Canon PowerShot A640 10MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Zoom

Canon's popular A Series cameras have always stood out from the competition, but PowerShot A640 takes that concept to a whole new level. Experience breathtaking 10.0 megapixel resolution-a first for an A-Series camera - and the power of a 4x optical zoom lens. You'll have more fun shooting, and make your finished images even more rewarding, with the camera's exciting array of easy-to-use, high-performance features including 21 shooting modes and ISO800/High ISO Auto settings for much greater ability to shoot in low light. Light Metering Method - Evaluative, Center-weighted average, Spot Metering Exposure Control - Program Auto Exposure (AE), Shutter Speed-Priority AE, Aperture-Priority AE, Manual Shutter Speed Range - 15 seconds to 1/2500 second (settable in Tv and M) Automatic, multi-mode electronic-flash Storage Media - SD Memory Card, SDHC Memory Card, MultiMediaCard (MMC) - We recommend purchasing an Optional 1GB SD or MMC memory card. It will allow you to store a lot more Video and images, as well as take advantage of the camera's high Resolution abilities Shooting Modes - Auto; Creative - P, Av, Tv, M, C; Image - Portrait, Landscape, Night Scene, Special Scene (Foliage, Snow, Beach, Fireworks, Underwater, Indoor, Kids & Pets, Night Snapshot, Color Accent, Color Swap), Stitch Assist, Movie Print/Share Button for direct connection to PictBridge-compatible printers via camera's USB 2.0 Hi-Speed cable Unit Dimensions (WxHxD) - 4.31 x 2.60 x 1.93 inch (109.4 x 66.0 x 49.0mm); Weight - 8.64 oz. / 245g

Problems with my Canon A640 (Brani Vidakovic, Atlanta,GA, United States, 2009-01-03)

I am not an expert in cameras for a sophisticated review. I just report two problems with my A640 after a couple years of very light use. The camera is now dead -- not responding to on/off after my recent battery change. The Wolf Camera service wants 130 flat rate for fixing the problem, for I am out of warranty. On several occasions my photos have been spoiled by an easily movable round selector on the top of the camera (portrait, far objects, etc).

Overall, I would never buy it again.

Canon A640 is a Great Camera (waverly911, New Orleans, 2008-12-03)

I have had this camera for almost two years and I still love it.

It allows me to take great high quality pictures and video. The level of detail in the photos is fantastic. I've posted pictures online from our trips and adventures and people are surprised to find out that it is a point and shoot and not a dslr. The videos come out great too and the sound is fantastic. Other cameras out there have terrible sound with the video, but that's not the case with the Canon 640.

I also love that this camera is versatile. You can add a lens for various shots like telephoto or wide angle with the adapter. Most cameras being sold now, Canon included, do not offer that feature.

I have taken underwater video with the camera (and the underwater casing) - a pool party, lazy river ride, or water slides and they come out great. Many people have come up to me on vacations asking me about the camera and cost explaining that they couldn't do the things I was able to do with this Canon. The dimensions on the pictures I take are 3648 x 2736 and the videos are 640 x 480 at 30 fps. There is a 320 at 15 fps, but I never use that setting.

I take it everywhere I go. It's rugged and I even dropped it from almost 5 feet to a concrete floor and it still worked (whew!).

I was surprised how many pictures and video you can take on one set of batteries. I basically use 8GB and 16GB cards.

Since I kept the camera in my pocket all the time with the LCD screen exposed, the screen did get scratched up with all the loose change and other items in my pocket. I wound up getting the screen protector for this and my hd video camera. The screen didn't crack on me like what happened to another reviewer and I've been pretty rough with the camera.

Only negatives about the camera: 1. you can only take 9:30 minutes of video at a time before it approaches a stop point regardless of the memory card size you are using and how much space is left on the card. To be clear, you can shoot lots of clips, like 3 minutes at a time and have an hour total of video (or more) on your card. I would prefer that it keep recording until you run out of memory or the battery dies. A regular video camera will record until it reaches the end of the tape or it runs out of battery life. A couple of weeks ago, I had 10GB of video on the card with another Gig of photos on the same card using the same set of batteries the whole day (10 am till 8 pm). I have been lucky and got over 11 minutes of video on one shot. 2. The camera does not have Image Stabilization.

I was surprised to read any negative feedback on this camera until I saw further that the reviews were based on one person unable to put the batteries in the camera (please!, you can do it with one hand) transit time in shipping, and another person basing it on a fradulent seller.

Battery Leak bad customer service (J. brown, CO US, 2008-11-28)

My camera was just out of warranty and the batteries leaked. The company agreed to fix my camera then returned it without fixing it and charged me anyway. They would not release my camera for delivery without a signature so now they have our broken camera. They finally returned the charge, but we are still dissatisfied with them.

Camera Review (Brenen A. Chrans, 2008-09-25)

It is a little tough to review the product. It was a gift to my wife i am currently overseas and haven't viewed it myself. My wife seems to like it.

terribly disappointing (Pobjeda, Las Vegas NV, 2008-09-07)

This is an inferior product. I bought the A640 because my beloved S80 finally bit the dust.

This camera simply cannot take pictures in low light. But all the pictures I have taken with this camera suffer from poor image quality and are often very washed out.

It's possible to take some good photos with this camera using the manual settings (a big selling point for me). It does take excellent macro shots, and the video quality is superb. But if you're wanting a camera to use on vacation, or just take snapshots- go higher or lower on the price scale. This camera is a poorly designed compromise- it has a lot of great features that don't add up to a quality product.