http://www.cameras.co.uk/html/shutte...omparisons.cfm

They have an interesting definition of shutter lag.
"The Shutter Lag Comparison Table shows the amount of time it takes each
camera to record one shot and five shots"

It is supposed to be the time taken from pressing the release until the
shutter operates and has /nothing/ to do with how long it takes to record
the image.

The sites use of the word record is misleading. Shutter lag times
show ARE for the time taken from pressing the release until the
shutter operates. If you'd include the record time also then the
times would be much slower than the fast times stated.

The table appears to be meaningless as far as shutter lag goes.

Not so. The table can be arranged by brand, category of camera,
five shot, or one shot lag times. Not electronic record times as you
believe.

Anyway most cameras can operate faster if you turn off automatic white
balance.
It certainly slows mine down.
The same is true of auto exposure but its more difficult to live without.