A610 or A540?

[crusher]

I like the newer features of A540 and its cheap price, but the camera feels really cheap and flimsy. A610 feels very solid, and the price has gone down to $499, but it lacked the high ISO and zoomable video mode which A540 has. I don't know how good is the high ISO, but I really like the A540 silent zoom, but I prefer A610 contruction and higher battery life. Below are the pros and cons of both models, any more comments from you guys?

A540 $420:
Pros:
1) High ISO (up to ISO800)
2) Zoomable at video mode
Cons:
1) Made almost entirely out of plastic, feel cheap and fragile
2) Mode dial is very stiff (also made of plastic), very hard to turn

A610 $499:
Pros:
1) Very solid contruction
2) Flip-out LCD
3) Longer battery life
Cons:
Not having the pros of A540, seems to be obsolete

 

[TechMage]

A540 $420:
Pros:
1) High ISO (up to ISO800)
2) Zoomable at video mode
Cons:
1) Made almost entirely out of plastic, feel cheap and fragile
2) Mode dial is very stiff (also made of plastic), very hard to turn

A610 $499:
Pros:
1) Very solid contruction
2) Flip-out LCD
3) Longer battery life
Cons:
Not having the pros of A540, seems to be obsolete

A610
The twist and swivel screen is a blessing for macro, high/low angle pictures.

The casing... our A620 and A610... kena bash and molested left right center at the recent IT show and still working fine!

Flash recycling and data transfer from buffer to SD card is faster.

2) Zoomable at video mode also possible with A610

 

[crusher]

2) Zoomable at video mode also possible with A610

Without sound right?

 

[TechMage]

Without sound right?

WITH sound :sticktong

 

[brittlestars]

Hi Crusher,

I think you did a good comparison between the 2 cameras. Just decide which points are more important to you and buy the camera with most important points

I bought A540 few weeks ago. I have no complaints about my recent trip pics taken with A540.

I like the newer features of A540 and its cheap price, but the camera feels really cheap and flimsy. A610 feels very solid, and the price has gone down to $499, but it lacked the high ISO and zoomable video mode which A540 has. I don't know how good is the high ISO, but I really like the A540 silent zoom, but I prefer A610 contruction and higher battery life. Below are the pros and cons of both models, any more comments from you guys?

A540 $420:
Pros:
1) High ISO (up to ISO800)
2) Zoomable at video mode
Cons:
1) Made almost entirely out of plastic, feel cheap and fragile
2) Mode dial is very stiff (also made of plastic), very hard to turn

A610 $499:
Pros:
1) Very solid contruction
2) Flip-out LCD
3) Longer battery life
Cons:
Not having the pros of A540, seems to be obsolete

 

[TechMage]

Hi Crusher,

I think you did a good comparison between the 2 cameras. Just decide which is more impt to you and buy the camera with most important points to you lah

I bought A540 few weeks ago. I have no complaints about my recent trip pics taken with A540.

Good on ya!:thumbsup:

 

[Jacq]

sorry, wat's ISO huh? me about to buy A610, but after reading this thread, now not sure

 

[brittlestars]

ISO stands for "International Organisation for Standardisation". ISO scale is the organisation's standard for measuring light sensitivity. So ISO scale basically measures the sensitivity of film to light. In the case of digi cams, it translates to the sensitivity of the sensor in the digi cam.

Higher ISO means the sensor has capability to capture images with less light so that you can use a faster shutter speed (eg. to eliminate movement, etc). But digi cams with low ISO does not mean the digi cam is 'inferior'. Do note that higher ISO may result in higher 'noise'.

Hope this helps. You can Google ISO for better explanation

sorry, wat's ISO huh? me about to buy A610, but after reading this thread, now not sure

 

[Jacq]

tks for explaning. Will go Google.

 

[Nobody]

I was deciding between A610 or A540 also. Bought A540 at the end because of:
- 2.5 inch LCD, and
- ISO800

However, after testing some shots, I find that the ISO800 may not be very usable.

Here are some test shots.

Canon A540 ISO800

Canon A540 ISO400

Canon A540 ISO200

....continue below.....

 

[Nobody]

For comparison:

Fujifilm F10 ISO1600

Fujifilm F10 ISO800

Fujifilm F10 ISO400


The LCD is big and nice, except that the resolution is a bit low, I can actually see pixels quite clearly.

Canon A540 LCD


Overall A540 is like all other A series camera, very good value camera. The start up time is fast, shutter lag is very low. The right hand grip is very good, just like all other A-series cameras.

I was surprised to find that zoom works in video mode, it is nice, but quite difficult to zoom without some click sound being recorded in video.

Since ISO800 doesn't work for me, I wonder if I should have gone for A610 for a bigger CCD (1/1.8 inch) and the flip-and-twist LCD.

 

[Jacq]

Hi Nobody, tks for sharing.......... think I'll still stick to A610............