The Canon name is synonymous with quality when it comes to cameras and this analogy also applies to Digital Cameras. The Canon S30 (quite similar to the S40, with the only major difference being the added mega pixels) is a perfect 3.2 Mega Pixel digital camera for amateurs as well as budding pros. It has all the flexibility available in pro cameras i.e. you can manually set aperture and shutter speed and focus. The Auto function does all the above and more in a flash.
The camera is not light but has a good solid feel, which is good when zooming up to 9X (3X Optical). The images are stored in Compact Flash Type 1 and 2 cards which are the cheapest in flash memory. 16MB unfortunately just doesn’t cut it. I highly recommend you buying an additional 128 or 256 MB card. The Flash can be a bit too bright sometimes but that can always be adjusted manually. The Auto focus has a bit left to be desired, and can produce slightly off-focus pictures in the auto mode. The software that comes along with the camera, the Canon Zoom Browser is perfect. Transferring the pictures to the computer via USB is a breeze. All in all, this camera is just perfect and I am very happy with it. I did quite a bit of research before buying this camera, and now I am sure I picked up the very best.