# Canon PowerShot SD1400



## BethM (May 10, 2010)

So lately I've been thinking about replacing my digital camera. My little Koday V603 (6 mp, 3x zoom) used to be great, but lately it's just really annoying. My battery hardly holds a charge anymore. I bought a second battery a year or so ago, but it never held a charge for too long (plus it won't register the battery life on the camera screen). I'm also having a lot of problems with the EasyShare software since I upgraded to Windows7, it just doesn't run right, and I hate fighting with it every time I want to upload a picture. (My pc doesn't have a card slot, so the easiest way to get pictures onto my pc is to load them on my netbook from the card, then put them on a USB drive, then load them from the USB onto the desktop. Or load them onto the netbook and email them to myself. So frustrating!!!)
On top of that, about half the shots I take turn out black or super dark, even though I have the flash on. It didn't used to do that! My FIL (he does sales for Kodak) bought his wife the same camera, and she loves it, but I'm not so happy with it. Mine worked great when I first got it, now not so much.


I know the best option would be a DSLR, but I prefer a little point and shoot. I don't take enough pictures to need something super-fancy, and I REALLY don't want to haul around a big camera. I just want something I can slip into my purse on occasion, that takes decent pictures, and isn't super-expensive. I take the photos of adoptable bunnies for my local HRS chapter's website, so I need something new soon.


I have just started looking, and I came across the Canon PowerShot SD1400 and was wondering if anyone had any opinions on this, or had a suggestion for something better. (But still in the same price range, feature set, etc.) It seems that a lot of places have this one on sale right now, and it seems to get great reviews.
It is a tiny more than I want to spend, but a lot of other cameras in the $150 price range only have 3x optical zoom, and I'd prefer at least 4x. (If I'm buying a new camera, I want it to be an improvement over the one I already have!) I also demand something with a rechargeable battery. 


So.....opinions? Thanks!


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## kirbyultra (May 10, 2010)

You're right, most cameras by Sony, canon and nikon are 3x optical in the <$200 range. They tend to be priced there while at the next higher price point is their slightly upgraded feature set, 2.7" LCD screen siblings at $200-250. $250-299 is mostly the latest and greatest, very pretty 3.0" screens. That's more or less the trend I saw when I was looking as well. 

I considered the 1400 as well and almost bought it. I ended up with the sd780 is which is about $179 at most stores. For $50 I was compromising on a screen size, zoom and MPs. For me, I liked the smaller 780 physical size (it is amazingly tiny!), and the fact that it shoots HD video, and een has a tiny viewfinder which you by and large no longer find available on ultra compact point and shoot cameras. The 780 I bought is slightly on he primitive side but it does have shooting modes and whatnot. I have no complaints about battery life. I think the 1400 is a great step above the 1300 and the 780. They're all about the same size. It is 20-50 bucks more than it's predecessor for being more updated. If you're going to seriously consider the 1400 but you don't care about shooting HD video clips, I would suggest considering the sd 1300 is as well. It's $20-30 cheaper than the 1400 and all it is the 1400 with regular video mode, and 12 instead of 14 mp, which frankly in my opinion doesn't matter unless you're printing gigantic pictures. If the above-$200 pricetag about the 1400 is an issue, I think the 1300 is a great choice. I have heard they shoot quite similarly in quality. Can't go wrong with a Canon Powershot.


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## slavetoabunny (May 10, 2010)

I just bought a Nikon S3000. I considered the Canon SC1400, but for around $100 less the Nikon does everything I need. It is very compact and I am happy with the features and pictures so far.

http://www.dpreview.com/news/1002/10020301nikons3000.asp


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## BethM (May 11, 2010)

Thank you Helen and Patti!!

I stopped by Best Buy on my way home from work today just to browse, and ended up coming home with the Cannon SD1300. LOL.

I looked at the Nikon S3000, but I didn't care for the button arrangement/feel. The features were great, I just didn't like the buttons on it. Just a personal thing, I guess.

I still really like the Canon SD1400, and it was on sale for only $20 more than the SD1300, but I don't think I will use the few extra features. I _almost _got it anyway, but didn't. 

I wanted to check out the 780, but no one around here carries it in-store, so I couldn't even look at one. 

The battery is charging now, I haven't had a chance to play with it yet. I'm not so excited about having to take the battery out to charge it, but I think I will get used to it, and I can see how that would be really nice for travel.
Can't wait to use it!


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## BethM (May 11, 2010)

Ok, I've played with the new camera for a few minutes, and I might have to exchange it for the sd1400, afterall, as the 1300 doesn't have panorama mode.  I haven't used panorama mode a whole lot, but it sure was nice to have when I did use it.


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## kirbyultra (May 11, 2010)

Congrats on your purchase! 

Did your Best Buy give you any flack for returning an opened box? Mine did when I had issues with the Nikon S8000. I had to get into a huge thing with them and it was not pretty.


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## BethM (May 11, 2010)

I am going to compare the cameras again this evening, I'm still undecided. :/. I am trying to decide if I want the panorama or if I want the blue one. (I guess it's silly to choose based on available color, though. My Kodak is red, so I find the choices of black or silver boring, and I don't like the orange or pink. Like the camera features, though.). I did a little more shopping, and found the computer store in town (Microcenter) has the sd1400 on sale for $224, which is less than Best Buy. I paid $199 for the sd1300, so I think that is a good deal for the extra features. They have the best prices in town on memory cards, too. If I'm honest, I have only used the panorama a couple times, on my honeymoon in Hawaii. So maybe I don't need it, afterall. I will play more with the display model to see which one seems easier to navigate. The salespeople at Microcenter are more knowledgeable than the average Best Buy employee, too.

I don't think I'll have a problem returning an open box. The one I got wasn't sealed, and there was no plastic over the LCD, so I am wondering if it had been returned previously. (All the components were I'm sealed baggies, though, so it's hard to tell.). Anyway, I'm within the return period. The last thing I returned there was 32 days past purchase date, and they exchanged it for me. Before that, I had a defective mouse that I exchanged 3 times ove 3 months before giving up on the product. ( The wireless transmitter kept overheating.).
I don't know why they gave you trouble, especially since the camera was defective. If you're within the return period, they're supposed to take it back.


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## Pet_Bunny (May 11, 2010)

I see there is a new Canon SD 4000 IS announced today. It is more than your price range, but as technology advances, newer cameras come out.

http://www.usa.canon.com/templatedata/pressrelease/20100511_ps_sd4000is.html


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## kirbyultra (May 11, 2010)

My open box exchange/refund on a defect twice was done within 7 days. I had a hard time getting them to exchange for the same product and then they said they'd make me pay a restocking fee to return it the 2nd time. I was livid -- frankly, for such a huge chain electronics store, I was appalled by the way they were making customers go crazy in their store just to get a lousy refund/exchange done. They make ALL their customers go through the Geek Squad line to "validate" the exchange/refund request first. What a bunch of bull. If you have a return policy, stick to it or change the policy. Don't make your customers go through the mighty geek squad and be harassed. It was so demeaning to have to go through that and justify everything. I truly hope your experience is better. I won't be shopping at Best Buy again anytime soon for large purchases, that is for sure! I would definitely take my business elsewhere!


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## BethM (May 12, 2010)

*kirbyultra wrote: *


> My open box exchange/refund on a defect twice was done within 7 days. I had a hard time getting them to exchange for the same product and then they said they'd make me pay a restocking fee to return it the 2nd time. I was livid -- frankly, for such a huge chain electronics store, I was appalled by the way they were making customers go crazy in their store just to get a lousy refund/exchange done. They make ALL their customers go through the Geek Squad line to "validate" the exchange/refund request first. What a bunch of bull. If you have a return policy, stick to it or change the policy. Don't make your customers go through the mighty geek squad and be harassed. It was so demeaning to have to go through that and justify everything. I truly hope your experience is better. I won't be shopping at Best Buy again anytime soon for large purchases, that is for sure! I would definitely take my business elsewhere!


That is ridiculous!!!! I didn't have any trouble with my return. The girl just looked in the box to make sure everything was there and rang it through. The guy at the door even apologized that I didn't like my purchase! 
I don't blame you for not wanting to shop there, if that's how they treat their customers. :X 

After a lot of browsing and driving around....I did end up with the SD1400. I got a memory card at Microcenter (Kingston 8gb SDHC, class 4, for $9.99!) and grabbed one of their fliers. I took it to Target, and got them to price-match the $224, then paid with my Target card, which knocked another 5% off the price. I wish they'd made this one in blue, but oh well. I went with black. Classic.

I did play around with a cute little Sony that had the sweep panorama, very cool. More $$ than I wanted to spend, though.

Now I have to learn how to use it, LOL!


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## BethM (May 12, 2010)

*Pet_Bunny wrote: *


> I see there is a new Canon SD 4000 IS announced today. It is more than your price range, but as technology advances, newer cameras come out.


Oh, technology. Wait for months for the newest thing to come out, and it's outdated in just a few weeks. *sigh*


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## MikeScone (May 12, 2010)

*BethM wrote: *


> I did play around with a cute little Sony that had the sweep panorama, very cool. More $$ than I wanted to spend, though.


I use panoramas a lot, although most of the time they're just two or three pictures wide so I can capture the image I envisioned when I was looking at the scene. 

For example, I just couldn't get the sweeping view from the top of Connor Pass in Dingle, Ireland, without stitching a few separate pictures into a panorama:







Or here, the view overlooking Uig on the Isle of Skye in Scotland:






Personally, I wouldn't worry about having a panorama-making feature in the camera, since it's so easy to do in post-processing, and you get much more control over the result. 

If you have Photoshop (or Photoshop Elements) they have a panorama-building feature built in, called PhotoMerge. 

Most of the time, though, I use a shareware program called Panorama Factory, which is inexpensive (you can download an evaluation copy for free, and then buy it if you like it), fast and accurate. It will even do interactive 360 degree QuickTime panoramas if you want - you can see one here that I took at the Blair Atholl Jamborette in Scotland in 2000.


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## Pet_Bunny (May 12, 2010)

*BethM wrote: *


> Wait for months for the newest thing to come out, and it's outdated in just a few weeks.


Exactly. I've been waiting for Nikon to come out with a new FX (full frame) camera hoping to have one for a wedding later on this year, but it looks like it will not happen. If I spring for the Nikon D700, or theNikon D3s now, a new camera will be announced right after I buy one. :rollseyes


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