Canon's PowerShot range of compact digital cameras has been popular for many years and, as prices continue to drop, more and more features are built into each new model. The A630 has much the same size and shape as earlier PowerShot models, with a characteristic bulge on the right-hand side to grip, a viewfinder set in the middle and controls ranged on the top and down the back panel.
With this model, though, Canon has borrowed a trick from its more expensive SLR range by having a tilt and swivel LCD monitor screen fitted to the camera. This means you can use the screen instead of a viewfinder to frame a photo, but also that you can hold the camera above or below eye level, perhaps to shoot over a crowd, for example, still using the screen to line up your subject.
The A630 has a 4x zoom lens, but also a 4x digital zoom, giving 16x altogether. It can do this because it has a large, 8-megapixel CCD sensor, offering high resolution for a camera in this price bracket. You will need to add the cost of a higher capacity multimedia or SD card to the price of the camera, though, as the 16MB MM card supplied is only enough for seven shots at the camera's default resolution.
In our tests, pictures were well balanced for colour and the nine-point autofocus worked well in producing sharp shots, even in comparatively low lighting. The camera's ability to simulate a fast, ISO 800 film also helps with evening and interior photos. The range of the macro facility, which extends down to 1cm, also makes the camera very versatile.
The main controls come down to a set of five buttons and a four-way ring on the back panel, together with a small slide switch to move between record and playback modes and a thumbwheel on top to select between some of the A630's 21 different shooting modes. Aperture and shutter priorities, as well as a full manual mode, are supported.
The back panel buttons are a little cramped and some of the functions are oddly assigned. It seems peculiar, for example, to assign a single function button to turn the LCD on and off and yet use the up and down functions on the control ring to change flash mode and engage the macro system. There is one button devoted to printing via PictBridge, which also seems a waste.
