Canon PowerShot SX50 HS User Guide - Page 204

Adjusting Basic Camera Functions • Formatting or erasing data on a memory card only changes file management information on the card and does not erase the data completely. When transferring or disposing of memory cards, take steps to protect personal information if necessary, as by physically destroying cards. • The total card capacity indicated on the formatting screen may be less than the advertised capacity. Low-Level Formatting Perform low-level formatting in these cases: [Memory card error] is displayed, the camera is not working correctly, card image reading/writing is slower, continuous shooting is slower, or movie recording suddenly stops. Low-level formatting erases all data on a memory card. Before low-level formatting, copy images on the memory card to a computer, or take other steps to back them up. Perform low-level formatting. zzOn the screen in step 2 on =203, press the buttons or turn the dial to choose [Low Level Format], and then select this option (mark with a [ ]) by pressing the buttons. zzFollow steps 2 - 3 on =203 to continue with the formatting process. • Low-level formatting takes longer than "Formatting Memory Cards" (=203), because data is erased from all storage regions of the memory card. • You can cancel low-level formatting in progress by choosing [Stop]. In this case, all data will be erased, but the memory card can be used normally. 204