"Picky Details" for the Fujifilm A340 digital camera
(Timing, Power, and Storage Info)

Timing

When you press the shutter release on a camera, there's usually a lag time or delay before the shutter actually fires. This corresponds to the time required for the autofocus and autoexposure mechanisms time to do their work, and can amount to a fairly long delay in some situations. Since this number is rarely reported on (and even more rarely reported accurately), and can significantly affect the picture taking experience, I routinely measure both shutter delay and shot to shot cycle times for all cameras I test, using a test system I designed and built for the purpose. (Crystal-controlled, with a resolution of 0.001 second.) Here are the numbers I collected for the Fujifilm A340:

Power

The Fujifilm A340 uses two AA batteries for power.

With a worst-case run time (capture mode, with the rear panel LCD turned on) of 124 minutes, the Fuji A340's battery life is on the good side of average, especially for a camera powered by only two AA cells. With the LCD off, run time stretches to just over 6 h ours, and is over four and a half hours in playback mode. (All times are based on the use of 1600 mAh NiMH batteries. With modern cells having true capacities of over 2000 mAh, your own run times should be longer.) I do still strongly recommend that you plan on purchasing a good-quality NiMH battery charger and a couple of sets of high-capacity NiMH rechargeable AA cells right along with the camera though. Read my review of the Maha C-204W to learn about my favorite charger, and check out my NiMH Battery Shootout page for actual performance data on a wide range of batteries.

Storage Capacity

The Fujifilm A340 stores its photos on xD memory cards, and a 16 MB card is included with the camera. (I strongly recommend buying at least a 64 MB card, preferably a 128 MB one, to give yourself extra space for extended outings.) The chart below shows how many images can be stored on the included 16 MB card at each size/quality setting.