The Sunpak PZ40X II--an upgrade over the original PZ40X--is a powerful, full-featured, lightweight, shoe-mount electronic flash unit designed for all Canon EOS TTL, E-TTL, and E-TTL II cameras, including the top-selling Canon Rebel, Rebel XT, and EOS 20D. The flash is backwards-compatible, with TTL metering for all TTL flash Canon cameras, but also works manually with nondedicated cameras employing a single- contact hot shoe. And even though it's 40 percent smaller and significantly lighter than previous flash units with the same features, the flash offers an impressive ISO guide number that ranges from 60 at the 24mm zoom-head setting to 120 at 80mm. The PZ40X II offers such advanced features as E-TTL auto flash; a large, full-info, backlit LCD for controlling and monitoring all settings; and a power zoom-bounce flash head covering 35mm focal lengths (from 24 to 80mm) in continuously variable auto mode or five manual steps. Tilt positions range from zero to straight up for maximum bounce flexibility, while the built-in, near-IR auto-focus-assist beam turns on automatically when needed. Other details include five power ratio settings down to 1/16, flash exposure confirmation, a bar graph flash range display, and power-saving circuitry that automatically sets the unit to standby mode after five minutes. The Sunpak PZ40X II is powered by two AA alkaline, NiMH, or ni-cad batteries and comes in an all-black finish.
