even professional photographers happy. I love that i can control the photo parameters with the full manual mode, or just let the camera do the work for me in auto. I just ordered add on filters and convectors lenses for this camera (another great option) to see how much i could push its limits. I love this camera so much that if i had to, i would buy another one. I would highly recommend it to anyone.

Excellent point and shot..that let's you control a lot of parameters to get creative. Exposure is always right at sun or low light. Focus is precise and works well with "limited" light. Noise is very minos for a camera on this price range....There are better worlds, they just are more expensive,

My daughter & I each bought a Canon A 620 almost 2 years ago. We are both very pleased with the camera and the many, many photos we've taken during that time.
Only thing that could make it even better would be more optical zoom.

Great outdoor usage. Pictures came out better than expected. Macro usage is no ideal. I did tried to use it to snap some picture in lab on some close up stuff, without flash it's dark but if use using a flash it seems over bright. Also, autofocus do not work good on closeup micro shot.

For the $ I have paid I think it's better than average.

fantastic i love it. beautiful pictures . the only problem i ever had is my own when i turn off the flash and it is needed for the shot ,i like to experiment trying different kinds of shots. I lost my camera for over a month when i found it, it was outside in the weather( not rain )and it was as great as ever.

I love my Canon A620. I did extensive research before diving into the digital camera pool and leaving behind my 35mm manual. I still use my old one but this camera takes the cake. Awesome low light, bright light, portrait, and landscape setttings. The only drawback is that I get red eye when taking closer shots of friends and family. But I can remove in software. Like the manual options, but still learning all it can do. Very stable and durable, I've even dropped it on a rocky trail and it's working fine after the accident. Great camera for an affordable price.

This is a good camera if you want basic photos of stationary objects. The A620 will give you great scenery shots, still portraits, or even black & whites. I have traveled around the world with the camera and have gotten miraculous shots. It is small but not too small. It has a great comfortable hand grip yet still small enough to hide if necessary. Also the tilt out screen is very handy.

However, I have found this camera struggles in low light situation or action shots. These pictures will be blurry, grainy and unfocused. The shuttle lag is significant. I have attempted to use the kid/pet (no action mode) mode but it has not been affective with speeding up the shutter. The camera is slow to respond.

Last complaint about this camera is after 2 years, the LCD is going out and the lens cover sticks. All these things are easy enough to work around. This camera has a long hard life and endured for the most part.

I would recommend this to any beginning photographer or an intermediate level that is not going to be photographing children or sports

I like the camera. It has excellent photo quality, great features (the large tilt screen is handy) and intuitive design. But the automatic lens cover malfunctioned 4 months in, and the top cover piece is separating from the top of the camera base after 1 year. I can live with those problems, they're minor, because I otherwise like the camera quite a bit. But if I have more problems, I won't buy another Canon.

I have people compliment me on my photo's and ask what DSLR I use!! Most are amazed that I use a point and shoot based on how good my pictures come out. If you do not take the time to learn this camera then don't buy it. I learned every aspect of this....great macro. You can achieve great pictures if you place it in Portrait mode and modify the flash a bit lower. A ton of features, this camera should be $400 and I got it for $200. Great Point and Shoot overall.

I love everything about my A620! In fact, it has more capabilities than my sister-in-laws Nikon Digital SLR. I recently purchased the wide angle lens for it and was amazed at the results. The only downside I've experienced is the lens cover recently popped off (don't know why). The lower portion wouldn't retract so I sent it in for repair and found that Canon wanted $107 to repair or $140 for a refurb. Since there was no telling what else they may find once they opened it up, I opted for the refurb.

I would like to see Canon be a little more reasonable with the prices for repairing what is a cheap plastic piece and prone to failure.

I did my research before buying and I am glad I did. It not only meet my expectations but exceeded it. The larger than most displays that is fully adjustable to allow you to get low and high angle shoots with out getting on the floor or climbing a ladder (not what I carry around with me) is one of it's high points. Being fully manually adjustable along with several preset shooting formats another. But most of all I find the flash recovery time and battery life amazing. Put that together with a 7.1 meg 16 power zoom and you have a powerful tool.

The Canon PowerShot A620, is the best camera I have ever owned, and I have had several. I think one of the best features is the swivel screen. It is perfect for holding it above your head for a better view or taking a picture of yourself. The pictures always come out clear even if you are unable to hold the camera perfectly still. The camera is good for pretty much anyone, it has good auto features for the inexperienced and manual ones for the professional camera user. Either way this camera is well worth the money.

I purchased the A620 4 months ago. It is a great camera and I have been extremely careful with it. I switched it on this morning to find an internal crack in the LCD screen so the screen is white with black marks!! The camera has been very carefully placed in its protective case last night and certainly did not recieve any trauma! Shop where i purchased the camera said Canon would not replace it or fix but would say it was my own fault!! Lost $600!!!

After much [online] research I decided to "ask Santa" ( my wife ) for this little magic box for a year ago. Note, at the time this little gem was hard to come by and it cost was none less than big-box retail. I also purchased a 1GB SD card with built-in USB connection. This was a very wise purchase.

In the past year I have taken thousands ( yes, thousands ) of pix with this little wonder of a camera.

Not only is it a great point and shoot camera, but it gives me the same flexibility as my much older nikon n8008s without waiting for results.

I has phenomenal macro capabilities which I use a extensively. And it will yield great medium and long shots too.

The A620 is a wonderful overall digital, well worth its price.

If you can ignore its size problem (as it is bit bigger than equivalent cameras), it is an excellent camera..LCD is not very big but of a decent size..i admire all the other features and highly recommend..whatever features i needed..it provides me..like i once needed date n time to be printed over the picture..if u goto Postcard resolution, u can do so..

I'm a young'in, almost 18, and I recently decided that I wanted to study photography in my college years. But before I started all that, I wanted to make sure I could actually take good pictures. So I did reserch and bought this one.

It is honestly amazing. This camera does magic, I love the 'indoors' setting, but don't use it in low/yellow light. It's horrible. Cloudy days are fine, if you fiddle with the settings you'll eventually get exactly what you wanted.

Pictures are best taken outside or in normal lighting situations. Sometimes, because the LCD is so bright, it's frustrating to find that your picture is darker than what your camera read to you, but that can be fixed after it's uploaded.

It's has a tendancy to blur, even on 'animals and kids' setting. But sometimes a blurred picture can be exactly what you wanted.

So, all in all, don't be afried of a few little bumps. This camera is easy to get to know and great for new comers—like me!

Pictures here: http://aya.awardspace.com/

It's easy to use and takes great pictures. There is nothing I don't like about this camera.

Had a more expensive Nikon and hated it, gave it to my 4 year old granddaughter to play with. Did some more research and purchased the Canon A620...I LOVE IT!

I am so hooked on this camera. I take it everywhere and take picures like everyday. I am officailly addicted... if this one breaks I'll buy the same exact camera if the upgrade is not better. This camera is more than I ever hoped it would be.... It takes awesomely clear pics and the flip out screen makes this one of the best digital cameras out... I am spoiled now and turn my nose up to any camera without the flip out screen. The screen is also very clear. I love the digital zoom as well... You can crop and crop and crop the pic when u use the max resolution and the picture stays clear since it can take rather big pictures so even if ur target is far away don't worry... He'll be close up as soon as u download the pic and edit it cropping to ur hearts content. I love this camera. I love the video quality as well... It is just as good as the pics except that in dimly lit areas that u r shooting a video it will come out dark and grainy... Try to lite up the subject as much as possible unless the dim grainy thing is what ur after.

They should call this a disposable camera. Had it for only 3 months and the photos are so bad, the background now always looks black and white, the images are never in focus. It worked well for about 2 weeks, then it was horrible. Barely used it, only photographed my pets. The quality is so bad that when I loaded some photos onto a photo community sharing website, I got so many nasty comments on the poor quality, I was so embarassed, I deleted them and cancelled my membership.

Great camera and not a flimsy made as some others. The fit and finish of this baby is top notch all the way and the swiveling LCD is really a bonus. The only thing I don't like is the cover for the USB port. It seems to be the only thing on this camera which could have been better designed and more substantial. Other than that small issue the quality and picture taking is superb. I only gave $200 at Bluestripe Camera with great shipping and good service.

I have been a photographer for years. Needed something simple to kind of replace some of the other cameras I have. I fully recommend the Canon A620 as a fully loaded decent camera!

I bought this camera after reading several reviews, and have not been disappointed.

I took it on a week-long Cape Buffalo safari to one of the most remote areas on earth, the Selous Game Reserve in southern Tanzania.

I stuffed it into the pocket of my bush vest and shot 436 photos with it using a 1 gig chip. It performed flawlessly and survived being bounced around in a hunting vehicle, and being carried along on stalks that lasted sometimes for hours.

In the dust and the dirt and the pounding, it kept on going and I took some very satisfying photos with it, from lion and elephant to sunset shots on the Kilombero River.

One of the features that i really appreciate is that it runs on four AA batteries and rechargibles aren't necessary.

Highly recommended.

I own this camera (now ceded to my wife) and the A710IS. The latter is a better camera due to image stabilization technology, the longer zoom, and the fact that it uses two AA batteries instead of four. Lighter, more stable, more preset options. Beyond that, and bearing in mind that the A620 is a lot cheaper, there isn't much difference in image quality or performance. Manufacturers are updating at such a pace that you need to choose a camera and stick with it for a couple of years or buy a new one very six months. The A620 is a good, solid camera. It has an optical viewfinder too! Absolute necessity for me. At around 200 bucks, you can't go wrong. Don't pay more.

Bought this camera a little less than a year ago, what a steal for $200.00! Easy takes the best pics of any camera I have evert owned. Excellt color, clarity, and decent speed. Flip side, it swallows batteries like it stole them. However, with rechargables, it's no issue!

as close as Canon has ever been to the G6 in this type of camera.Could use red eye reduction improvement,,but still very good.

Packed with all the features and megapixels you'd want, and for the price, it makes a wonderful little camera, although it isn't too tiny. It is well-made, in fact I've dropped it onto pavement and it still works fine, it takes 4 batteries so that you can take lots of pictures at a time, and you can adjust almost everything. It also has 7.1 MP. The 4x zoom is decent, and the picture quality it has is great. The only downers, really, are that instead of a nicer lens and stability control it has megapixels and shooting modes, although the A620 doesn't have a sports shooting mode, but it has the manual controls to compensate. It's flip screen is really handy, too. I myself would like a camera with a bigger lens and stability control, but the overall quality of this camera and smaller size makes me love it just as much.

I began researching digital cameras in November of 2005. After a many days of reading and comparing, I found the A620 to be the best high 6-7 megapixel camera on the market. It has many excellent features like the video camera and the biggest selling poing for me...the flip out screen.
I loved it so much I convinced my sister to buy it. Then I bought mine months after her (wanted to sell my regular camera first).

Awesome camera!!!Value for money and crystal clear/sharp photo's.The focus is brilliant..zoom or no zoom, and I have yet to see such outstanding macro shots anywhere els!Shutter speed is supper fast...NO shhutter lag.Camera shake does not effect images,as focus outstanding.Beautiful colours.We have compared many cameras...run them up against each other to see what they can do...the Canon Powershot A620 came out on top all the time.All I can say is WOW!!You Go Canon!

Overall is good. But more noise in long exposure.
No image stabilization. 4X optical is not enough. (ideal more than 8x). Quality of LCD is bad(not improve in new model A640). Movie in avi format(not mpeg4). Recording sound is bad.

I have had this camera less than 2 months and the LCD spontaneously cracked. Do a google search for "canon lcd crack" and see what I mean.

I am not a new digital camera user. I have had nikons for the past 5 years with no issue. I know how to care for my electronic equipment and had a protective bag/case.

This camera was not dropped or compressed in any way. It worked perfectly. I put it away in it's padded camera bag and when removed it to use again, the LDC was dark and warped with an internal crack.

Neither the extended warranty nor the manufacturers warrant wants to cover this, as it is automatically assumed that if your LCD cracks, you are at fault. Which, considering the canon track record, I find insulting. There is not even a scratch on the camera, nor is the external LCD damage.

After 60 days - primarily being stored in it's case with very light use, my camera requires $150 in repairs. That is utterly unacceptable.

While today's digital camera market is gearing more towards the sleek and stylish models, Canon can still be depended upon to produce a great camera that takes great pictures - as with the A620. After losing my old Fuji FinePix 2600 (2mp - it was a very good camera), I decided after much research to buy the Canon A620. This camera is absolutely terrific in every way! My likes:
- excellent picture quality
- quick start-up and very little shutter lag
- rarely need to use the flash (great sensor!)
- more automatic modes than I'll ever need, plus complete manual settings.
- battery life is fantastic (I use Energizer NiMH 2500 mA and it lasts 2 months of daily picture taking)
- superb movie mode (I don't use my camcorder anymore)
- sturdy design and feel

My dislikes (I have to try...):
- flash is too powerful (sometimes this can be a good thing, and I rarely need the flash anyway)

I can't emphasize enough the importance of purchasing a high-speed (I bought 2gig 150x) memory card to realize the quality of this camera - slow cards will result in poor performance.

Bottom line: Excellent camera suited for the intermediate to advanced photographer, not so much for the stylish amateur.

The features and quality of the photo's are remarkable. I bought this camera for my wife and the real estate business she is in. She loves it and I am still experimenting with the numerous features it has. Simple enough for those point and shoot shots, and advance enough for those of us that like to do something different. I just wish they would make more attachments for this unit, and regret no hot shoe is available either.

It is one of the best cam i have owned...super quality pics and many shooting modes for those perfect pics...if guys r goin to buy a camera in this range i will surely suggest this camera...

I really utilized this camera for the first timeon a recent Cape Buffalo hunting trip to Tanzania. Temperatures ranged from 60 to 100 degrees F. The camera rode in the pocket of my hunting vest and was bounced around in the back of a pickup, carried in the dust and rain of southern Tanzania, and subjected to abuse and harsh environmental conditions. I photographed over 21 species of game, several magnificient sunrises and sunsets, and trophies taken on the hunt.

I am impressed with the sturdiness and battery life of this wonderful little camera.

I have used Canon SLR film cameras for years, and the versatilaty of this camera has replaced my current film camera for field use. Photo quality is excellent, and reprints are also excellent with very high resolution.

I intend to test it in the sub-zero Saskatchewan wilderness on an upcoming deer hunt in November. So far, so good. An excellent choice for field use. Five stars.

Excellent Camera. Does its job well. Produces excellent results without PhotoShop editing. A worthy sucessor to my Canon Canonet QL17, a film camera from the 60's. Buy the A620, two sets of rechargeable batteries, a large memory card, and you will be happy! I still love my Canonet QL17 and still use it. Canon will make you Happy!

All credit to my local supplier and Canon Service Dept., Camera returned today with new pcb fitted.
Not only a good camera but backed up with good service.

Perfect for me. Great blend of point and shoot along with the ability to do more advanced shooting.

After reading many other reviews of this camera, I find that most are fairly accurate when describing all of the wonderful positive aspects of this camera. For some reason, though, people have different views of the "Lag Time" and Battery life of this camera. As a professional photographer, I find this definitely the best "companion" camera on the market. Battery life is very good for a camera of this amazing quality and number of features. I get about 300-350 "Best quality" photo's per set of AA alkaline batteries. (Don't buy "CHEAP" batteries, they won't last. There are many times that I need a camera for a Quick picture and don't have time to get out the Digital SLR. This fits the bill just great. LAG TIME on the A620 is by far the least of any digital camera other than my Digital SLR's, that I have seen. This is especially important when photographing children. It really irk's me to watch so many people waist almost every photo opportunity because they have to WAIT for 10 to 30 seconds before they can shoot a picture. By that time the photo is lost. Also the Flash recharge time is one of the best in the business. Have you ever watched people try to take a picture and have to wait, and wait, and WAIT for the flash to charge before they can shoot eh picture? Really annoying. and they miss the best pictures. The Canon A620 eliminates all of these issues. This is a camera that even my wife can use without my help. Now I can even be in a picture once in a while instead of always being behind the camera. Don't pass this camera by. Even though this is a discontinued model, it still is the best for the money. The new model that replaces it is made MUCH cheaper in construction, doesn't have the FEEL of a real camera, only uses 2 AA bateries and is much More awkward to hold. The only advantage to getting the newer model is the availability of the 800 asa setting for lower light photos. (Grainy at best) a terrific trade-off for all of the other pluses of the A620. Don't by any other point and shoot Digital camera.

The first time I had pictures printed, I was amazed at the difference in quality! The Canon A620 is cleary the right choice if you have any doubts. I did run into a problem though. The LCD display image would not rotate when I rotated the LCD screen. I made sure the rotate setting was set to "on". I shipped it back to Canon for service. The customer service was nice and friendly, however, when I got my A620 back,the camera was scratched and metallic paint worn off, scuffed on every service, and on/off label was scratched off. Even the serial number sticker looks like it had be removed and placed on this camera. I had only used the camera at home and on a small weekend vacation, so I am certain the condition was like new when I packaged and sent it to Canon. I hope Canon will make things right on my complaint.

I upgraded from a 2 MP to the Canon A620 and cannot belive the difference in the photo's. I also purchased the Hi powered MIMH batteries which I would highly recommend any one to do, also the Secure Digital 256 MB. The zoom is fun to use with either the macro or landscape feature. The program supplied for your computer to print and send photo's is easy to use. I would highly recommend this camera.

I am a photojournalist but don't always want to carry around my heavy gear for family and vacation photos. The A620 works perfect for this and is fine as a starter camera also. I like the fact that it has some manual override and the video feature is great too. The screen is fairly visible in bright sunlight but I often use the view finder and that seems to work just fine. The 32mb card that comes with the camera is a waste of time. Why not add $30 to the price of the camera a give a 1gig card or just take $10 off the price and not give a card.
I threw away the 32mb card the day after I bought the camera. Overall the camera is a good buy and the quality is great for a point and shoot camera. Look around and buy the camera for around $200 w/shipping. I paid $214 but have seen it since for less that $200. Go buy this camera now!!

I have been very happy with my A620 which is now 9 months old, however, it has developed an intermittent fault.
Upon start-up, the monitor display turns red! The subjects can still be seen and the camera works.
The downloaded pictures are not affected and are perfectly normal.
I have returned it to the supplier for repair and await the outcome.
Has anyone else experienced this?

It is a camera that rewards the amateur photographer with great point-and-shoot images. All this time I've spent with the A620 I've noticed a few drawbacks, though totally accepted for this price range. After some time I've noticed some fringing in high contrast photos and some times (when you most need it of course) will just refuse to focus. Of course all that is after being dropped once from 2 feet high.
All in all, I really love this camera which with the 2500mAh AAA's gives me more than 350 photos not including the editing and the change-modes time

Perfect camera for non professional. Easy to operate.

I've had a few Canon's and bought the A75 for the kids and everyone has enjoyed them. Got the 620 for the features/price ($204 from lowest bidder). Movies are great quality, pictures are very good also. A little heavy and was looking for a smaller camera but just couldn't pass up all the features. Got the 2 GIG card since the camera was such a great buy (worth it). It so fast menu's are good. Highly recommend!

I have owned three Canon A series cameras and replaced my A-80 with the A620. I really liked the A80 but Canon has out done itself with the A620. The most prominent thing is no shutter lag/recycle time and the feel of the camera in hand. It has more feature than I can use but opens new doors to techniques. I was considering a digital SLR but this offers most of the features without the weight. My theory is that camera has to fit in a waste pack or I won't take it. The A620 is perfect.

I am completely amazed at what a great camera this is for the price! Being my first digicam, I can't compare it very well to others, but for an SLR user this isn't too hard to get used to. Program mode works well, allowing the user to set AE and AF locks, exposure compensation, etc. The menus are easier to use than I expected, and the pictures are very impressive. They seem to have a finished look that doesn't need a lot of photoshopping. I like it so much I'm giving it to my wife and buying myself one just like it!

The Canon 620 is a camera you will always find an opportunity to use. I was at the beach last night and in very low light wow! I can see the subjects clear in the LCD view finder.

Of course the pictures are superb; what do you expect from Canon. I like the auto focus and also the various modes when I want to take quick shots. I currently own also the Canon A95 which was an awesome camera during it's time but the 620 is several steps above the A95. The resolution is also incredible; super fine pictures. You want to shoot quick shots? Look no further, the Canon 620 is the one. Great price. Quality pictures. A real deal.

I've had my 620 for four days now and I've made a complete nuisance of myself! I love shooting with it.
I used to be a photographer in the military, using both medium and large format cameras. The sharpness in the pictures (when set to manual) is amazing. Better than anything I've ever used.
I HIGHLY recommend this camera.

I bought this camera when my old digital (Nikon coolpix) was having battery issues...I was getting only a dozen or so pictures per set of AA batteries. Needless to say, I was very skeptical about buying another camera that took AA batteries! But, the salesman convinced me that the technology had improved...wow, was he right! I use rechargable batteries (energizer, 2100 mah, same ones I used with the old camera) and I last recharged my batteries about 3 weeks ago, and I'm still going strong. I've taken over 200 photos during this time. WOW, what a difference!!! I love the flip-out screen! I also love playing around with the color effects. Take some time to play with all the features and this will be your favorite camera! Or, rely on the excellent automatic features and it will still be your favorite!

Although it's now considered 'last years' model... it cranks along. This is one of the best values for this type of camera, if not the best!!! This probably is the best all around camera in it's class, the next step up from this camera is a DSLR...

I have yet to read a bad review...

For a camera of this price range, there is simply nothing better!! I took mine on a five week holiday to Vietnam and China and the results were outstanding. Our tour group had all different brands of camera but I was proud to say that the A620 beat them all hands down by a great margin. My fellow travellers even admitted it was a better camera. It's easy to use, takes fantastic day pictures and great pictures in low light. Of course there are better cameras out there, but you may have to pay three times the price to get the same performance.

This is my 4th digital camera,may the the last one for quite some time. Extraordinarily sharp pictures with good color and contrast. I have the tube and adapter for some 35mm filters, use the polarizer to get detail in the highlights. Even the little movies are clear and well-exposed. Swing-out LCD screen makes tripod work easy at any level, viewfinder means you can always compose even in bright backlight. Don't know why they're discontinuing them, they have it all

stepping up from a 2mega pix Minolta camera I wanted to get the best for a low price that would give me good poster size images. After looking around and doing research I decided to go with the canan A620. After using the camera out of the box I instantly fell in love with all the features it had. I sell images of landscapes and needed something great (eplanetplus.com). This camera has a wonderful stitch feature for joining pictures together to make a panarama later on the provided software. A window apears so that when you take the next picture you can see the last picture you took and line it up with the current view for a perfect panarama compilation.
I love the fact that you can add a wide angle lens as well as a telephoto lense and filters. The picture quality is superb.
The only problem I had was I got an I/O error on one of the pictures I took at the time of download using a sandisk standard 128 meg card. It may be because I shot a few picture in a fast sequence and the card was waiting to catch up to record from the camera. I would recomend the newer sandisk sd cards which are faster to record data and there should be no problems.
I am looking forward to creating new landscapes in 2006 for my website.

Brad Wright
ON Canada

I've been taking digital for over 10 years started with a Kodak DC20. This is best yet. I see complaints of Wrong Battery. This is found out before You buy.Personally you can buy AA anywhere.(that's why I bought it. Lag time,Use the right Storage Unit {Ultra SD] This take a perfect point & shoot Picture everytime. Improvements {maybe smaller size}I cannot say who it's good enough for but I feel like a Pro using it.

I was impressed that I was able to set it up and take pictures in less than 5 minutes without opening the manual. Pictures are great, have used camera in low light and full sun set on auto no problems. The plastic cover over the usb and power connections is kind of cheap but it hasn't stopped me from loving my new camera. This is replacing my old mavica that used floppy disks. What an upgrade.

An inherent problem with many consumer-level digital cameras is time delay. Time delay is a combination of two factors, shutter lag and recycling time. Shutter lag is that annoying moment between the time you press the shutter and the actual point of exposure. Recycling time refers to the time necessary for the camera to process the digital information, store it, and get ready for the next shot. If you have ever used a point-and-shoot film camera, you've probably experienced shutter lag. Very few reviews give the shutter lag time.... I would rather have a graining image of what I am trying to take a picture of than a perfectly clear image of empty space...

I started out as a news photographer in the '50's and got to know real soon how important it is to have a camera with fast response and high quality images.
I remember moving from a 4x5 Speed Graphic to a Rolleiflex and was the first news photographer in Los Angeles to use a 35mm camera on a full-time basis (a Leica M2) in 1960.
The Canon A620 comes pretty close to my old Leica in handling and speed. It's one of the only cameras you can put into your pocket that has the articulated LCD and an optical viewfinder which is so important when you want to be one-to-one with the scene in front of you without any screens (LCD or SLR) to get in the way. It's a different world with the optical viewfinder.
The full set of controls from manual to aperture priority-shutter priority is welcome relief from most point & shoots.
Too bad Nikon hasn't moved up to the plate the way Canon has in making a "pocket rocket" like the A620.
You can have the best DSLR in the world, but it doesn't mean a thing if you don't have your camera with you when inspiration is in full bloom.
Any pro should have this as an optional camera.

With a family, limited time for printing and aging 35mm / 120 cameras, I looked for a digital camera that was reasonably priced and took good pictures. The A620 has done that for me.

this camera is amazing...the mega pixles are great, i take alotttt of pictures and this camera takes good ones everytime. the only problem is it has very bad battery life, and it takes four at a time, but all you have to do it get rechargeable batteries, and it last a couple of days.

Owned Powershot S100 before buying the A620. Very pleased with ease of use and quality of results. Bought it because of size, x4 optical zoom, 7.1 MP, flip screen, AND BECAUSE OF THE USE OF AA BATTERIES. Love the optical viewfinder. Don't love the quality of construction, especially the covers for card & communication to computer.

Really love the camera! Not too small (buttons I can touch). Has an optical viewfinder for bright outdoors or battery savings (only Canon and NIKON still have that). Viewfinder zooms in and out when the lens zooms, almost like an SLR. Extremely low battery consumption (especially when LCD is off - easy, since the viewfinder is bright and accurate. Good contrast, vivid well saturated colors (none of that Japanese 'blue/ green' in Caucasian faces). Autofocus impressive, only few cases where I set "Manual".
I use the camera a lot as a "copier" (turn off flash, set to Macro and zoom in on 11x8 1/2 documents, after download adjust brightness and contrast to "max" (with software) and bingo, you can e-mail the document (or save on your PC or print as a "copy")). The process takes less than a minute total!
The only "negative" is the flimsy plastic cover for the AV and USB ports— I decided to cut it off.
Canon's 800-telephone number was real friendly and patient, did not treat me like the first time user/ idiot that am.

Last month i brought the camera Canon A620.This camera consists of 20 picture modes and not finding the way to print the date and time format on to the picture. It is disabled. Canon usually will give all the options. Except this the camera is excellent and diferent modes are useful in different climates. worth going for it.

I am very please with the ease of the camera. Takes very crisp pictures. The only problem I have is the red-eye issue. I am going to purchase a slave flash and hopefully this will help with the problem. I am not an expert but couldn't be more pleased.

I purchased this camera for my daughter, as soon as we got it home and loaded the batteries we had a problem. The camera powered up and made a load beeping noise, after turning the camera off and back on it stopped beeping. Next problem consisted of the zoom not retracting after the camera was turned off. The lens acted as if was stuck in the out position. After taking the camera back to the retailer I was shocked when the 2nd camera he handed me did the same thing while at the store, the zoom on the 2nd camera also got stuck in the out position and would not retract until we turned the camera on and off several times. We repeated this action 8 times, 3 of the 8 times the camera zoom would not retract and the zoom buttom was froze. Canon makes a great camera, but they have an issue with this model. I guess my daughter is getting a Casio instead. Thanks...

I really searched the internet, read all the reviews, compared all the stats, and used all kinds of cameras at all the stores for 4 weeks before I bought the A620. This camera exceeds my expectations in many ways, and over 4 days, I have found it takes better pictures than the reviews I have read. The flip out screen is tremendously useful, but does have some limitations as the image will reverse once its angle of limitation has been reached. For example, when doing a self portrait, the screen has to be at a 90 degree angle, and it you tilt it more, it will turn itself upside down at its limit. The Nikon S4 is really the better design because you move the lens, not the screen. But the ability to protect that screen by turning it over and clicking it into the camera body is a good design.

I bought the camera at a discount for $340. I put in a 1 gig card on sale for $55 (and bought another one for video if I need it) and this takes care the storage I need, and raised the price to just about $520. I plan to get the underwater housing and use it for diving.

You can get 40 minutes of high quality video recording with a 1 gig card.

I will agree about the quality of construction. It is just unforgivable to have a plastic tripod socket that can crack in a camera of this class, and the fit of plastic to metal does creak a few times as you hold it, and the adapter ring moves a bit around the lens. But that ring problem was fixed easily by sticking micro-pieces of the soft side of velcro on the underside of the metal rings where it does not meet the bayonet mounts to take up that space. On the other hand, that swivel screen has solidly built hinges to keep its position.

I think these manufacturing flaws are a temporary casualty of moving manufacturing to China, since I have seen this quality degradation in other products that used to be great (such as Leick furniture, which used to be great until they moved manufacturing to China and cheapened the wood quality). However, as QS 9000 Quality auditing begins to supplement the six-sigma lean manufacturing processes, I think you will see better built products from China in the future.

About the AA batteries... they add some nice stability and hand weight to the camera to keep your hand steady, even with one hand. With 4, you really never seem to run out of power. I also bought the Olympus Stylus 800, and it is difficult to take steady shots with that camera unless you use two hands. TOn the A620, the grip design that holds the batteries is excellent, and you can use it with one hand very steadily. I have added some small rubber stick-on strips for my fingers to grip on that blend in with the camera design nicely. Also, realistically, the AA batteries are perfect power sources for cameras... they are not old hat, and they are available everywhere. In an emergency, it is easier to have spare AA's to pop than to lug around another battery charger. Please don't take this flexible option away, since AA's can run cameras in alkaline or in rechargeable forms.

Regarding the picture quality... I have found that the A620 satisfies and exceeds the quality I need in photos. Read the reviews about picture quality from the experts. The A620 performs according to what they say, and in some cases the nit-picking details about noise at ISO 400 is not as bad as portrayed. With the A620 and its wealth of settings and manual overides, you will discover the right combination of manual and automatic settings to overcome some of the reviwers'picture quality shortfalls.

Just remember, you still need film cameras for the ultimate photo quality... digitals are not there yet. You have to accept digitals for what they are as a point an shoot, flexible, electronically versatile, with pictures that can be instantly transmitted and viewed over the internet to anyone to share. More pixels is not the answer, larger CCD imaging chips with more pixels will eventually approach film camera quality. Also, I want to take pictures and view them, I don't want to spend hours using Adobe Photoshop to process pictures electronically the way I want to see them. A camera's primary mission is to first record and render image reality as accurately as it appeared and was seen. If you don't like that reality, then some people can spend hours changing photos with software products. Not me... shoot, print, or transmit quickly... I would rather pay someone else to be the photo editor for hours, but at least I know the camera gives them the right images to work with.

The Canon Powershot A620 is an "Awesome" camera, and shows what an exciting future there must be for cameras of this class and price range as they improve. Canon has hit my customer satisfaction button right on the mark with this product. If you are taking photos like me, you will not go wrong in your purchase.

The camera was so cool and took great photos. It was amazing to look at and to take photos with!

I am delighted with my A620, but I think that for a so good camera in so many features, it lack a few other to be "perfect": a shoe for an external flash, the possibility of sharpening the picture in camera if you want, less barrel distortion at wide angle of zoom and better performance in the highlights (not so perceptible clipping). For the rest, absolutely perfect. I am delighted with it.

I liked my Canon "old" A70 so much (portability, versatility, color rendition) that I bought the even better A620.
It delivers superb quality pictures thanks to Canon's proprietary Digic II processor; it's always available (while it doesn't fit in a dress-shirt pocket, it does fit most pockets and briefcases) and it offers phenomenal versatility... from point & shoot to all sorts of customized settings. Shutter delay is negligible, the video and stitch options work like a dream and the flippable LCD is a great feature.
So what is there not to like? Well, it's one of the homeliest cameras around (can't the fellas who designed the Elphs lend a hand?). Also, Canon seems to have transferred manufacture to China and, truth be told, the look and feel of seams (where the plastic meets the metal) and covers (to battery compartment, SD card, etc.) leave something to be desired. The seams are seldom fully parallel and smooth, which detracts from the jewel-like feel of many cameras (yes, the Elphs). Fit and finish is much better in my "old" A70. So let's hope it holds up because in all other aspects this is perhaps the most useful and enjoyable camera around... because you can carry it just about everywhere and it delivers phenomenal results in just about any situation.

After purchasing a Olympus D-630 less than a year ago and missing lots of important pictures of my kids with blurry or badly exposed pictures, I spent more time looking through reviews and making a better selection.
The reviews are right. The A620 is a great camera.
The pictures are clear. There is a special setting called "kids and dogs" on the camera that I love. With a 1 and 6 year old and a chocolate lab, all of my test shots came out really clear, even with the all the co-motion. I can't wait to try out the color saturation mode at the beach and at the mountains. They claim that it makes the trees greener, the water bluer and the autumn leaves more colorful. I did have a bit of red eye on the pictures, but the computer software did a great job of removing 98% of the problem. The photo stitch (panorama)program looks like a great feature. I was considering buying a EOS Rebel XT, but the ease of point and shoot with some of the custom programs will give me lots of flexibility in advance photo shots. Once again, great camera.

i like the idea of it being able to use AA batteries; you can get them anywhere, anytime. You could also invest in rechargeable lithium matteries.

I started shooting with a Canon in the 60's. This one is awesome. Love the flip out screen and the 7.1 mp gives incredible quality pro looking shots. Unlike one reviewer who did not like 'AA' batts, thats what sold me. I bought a set of Energizer NiMH rechargeables w/charger, lasts hundreds of shots. No exp$$ repair if they fail and can buy a set of AA anywhere if I had to.

very good camera. Probably the best I've had so far, after having Olympus Camedia 3030, 5050, and C-50. Very quick focus, no major errors in focusing, vivid colors, good flash up to 10 ft. Solid construction and power efficient. I used the batteries that come along in the box (alkaline) and lasted two days of heavy use and LCD monitor on. I bought rechargeable 2,500 maH and they seem to last forever.
Overall, an excellent acquisition particularly in my case.

I did extensive research on the internet before choosing the camera within reasonable proximity to my intended budget and that suited my needs. This camera has performed exceptionally well, as outlined in the reviews out there. There are only two minor issues that I wish to mention:
1) the plastic cover for the connector sockets is flimsy which was mentioned in reviews - I can live with that.
2) The red-eye problem when using flash. I have mentioned this because it is really a universal problem and even very expensive cameras fall prey to this phenomenon. My solution - a program called Picasa2 has an excellent utility for digitally correcting that exact problem. It works well.
Wishing you all many happy shutter-releases!

youll really enjoy this camera

that the Canon PS 620 in addition to all the point and shoot features can take 58mm filters by using the lens adapter which twists on and has a screw in at the wide end where you would normally put on the wide angle or tele lens. I leave my adapter on and it acts as a lens hood.

I also use a 1gb sd card which holds lots of images and carry backup NiMh batteries. Great little camera for carrying around with you. The only thing is the door for pluging in the AC charger is cheesy and flimsy but I don't worry because I use a card reader and don't plug up the camera to the computer. Now if Canon would only let me shoot some raw images I'd go for that. all in all a great little camera for walking around.

Just bought camera last week and took it for a week of snowshoeing in the mountains. I used a Lexar 1GB 40x speed card and it was able to take 514 pics on the largest size at 'fine' quality. Flash is super powerful, night-time shots look like day time shots! Cameras lasted in -15C weather until my card filled up, excellent battery life! Camera got a bit wet with snow falling on it and condensation with me sleeping with it to keep batteries warm. Oh and batteries I used were Rayovac IC3 batteries that have 2000mhs, Recharges in 15 minutes or less. The only thing that I do not like about the camera is the plastic tripod mount, do not overtighten as it will crack in the cold!

hi all
this is really a good camera and i liked it very much as we dont get many blur pictures and easy to handle and one thing i did not like is lens opens automatically when we switch on the camera and we have no option to close that and it closes automatically after sometime so we need to be little careful of that.
This is my First Digital camera may be others are also like this, takes good photos in landscape mode i enjoyed it in my trip to Bangkok

This is one fantastic camera. I have had mine for about 4 weeks and absolutely love it. My only criticism would be the size of the SD card that comes with the camera. I swapped the 32mB card for a 512mB and this size works well for me.

The 4x optical zoom is fast and focuses accurately, and combined with the 7 megapixel sensor the detail on distance shots is much greater than your eye can see, although with this level of magnification a tripod is a big help. The photos look sharp and the colours accurate.

The macro feature works great for close-ups. The movie mode works well too, and at 30fps and 640x480, motion looks smooth and natural although you only get about 5 minutes worth onto a 512mB SD card. If you need more movie time and aren't too concerned about quality you can drop to 15fps and lower the resolution as well.

Contrary to some other reviewers, I prefer the AA rechargeable batteries over a built in battery. You can always have a spare set of alkaline AA's on hand and when your rechargeables finally wear out, they are cheap to replace.

I have had some experience with the A95 and find the A620 feels lot more solid (I haven't dropped it though to really find out!). Compared to the A95 the A620 is streets ahead in every other respect as well, with extra zoom, more megapixels and bigger LCD.

All in all, a terrific camera that out performs a lot of more expensive models.

A620 very solid and feels nice in the hand. I wish it was a little faster, ISO>200 a little too grainy. The red-eye is terrible, but if you like photoshop elements, you can live with it.

After months of looking at digital cameras I finally choose the A620 to replace my old Olympus 2.1 mega pixel.

I am very pleased with the Canon so far. The menus are easy to navigate and set up. There are an amazing number of features on this camera. It seems so much more than just a point and shoot.

I think the AA's are a plus over the lithium batteries in other cameras because of the cost and you can always throw in some old akalines in a emergency.

The 4X give you a little extra zoom over most in this class and the flip out LCD helps in certain situations.

The photos look great and the speed is GREAT compared to the terrible delay in my old camera. I can now catch those shots of the kids before they turn their heads away.

The only con might be the lens motor seems a little noisy.

So far I love it. I'm sure you would be happy with this camera if you are thinking about it. The A610 is probably just as good and saves $100.

I was reading the review another person wrote about sending back the camera back because it ran on AA batteries. I look at this as a major selling point rather than a disadvantage. One of the biggest problems with Lithium Ion is their expense. You should be running NiMH batteries, but even if you run out of power, you can get your camera up and running again with a trip to a convenience store. With Lithium Ion, you're attached to your AC Power charger and replacement batteries can run you $100.

We purchased the camera so that we'd have a portable camera when we went out. Ever been wondering around seen some cool architecture shot, something neat with people, a funky car or some amazing sky that you wanted to take a picture but didn't have the camera for it? Our DSLR is great for the times you want all the flexibility that your camera and lenses afford you, but when you have a meeting downtown, it isn't practical to lug around 40 lb. of camera backpack with tripod.

Now we have a camera that can go anywhere we do, and it fits into a pocket.

There are many nice features about this camera, but from a photography perspective, the one feature I most appreciate, in comparison to a digital SLR, is its ability to show you what your scene will look like, on the LCD display before you hit "click". This view changes as you adjust your exposure and aperture settings so you can see how your choices affects the light the camera sees.

When shooting in Manual mode this allows you to set your aperture then adjust your shutter speed until the scene becomes lit appropriately. But how do you know that you have enough light? When you depress the shutter release button half way, it will tell you (in stops) if you are over or under exposed for the entire frame. While that may seem insignificant, the view of the LCD panel in daylight will be different at night, so it is hard to judge whether your manual exposure setting is appropriate for the lighting situation you are in.

It's only negatives are that it doesn't shoot RAW and you cannot use a colour space other than sRGB 1996, which means your red saturation will not be as good.

This is an excellent camera overall with easy-to-use functions and great picture quality.
One underrated feature that few have mentioned is the flip-screen. I use it much more often than I thought I would for those awkward-angle pictures of friends or at concerts and stadiums. Also, it can protect the LCD screen when you're not using the camera. Most other digital cameras leave the LCD exposed at all times.
The AA battery requirement is not as bad as most people seem to think. I bought rechargeable, long-life AA batteries and they last much longer than I expected. AA's also have an advantage over the lithium-ions since you can bring a spare set of AA's along in case your rechargeables run out.

I am far from an expert with digital cameras, (always been a 35mm SLR man, however the Sure Shot A620 has everything I need and more and with good results so far.
One thing I notice is when the telephoto is in use the 'Camera Shake' icon comes on even at moderate telephoto setting, the shot appears to be OK even though.

This camera is for everyone! Canon is at the top of image quality and performance (your not just buying the name)Canon cameras are usually very difficult to operate but, this is not the case with this camera. It is very simple for anyone to use. If you are a professional photographer this camera will definitely suffice for you. You have complete controll over every function. White balance, ex-poser, apature, just to name a few.

If you are a beginner photographer this camera will do the job as well. Pictures on automatic are great! I was in your position of which camera to buy, searching the internet constantly for which camera. Nikon, Sony, Canon, Fuji which one to buy??? Let me tell you this camera is great and would be good for you.

If your wondering about the image quality I cant say anything less than AMAZING. With the 7.1 mega pixels the 4x6 shots are awesome and even when you enlarge you lose nothing, it is still as crisp as ever.

I take professional pictures of people and with this camera it lets you have more than standard features such as color swap and lighter and darker skin tones just to name a few.

Lets just say if you want a camera that is easy to use but gives you amazing pictures than this camera will do the trick.

Before I buy anything, I utilize the technology of the internet by surfing, comparing on the item specifications, prices, differences and even the reviews. After a week of comparing products, I bought CANON (my only brand in camera) a620. The features are awsome, the pictures are sharp and clear and 7.1Megapixel, 4x optical zoom for this price - wow.

Loved the idea of 7 MP and 4x Optical zoom, but was very disappointed to see the 4 AA Batteries! All the other cameras in this series have the nice lithium rechargeable battery and that's what I wanted. I consider the AA batteries old news and I don't want to mess around with them anymore.

My A620 is beyond awesome!! I really do enjoy it. Let me just rave on the features for a second. It is basically like the A610—except the A620 has more pixels...which you know, but the question is why more pixels, why more money? Well basically you can't crop a 5 pixel picture and keep the print at 16x20 because it will be all digitized and gross. You really can't crop the 5 megapixel at all. So if you are seriously considering a camera and want pictures you can work with then here you go!
The next cool feature is the Color Accent feature found under 'my colors'...you just set the option to the color you want to accent and then shot, the result is a black and white photo with the color you picked accented. So go and take a few pictures in front of some roses or whatever and you will be beyond impressed.
The Drive/Motion shot, will capture friends like you never have before, so very real.

I was so very hesitant to go digital and if I had bought I piece of crap I would be crying right now...but the A620 is superb! It is not too delicate and definitely not to heavy. The flip screen is fun for taking those crazy pictures of you and friends as you watch yourself. I am so impressed with the cropping quality. My husband and I took this crazy picture of a bumper sticker in moving traffic and from a distance I wasn't sure if it was legible but the zoom on the playback proved me wrong.
If you have yet to go digital...Canon is going to be your best bet and the A620 is, for now, as close to affordable perfection as you can get.

very sharp photos

Excellent initial results. My camera is the A620, but the A610, except for lower pixel CCD, is the same. The first priority for a snapshot camera is SPEED. This one has it in spades. Very fast shot-to-shot and negligible shutter lag. The first priority for a hobbyist camera is manual control. The A6x0 has Auto, program and many preset scene modes. It also has shutter priority, aperture priority and full manual mode. Computer imaging enthusiasts will be disappointed that the A6x0 cameras do not provide RAW picture format, but it does produce excellent detail in Fine JPEG mode, and I think many in even that group would be satisfied. The lens is excellent for such a small camera. It is fast at f4.1 on the telephoto end of the zoom, and I cannot emphasize enough how important this is for family photographs outdoors (fewer blurred photos of children or pets at play). Really good ISO400 results for even more speed. Color and white balance is excellent, right out of the camera. Photos are vivid and life-like. The flash is small, so if you use that a great deal I recommend something like the Sony slave flash which attaches to the tripod fitting on the camera. The zoom works fast. The controls are well laid out, and the camera is easy to handle (my hands are fairly long, I’m 6-2). The menus are easy to use and quick to find. I have not needed to open the manuals, but I do have a good bit of experience with digital cameras. The LCD is bright, and preview mode is fast. The camera fits in my shirt pocket, but with quite a bulge. Buy a larger SD card because the 32mb card with the camera only holds 9 photos at best quality. AA batteries are convenient. Get a good set of rechargeable batteries with a set of cheap alkaline for backup, and you are ready to go (good battery life here). I have not used movie mode and I might never do so, though I hear it is very good; there is a printer output that I do not use; the camera comes with software that I do not use, so I cannot comment on those three things.
The door for cable connections is flimsy. I opened it once and had trouble closing it. Had to force the top clip to engage. Buy a card reader ($10 or $20) and forget about the cables. Overall, great camera and great photos.

I have always been a Canon supporter, And last year I bought the Canon SLR 300D with great results.But this Canon A620 with 7 Mega Pixel camera just shows how Canon have packed all the features into 1 easy to handle camera, right from the time I got it out of the box the and switch it on less than 1/2 a second to power up ready to go.
Picture quality was excellent vivid colors and sharp pictures. the quality was amazing,it would take me to long to list all the features.
But ease of use from the happy snapper to the professional plus the features on this camera will certainly improve you photographic skills and give you years of fun to explore this camera capability's.