Which digital camera

[anchor man]

I'm looking for a decent digital camera for all purpose use, but will use it a lot in the boat. I'd like to spend $300 or less. Anyone have any suggestions on which ones are good quality for that price range?

Thanks much

[JP Z]

I just bought a Canon A510.......nice camera and at $178 it doesn't break the bank. Also can get the pixma 3000 photo printer for $67............then Canon has a $70 rebate if you buy a powershot and printer so you get a free printer out of the deal. I bought mine through Newegg

[Cheif Catchemall]

I have an Olympus Stylus 400 4.0 Megapixel and i absolutly love it for a lot of reasons. it is water resistant. It is very small and fits into a shirt or pants pocket without being uncomfortable. Best of all it is very simple to opperate. Most poeple want to trade cameras with me when they see it. i like to make my pix at wal-mart or Sams club at the kiosk (spelling) which is just as cheap as at home but less hastle. The price is around $350 but you will be extremly happy with it on and off the water, watch for sales. I just saw a new 1 at amazon.com for $216.00!!!

http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/cpg_product_lobbypage.asp?l=1&p=16&bc=27&product=903

[Slyster]

DIG CAM FYI:

Sams Club (Wal-mart?) do a fantastic job at printing 4x6 prints for the best price I've seen- $.18 per print.

1- FAR cheaper than doing it yourself.. paper and ink are so expensive.

2- Wet chemistry- meaning good old "last200years" paper and printing.

You can even send pix via internet and pick them up at the store.. or dump them onto a CD or bring in your actual media.

[Juan Grande]

Anchor man,

Go to CNET.com. They do reviews of all types of electronics including digital cameras. You can search by rating, price or whatever. Very comprehensive.

[Finns]

Anchor; I have to second the Olympus Stylus. I have a 300 that was purchased for the wife for Christmas. I haven't taken alot of pics but the wally world printer works just fine for us.

Heading to Red Lake, Ont. Thurs. am and will report back on how the pics came out. Will try to post pics when we get back.

[buzzsaw]

Go to the "Bird Watching forum" and check out some of the pictures I've posted... I have the Fuji Finepix and I wouldn't trade it for any other. I'm sure there are others that are just as good or better (more money)??

just go check out the pictures I've uploaded and some of the comments others have made, maybe that will help you out a bit.

[Whoaru99]

All around hard to go wrong with the Canons. Maybe you can find one of the earlier A-series (A70/A75/etc.) on clearance or else one of the newer A510 or A520. Either should fit your budget when you include a larger memory card and a couple sets of NIMh batteries with charger. Personally, I like the ones that use AA batteries rather than a proprietary battery pack. The proprietary battery packs are great for power to weight ratio, etc. but they are expensive to replace and if you are in a pinch without juice to charge them, you're S.O.L. You can almost always find a set of AA in an emergency. Opinions may differ...

My camera? I have a Fuji FinePix - an old 2MP jobbie in dire need of replacement. It was VERY cheap, as in $25, N.I.B. on clearance so I picked it up more or less just to play with. Impossible to go wrong at that price. It takes OK pictures, but it's SO SLOW for the next shot it's almost painful. When I upgrade in the near future, probably will be a Canon, but who knows, that stuff changes so fast.

[buzzsaw]

Go with a higher model than what that gentleman used...

[Jeremy airjer W]

I'm on my second Nikon Coolpix. the first was a 880 or 890 4 megapixel and the second is a coolpix 4300 4.3 migapixel. The 4300 is very eay to use with several preset functions for unique occasions. I also know many people who own the sony products and are very happy with them.

If you plan on getting actual photo's made then go for the higher megapixel camera. The more megapixels the clearer/sharper you pics will be on the other hand the camera will cost more.

If youre looking to store and share on your computer or internet then you don't need a higher end camera and you can save a few bucks, and for petes sake learn how to downsize your pics before you send them in an email or post them on a forum

Just my two cents!

[Slyster]

I use the Canon Digital Rebel.. nothing can beat an SLR.. with the wide variety of lensesy you can buy etc.. and the photo's can't be beat by any point and shoot. I decided for a great Tamron lens that covers it all.. a 28-300mm zoom. Very wide angle.. yet powerful telephoto for outdoor/nature shots.. of course.. plan on paying $1000+ for an SLR and lens(es)

[Ralph Wiggum]

I've got a Sony and am really happy with it. I think the model is DSC-P72. 3.2 megapixel with a 3x optical zoom. It takes very good pictures and has some nice manual controls when you want to do more than just point-and-shoot.

3.2 megapixels is plenty unless you are very hardcore. I can blow up to 8x10 and they look crytal clear.

[rundrave]

I have the same sony model as well. Its almost 2years old but a 3meg will get by just fine. I am just a sony guy, alot ppl dont like it because their memory card only works for sony stuff etc. But my HDTV has a slot can plug the card right into and all my photos can be watched on the TV, computer has the same port, can transfer all my pics with ease, no cables etc.

I also think the sams/walmart is the way to go. Cheap, quick easy and painless, just the way I like it.

[Ralph Wiggum]

Shop around online, too. I found mine and the place threw in a 128 MB card for free. You're not going to fit much on the 16 MB that thye give you. My Sony also came with rechargable batteries and a charger (in a pinch, you can run off any AA batteries, too), a USB cable for your computer, and a cord that plugs into the AV inputs on your TV so you can view them on your TV, too. Not sure what other brands give you.

[Ufatz]

Search used market (hsolist?) for a SONY DSC-S85. It is a 4 meg. camera with a Ziess lens on it and the pictures will blow you away. I spent a lot of time with cameras in my "previous life" and I've had the best of every one you've ever heard of , and this little SONY is amazing. Not plastic dump either! This little camera will last! I'll bet you can buy one used for less than what you'll pay for a lesser camera new. Trust me.

[DTro]

Quote:

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But my HDTV has a slot can plug the card right into and all my photos can be watched on the TV, computer has the same port, can transfer all my pics with ease, no cables etc.

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My TV has slots for all types of memory, a built in CDRW to save the pics AND a built in dye sublimation printer. It's pretty cool to take a bunch of pics, plop my arse down on the couch, review, save, and print all while kicked back on the recliner .

[Northlander]

I have had great luck with my Kodak 6.2 megapixel. Ill look up the exact numbers for ya.

[Hookmaster]

As you can see several different brands and good reports from all of them. I think most brands make very good cameras now. I just bought a Nikon Coolpix 4800. 4 megapixel with an 8.3 optical zoom. Most have 3-4 optical zoom. This is one of the reason I bought it but more importantly it had a fairly fast start-up time and retake time. This camera like several others will also take video. I got a 1 gigabyte card for mine. It comes with a rechargable battery but you can use over the counter lithium batteries also, not AA but a camera battery that should be readily available. The pictures and video are great.

[fisher_king2004]

I think Canon has the overall best digital cameras out there. Price and features will decide for you. I've got 6 digital cameras in my family. Fuji is a reasonable all around as well.

Whatever you buy check out cnet.com for owner feedback on almost any model and then check prices on line. You can save a ton buying it on line. Some places have free shipping and you don't pay sales tax.

[trapperdirk]

Another vote for the Olympus Stylus here . I have had the 300 for a year now and it does the job well and suits my lifestyle to a T and easy on the battery .

TD

[anchor man]

I'm starting to lean towards either a Canon A520 or Canon SD200/SD300. Anyone know of any major adv/disadv. of these models? Are they fairly durable? I'm still open to other models too.

Thanks

[Ralph Wiggum]

I have no experience with Canons, but I think the message for all to take away from here is most of the major brands make a good digital camera. I think there are merits to each, and you have to find a balance. I debated between my Sony and a Canon for a while. Both were good cameras with very similar features. I chose the Sony because I liked that it was smaller. It's a tough choice with so many good cameras out there. People used to hate digitals because the photos were grainy. Now, you generally can't tell the difference between film and digital. Like others suggested, I'd read a lot of online reviews from people who have the camera and go from there. There's tons of info out there.

[Granny]

I have the same sony mentioned above. First digital so I don't have anything to compare it to but I love mine. I have heard good stuff about the Canon 300 also. Not sure what other cameras have but its cool to take a bunch of pics with the Sony at a gathering and then hook it up to the TV and put it on slide show. Eveyone can watch while eating lunch. I found the Sony very easy to use!

Just my input.

Granny

[311Hemi]

I would stongly recommend Canon Powershot line. I had a Canon S230 (3.2 megapixel) for a year before I dropped it down a hole ice fishing. I then replaced it with a Canon S400 (4 MP) and still have that camera going stong. I also recomended to a friend the Canon line. He ended up with a Canon SD300 (4 mp) and loves it. I liked his so much I purchased another camera, the SD 400 (5mp). The SD line is smaller than the S line that I started out with, and also has a 2" digital screen on back which is nice. These camera fit easily into your pocket, which is a must IMO. For anyone on the move...fishing, hunting, snowmobiling, hiking...whatever, these are nice and small. I carried mine all winter in my pocket and have abused it....still works great. No way would you would find me lugging a big camera around my neck! (the up side about a large camera is probably more zoom). These also record video with sounds, which I think many these days do.

Don't get a camera that takes AA batteries IMO. I have a friend that has one that is always replacing them....the can get spendy!

I would also recommend at least a 128 MB memory card....but for the price I got a 1 gig card at best buy for $70....which is a great deal and I will never fill the memory up. I purchased from a place online that I got a gereat price. Let me know and I can forward you their info!

You should be able to get into Canon SD300 for $275 without tax!! I your doing it you might as well get the SD300 with 4MP.......3MP (the SD200) is getting outdated.

Major disadvantage......being small enough to store the camera in the pocket of you bibs while icefishing....bending over forgetting to button the pocket and having the camera drop down the hole!!!! LOL

Do I sound like a sales man.....hope not, but you can tell what I think about camera's.

[kwkfsh]

I have an Olympus Stylus 410 because it was the only water resistant digital camera I could find last year. It uses a rechargable battery pac, which is a bonus as I have spent $0 on batteries.

It also uses the XD cards which take less battery power than the other styles of memory cards.

These are 4mp with 3x optical and 4x digital zoom. You can pick one up at Costco for under $200 now.

This has a metal body, comes with a remote control ( great for taking pics when fishing alone), and takes amazingly good pictures.

[lawdog]

Glad to hear you like the 410, I just bought one off hsolist factory returned/reconditioned for $175 with the charger and all that included. I liked the weather resistant feature and couldn't really get beyond that for hunting/fishing etc. pictures...