PMA 2006: The Canon PowerShot A530 and Canon PowerShot A430 are announced today. 5 and 4 megapixels, ISO 800, 2.5 inch LCD, 4x optical zoom lens. The PowerShot A430 and PowerShot A530 will be available from March 2006, priced at £149.00 / €219.99 and £199.00 / €299.99 respectively.

Canon UK Press Release

Canon launches new point-and-shoot PowerShot A430 and PowerShot A530

Canon is pleased to announce the launch of two fun, easy and affordable cameras – the PowerShot A430 and PowerShot A530. The new additions to the popular PowerShot A-series range offer consumers an outstanding combination of easy-to-use features, solid construction and excellent image quality at an entry-level price. Both cameras incorporate Canon’s acclaimed DIGIC II processor and iSAPS technology for rapid processing speeds, highly responsive controls and superb image quality. Sitting just below the PowerShot A540 – also released today – in the PowerShot A-series range, the cameras will appeal to first time digital camera buyers as well as experienced photographers looking for a second take-anywhere camera. “Since the launch of the PowerShot A5 in 1998, the A-series has helped millions of European consumers switch to digital,” explains Mogens Jensen, Head of Canon Consumer Imaging Europe. “With these new additions to the range, Canon is making high quality digital photography more accessible than ever before.”

Key features:
- Ultimate ease of use and affordability with a 4.0 Megapixel CCD, 3.2x optical zoom (approx. 11x combined), 15 shooting modes, VGA movies and 5-point AiAF auto focus
- PowerShot A430 – Available in four fun colours with a 4.0 Megapixel CCD, 4.0x optical zoom (approx 14x combined), 15 shooting modes, VGA movies with sound, AV out and flexible 9-point AiAF focusing
- PowerShot A530 – Offering impressive performance with a 5.0 Megapixel CCD, 4x optical zoom (approx. 16x combined), 17 shooting modes, VGA movies with sound, 9-point AiAF and ISO 800 for improved low-light flexibility

Effortlessly easy
The new PowerShot cameras are designed to make it simple for anyone to take great photos. The compact, lightweight bodies are ergonomically shaped to fit comfortably in the hand, while intuitively positioned buttons provide fingertip access to key camera controls. The bright 1.8” LCD screens feature a selectable Grid Line Display to help with shot composition and a Night Display mode for easy visibility after dark.

The 9-point AiAF focuses quickly and accurately on subjects even when off-centre, to ensure consistently sharp images. An AF-assist Beam helps with focusing in low light conditions. The PowerShot A430 also features a 1cm Super Macro mode for close-up focusing on tiny subjects.

A wide range of shooting modes – 15 on the PowerShot A430 and 17 on the PowerShot A530 – help deliver excellent results in almost any situation. Preset Special Scene modes assist with picture taking in tricky lighting conditions, including Indoor, Beach and Snow. For creative experimentation, Colour Accent and Colour Swap modes enable dramatic colour effects to be applied to images and movies direct from the camera. Users can keep one colour and change the rest to black and white with Colour Accent, or exchange one colour for another with Colour Swap. The cameras also feature My Colours photo effects for additional in-camera colour customisation. 

A dedicated Movie mode enables recording of high quality VGA movies of an impressive 60 minutes or 1GB (whichever is reached first) . The new cameras capture movie clips with audio and can connect to a TV or PC for full screen playback. A convenient Compact mode allows users to create email-ready movie clips for sending to friends and family.

Advanced shooting options
The PowerShot A530 incorporates high sensitivity ISO 800 to facilitate flash-free shooting indoors - ideal in environments where the use of flash is not desirable or appropriate, such as churches and concerts.

With widescreen televisions becoming increasingly popular across Europe, Canon has incorporated a new Widescreen stills setting in both cameras. Users can capture panoramic stills in 16:9 format for playback on widescreen television or printing on wide size paper to a SELPHY Compact Photo Printer .

Instant photo prints
All cameras are PictBridge compliant for instant direct printing to compatible printers. When combined with Canon SELPHY CP series printers, the cameras make an economical digital photo solution with 10 x 15cm photos costing as little as 22p . Users can also print ID photos and still images from movies when connected to a SELPHY CP series printer. The handy Print/Share button on each camera allows one-touch printing and hassle-free uploads to Windows or Macintosh systems. A new dedicated Print menu makes it easier than ever to access and organise print jobs direct from the camera.
The cameras’ menu systems now feature support for Arabic, bringing the total number of supported languages to 23.

Pricing and availability
The PowerShot A430 and PowerShot A530 will be available from March 2006, priced at £149.00 RRP inc. VAT/ €219.99 RRP inc. VAT and £199.00 RRP inc. VAT/ €299.99 RRP inc. VAT respectively.

Reader enquiries
UK – 08705 143723 / www.canon.co.uk    
Eire – (01) 2052400 / www.canon.ie

Software and CANON iMAGE GATEWAY
The PowerShot A430 and PowerShot A530 come bundled with the following Canon Software:
- ZoomBrowser EX 5.6 (Windows), ImageBrowser 5.6 (Macintosh): For organizing and editing images, movies and slideshows, or creating and printing digital photo albums.
- PhotoStitch 3.1: For creating panoramic photos from multiple images (Windows and Macintosh).

The software package also includes ArcSoft’s photo manipulation software, PhotoStudio.

The bundled software supports Windows 98 SE, Me, 2000 (SP4), XP (SP1/2) and Macintosh OS X v10.2-v10.4. The cameras support PTP for driverless transfer to Windows XP and Macintosh OS X.
Purchasers of the camera are eligible for membership of CANON iMAGE GATEWAY , 100MB of online ‘personal gallery’ space for sharing stills and video with family and friends.

Accessories
A complete range of optional accessories is available:
- High Power Flash (HF-DC1)
- Soft Case (PowerShot A430: DCC-400, PowerShot A530: DC-80)
- Compact AC Power Adapter (ACK800)
- Battery Charger Kit (CBK4-300)
- NiMH Batteries (NB4-300)

The cameras are compatible with MMC/SD cards, and come supplied with a 16MB Canon memory card.

Technologies Explained

DIGIC II
Canon’s purpose-built DIGIC II (DIGital Imaging Core) image processor links all primary camera functions for maximum efficiency. High-speed processing results in outstanding responsiveness, rapid auto focus and extended continuous shooting ability. Advanced image processing algorithms deliver superb image detail and colour reproduction with accurate white balance and minimal noise. DIGIC II operates efficiently to extend battery life, for longer shooting on a single charge.

iSAPS
iSAPS (Intelligent Scene Analysis based on Photographic Space) automatically optimises key camera settings before every shot. Each scene is analysed and cross-referenced against Photographic Space – a vast in-camera library of photographic data. This enables the camera to make optimal adjustments to auto exposure, auto focus and auto white balance before image capture occurs.

AiAF
Canon’s AiAF (Artificial intelligence Auto Focus) automatically scans and selects subjects from a set of focusing areas across the scene – five on the and nine on the PowerShot A430 and PowerShot A530. This ensures accurately focused images even when subjects are not in the centre of the frame.

About Canon (UK) Limited
Canon is a world-leading innovator and provider of imaging and information technology solutions for the home and office environments.

Canon has a global philosophy of Kyosei - living and working together for the common good, which clearly demonstrates commitment to customers, staff and the environment shared by all.

Canon (UK) Ltd is the UK marketing and sales operation for the US$33 billion global company based in Tokyo, Japan.  In the UK Canon employs over 2,000 people in various locations including Ireland and has achieved sales of £522m in 2004.

The main business focus for Canon (UK) Ltd, covers two clearly defined market segments: Business Solutions covering both the office and professional printing environments (including: multifunctional printers, IT consultation and peripherals: photocopiers, printers, fax machines, document management hardware & software, multimedia LCD projectors) and Consumer Imaging (input solutions: film and digital cameras, camcorders, binoculars and scanners; and output solutions: Ink Jet printers, fax machines, desktop multifunctionals and multimedia projectors).

PowerShot A530 Specifications

IMAGE SENSOR
Type 1/2.5” CCD
Effective Pixels Approx.5.0M
Colour Filter Type Primary Colour
IMAGE PROCESSOR
Type DIGIC II with iSAPS technology
LENS
Focal Length 5.8 – 23.2 mm (35mm film equivalent: 35 – 140mm)
Zoom Optical 4x , digital approx. 4x (still images), 2x (movies), combined approx. 16x (still images) 8.1x (movies) (6)
Maximum f/number f/2.6 – f/5.5
Construction 7 elements in 5 groups (2 aspherical elements)
FOCUSING
Type TTL
AF System/ Points 9-point AiAF, 1-point AF (Fixed centre)
AF Modes Normal, Macro
AF Lock On/Off Selectable
AF Assist Beam Yes
Manual Focus Yes
Closest Focusing Distance 5cm
EXPOSURE CONTROL
Metering modes Evaluative, Centre-weighted average, Spot (centre)
AE Lock Locked when shutter button is pressed half way
Exposure Compensation +/- 2 EV in 1/3 stop increments
ISO Speed Equivalent AUTO, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800
SHUTTER
Speed “15 – 1/2,000 sec
(Slow Shutter speeds of 1.3 sec. and more, available in Manual mode only. Shutter speeds of 1.3 sec. and more operate with noise reduction. Certain combinations of shutter speed and aperture may not be available.)”
WHITE BALANCE
Type TTL
Settings Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Custom
VIEWFINDER
Viewfinder Real-image zoom optical viewfinder
LCD MONITOR
Monitor 1.8” P-Si TFT, approx. 77,000 pixels
Coverage 100%
FLASH
Modes Auto, Manual Flash On / Off
Slow Sync Speed Yes
Red-eye Reduction Yes
Flash Exposure Compensation +/- 2 EV in 1/3 stop increments
Manual Power Adjustment 3 levels with internal flash
Built-in Flash Range 33cm-3.5m (W) /  2.2m (T) (at ISO AUTO equivalent)
External Flash Canon’s High Power Flash HF-DC1
SHOOTING
Modes Auto, Program AE, Manual, Portrait, Landscape, Night Scene, Stitch Assist, Movie, Special Scene (Foliage, Snow, Beach, Fireworks, Indoor, Kids & Pets, Night Snapshot, Color Accent, Color Swap)
Photo Effects My Colors (My Colors Off, Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, Black & White, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Positive Film, Custom Color)
Drive modes Single, Continuous, Self-Timer
Continuous Shooting Approx. 2.1 fps(1) (until memory card becomes full)(2)
RECORDING PIXELS / COMPRESSION
Image Size (L)2592 x 1944, (M1)2048 x 1536, (M2)1600 x 1200, (S)640 x 480, (W)2592 x 1456, (Postcard Date Imprint) 1600 x 1200
Compression Superfine, Fine, Normal
Movies “(L)640 x 480, 10fps
(M)320 x 240, 20fps
(S)160 x 120, 15fps”
Movie Length Up to 1GB 640 x 480/320 x 240, Up to 3 min 160 x120 (2)
FILE TYPES
Still Image Type JPEG compression, (Exif 2.2 [Exif Print] compliant) / Design rule for Camera File system, Digital Print Order Format [DPOF] Version 1.1 compliant
Movies AVI [Motion JPEG compression + WAVE (monaural)]
Sound Files WAVE (monaural)
DIRECT PRINT
Canon Printers Canon SELPHY Compact Photo Printers and PIXMA Printers supporting PictBridge (ID Photo Print, Movie Print supported on SELPHY CP printers only)
PictBridge Yes
OTHER FEATURES
My Camera Start-up image and camera sounds customisation
Sound Memo Up to 60 sec per image
Intelligent Orientation Sensor Yes
Histogram Yes
Playback zoom Approx. 2x – 10x
Self Timer Approx. 2 or 10 sec. or Custom
Menu Languages English, German, French, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Italian, Norwegian, Swedish, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Chinese (traditional), Japanese, Russian, Portuguese, Korean, Greek, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Thai, Arabic
INTERFACE
Computer USB 2.0 Hi-Speed (Mini-B, PTP)
Other A/V output (PAL/NTSC)
MEMORY CARD
Type “Secure Digital (SD) Card or MultiMediaCard (MMC),
16MB Memory Card supplied”
SUPPORTED OPERATING SYSTEM
PC Windows 98SE / Me / 2000 SP4 / XP / XP SP1-2
Macintosh OS X v10.2 - 10.4
SOFTWARE
Browsing & Printing ZoomBrowser EX / ImageBrowser
Other PhotoStitch
Drivers TWAIN (Windows 98 / 2000), WIA (Windows Me)
Image Manipulation ArcSoft PhotoStudio
POWER SOURCE
Batteries 2x Size-AA Alkaline or NiMH Batteries(NB4-300) (Alkalines supplied)
Battery life “Approx. 90 shots (4)
Approx. 360 shots (with optional Canon NB-3AH batteries) (4)
Approx. 300 min. playback (with supplied batteries)
Approx. 420 min. playback (with Canon NB-3AH batteries)”
A/C Power Supply Optional, AC Adapter Kit ACK800
ACCESSORIES
Case Soft Case DCC-80
Flash High Power Flash HF-DC1
Power Supply & Battery Chargers Battery Charger Kit CBK4-300, Ni-MH Batteries NB4-300, AC Adapter Kit ACK800
PHYSICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Operating Environment 0 – 40 °C, 10 – 90% humidity
Dimensions (WxHxD) 90.4 x 64.0 x 43.2mm (excluding protrusions)
Weight (body only) Approx. 170g

PowerShot A430 Specications

IMAGE SENSOR
Type 1/1.3” CCD
Effective Pixels Approx.4.0M
Colour Filter Type Primary Colour
IMAGE PROCESSOR
Type DIGIC II with iSAPS technology
LENS
Focal Length 5.4 - 21.6mm (35mm film equivalent: 39 – 156mm)
Zoom Optical 4.0x , digital approx. 3.6x (still images), 2.0x (movies), combined approx. 14x (still images) 7.9x (movies) (6)
Maximum f/number f/2.8 - f/5.8
Construction 7 elements in 6 groups (1 aspherical element)
FOCUSING
Type TTL
AF System/ Points 9-point AiAF, 1-point AF (Fixed centre)
AF Modes Normal, Macro
AF Lock Locked when shutter button is pressed half way
AF Assist Beam Yes
Closest Focusing Distance 1.0cm
EXPOSURE CONTROL
Metering modes Evaluative, Centre-weighted average, Spot (centre)
AE Lock Locked when shutter button is pressed half way
Exposure Compensation +/- 2 EV in 1/3 stop increments
ISO Speed Equivalent AUTO, 64, 100, 200, 400
SHUTTER
Speed “1 – 1/2,000 sec
(Shutter speeds of 1/6 sec. to 1 sec operate with noise reduction)”
WHITE BALANCE
Type TTL
Settings Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Custom
VIEWFINDER
Viewfinder Real-image zoom optical viewfinder
LCD MONITOR
Monitor 1.8” P-Si TFT, approx. 77,000 pixels
Coverage 100%
Brightness Adjustable to one of fifteen levels
FLASH
Modes Auto, Manual Flash On / Off
Slow Sync Speed Yes
Red-eye Reduction Yes
Built-in Flash Range 47cm - 3.0m (W) / 2.0m (T) (at ISO AUTO equivalent)
External Flash Canon’s High Power Flash HF-DC1
SHOOTING
Modes Auto, Manual, Stitch Assist, Movie, Special Scene (Portrait, Night Snapshot, Kids & Pets, Indoor, Foliage, Snow, Beach, Fireworks), Super Macro, Color Accent, Color Swap.
Photo Effects My Colors (My Colors Off, Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, Black & White, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Positive Film, Custom Color)
Drive modes Single, Continuous, Self-Timer
Continuous Shooting Approx. 2.3 fps (1) until the card is full (2)
RECORDING PIXELS / COMPRESSION
Image Size (L)2272 x 1704, (M1)1600 x 1200, (M2)1024 x 768, (S)640 x 480,  (W)2272 x 1280, (Postcard Date Imprint) 1600 x 1200
Compression Superfine, Fine, Normal
Movies “(L)640 x 480, 10fps
(M)320 x 240, 30fps,  (S) 160 x 120, 15fps”
Movie Length Up to 1GB 640 x 480, 320 x 240, Up to 3 min 160 x120 (2)
FILE TYPES
Still Image Type JPEG compression, (Exif 2.2 [Exif Print] compliant) / Design rule for Camera File system, Digital Print Order Format [DPOF] Version 1.1 compliant
Movies AVI [Motion JPEG compression]
Sound Files WAVE (monaural)
DIRECT PRINT
Canon Printers Canon SELPHY Compact Photo Printers and PIXMA Printers supporting PictBridge (ID Photo Print, Movie Print supported on SELPHY CP printers only)
PictBridge Yes
OTHER FEATURES
My Camera Yes
Sound Memo Yes
Intelligent Orientation Sensor Yes
Histogram No
Playback zoom Approx. 2x – 10x
Self Timer Approx. 2 or 10 sec. or Custom
Menu Languages English, German, French, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Italian, Norwegian, Swedish, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Chinese (traditional), Japanese, Russian, Portuguese, Korean, Greek, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Thai, Arabic
INTERFACE
Computer USB (Mini-B, PTP)
Other A/V output (PAL/NTSC)
MEMORY CARD
Type “Secure Digital (SD) Card or MultiMediaCard (MMC),
16MB Memory Card supplied”
SUPPORTED OPERATING SYSTEM
PC Windows 98SE / Me / 2000 SP4 / XP / XP SP1-2
Macintosh OS X v10.2 - 10.4
SOFTWARE
Browsing & Printing ZoomBrowser EX / ImageBrowser
Other PhotoStitch
Drivers TWAIN (Windows 98 / 2000), WIA (Windows Me)
Image Manipulation ArcSoft PhotoStudio
POWER SOURCE
Batteries 2x Size-AA Alkaline or NiMH Batteries (Alkalines supplied)
Battery life “Approx. 90 shots (4) (with supplied batteries)
Approx. 360 shots (with optional Canon NB-3AH batteries) (4)
Approx. 10 hours playback (with supplied batteries)
Approx. 12 hours playback (with Canon NB-3AH batteries)”
A/C Power Supply Optional, AC adapter kit ACK800
ACCESSORIES
Case Soft Case DCC-400
Flash High Power Flash HF-DC1
Power Supply & Battery Chargers Battery Charger Kit CBK4-300, Ni-MH Batteries NB4-300, AC adapter kit ACK800
PHYSICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Operating Environment 0 – 40 °C, 10 – 90% humidity
Dimensions (WxHxD) 103.0 x 51.8 x 40.2 mm (excluding protrusions)
Weight (body only) Approx. 160g