Canon PowerShot A495 and A490

Canon Powershot A495

Canon have released two new digital cameras perfect for everyday use. The PowerShot A495 and PowerShot A490 are designed to be fun, easy to use and offer effortless shooting with face detection and many other automatic features.

Both cameras are available from February 2010.

Press Release:

Canon today announces the launch of the new PowerShot A495 and PowerShot A490 – a duo of affordable and user-friendly compact digital cameras designed for fun, everyday use. Replacing the popular PowerShot A480, the new models combine a subtle, soft-edged design with a genuine Canon lens and a range of intelligent automatic features – packing impressive performance into a small, lightweight body.

Available in silver (both models), red and blue (PowerShot A495 only), both new models offer a 10.0 Megapixel sensor and genuine Canon 3.3x optical zoom lens, producing large, detailed images. Smart Auto mode takes care of picture settings automatically, and a bright, vivid 6.2cm (2.5in) LCD display makes it simple to frame, capture and share images.

Smart Auto – simply point and shoot
Effortless shooting is guaranteed by Smart Auto with Scene Detection Technology, which automatically recognises shooting conditions and applies the optimum picture settings required to get the perfect shot. The PowerShot A495 automatically detects up to 18 different shooting scenes, while PowerShot A490 can detect up to 13 – producing great results whether shooting on a sunny day, capturing a subject at a close range, or at night. Taking care of all picture settings so the user doesn’t have to, Smart Auto makes photography easier than ever.

i-Contrast technology detects difficult lighting conditions – ensuring that light or darker areas are captured in detail in the final image – while Smart Flash Exposure automatically adjusts flash levels to suit both the subject and conditions. In daylight, for example, Smart Flash Exposure will detect and eliminate shadows on a face caused by bright sunlight, automatically engaging the flash to ensure everyone looks their best.
 

Canon Powershot A490

Advanced Face Detection Technology – multiple faces, multiple uses
Face Detection Technology makes it easy to get perfect group shots, recognising multiple faces and making sure everyone is well-exposed, natural and in focus. Red-eye Correction also detects and removes any red-eye in images after the shot has been taken, making friends and family look great at all times. A clever FaceSelf-Timer feature, available on the PowerShot A495, simplifies group shots by waiting until an additional face enters the frame before the shot is taken two seconds later – ensuring everyone can be part of the picture.

Simple, creative shooting – even in low light
Higher performance in dark situations is now achieved thanks to a new Low Light mode, which automatically sets the ISO at a reduced resolution to capture images in dark conditions. Motion Detection Technology also works to prevent blur when capturing moving subjects, allowing the most inexperienced user to get great, blur free images with ease.

The PowerShot A495 features two new, simple scene modes that give users the ability to instantly add further creativity to their shots. Poster Effect reduces the number of colours for an older, poster-style look from photos without the need for a computer. Super Vivid mode injects new life into subjects lacking vibrancy – adding a higher level of saturation to images to provide a dramatic, enriched effect.

Go beyond stills – shoot and share video with ease
In addition to high-quality images, both the PowerShot A495 and the PowerShot A490 are able to capture video at VGA resolution with sound. Both also feature a YouTube™ upload function in the supplied software package – providing the capacity to log-in and upload directly from the camera to the Internet via a computer. This enables video to be shared online for friends to see within minutes of being captured. 

Each of the new PowerShots are compatible with SDHC and SDXC memory cards – with SDXC offering storage capacity of up to 2TB, allowing users to shoot thousands of images on a single card. Both models are powered by AA batteries, providing users with flexibility to keep plenty of power in reserve.

Canon iMage Gateway – share your stories
Owners of the new PowerShot A495 and PowerShot A490 are entitled to free membership of Canon iMage Gateway, an online facility for sharing photos and video. Users can take advantage of up to 2GB of personal storage capacity, creating enough room for hundreds of high-quality images. Mobile browsing is also supported, making it easy for friends and family to view photos on the move.

The PowerShot A495 is available from February 2010 priced at £139.00 RRP inc. VAT. The PowerShot A490 is exclusively on sale at Argos available from February 2010. For more information please visit the Canon website.