WTB the best digital camera that's under $300

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pianowizard · #1 Post by **pianowizard** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 4:49 pm

I am getting less and less happy with my current digital still camera, a Sony 4.1MP DSC-P41. 4.1MP is definitely not enough -- photos look noisy when I blow them up -- so I would like to have at least 8MP. But I don't want to spend over $300. What's the best camera that meets these criteria? I just went to CNET and the Canon PowerShot A640 (10MP, 4X zoom) gets very high scores, and it's $269.10 on dell.com. Would that be a good choice?

#2 Post by **rkawakami** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 5:46 pm

Like laptops, it all depends on what you intend on using it for most often. Do you shoot mainly outdoors or do you need a low-light camera capable of giving you relatively clean ISO 1600 (or more) shots? Compact, ultrazoom, or DSLR? Do you want/need to take many shots rapidly (i.e., burst mode)? A higher MP camera will generally have a slower burst mode than a lower MP sensor, but that can vary somewhat.

I for one like the Canon A series. I have an A10 (which now has a bad image processor at full zoom after shooting some sunset photos

) and an A510. I like the fact that they take regular AA batteries and not some camera-only, special recharger requiring, pack. Load them up with some high capacity NiMh cells and carry a couple of spares. The A510 is small enough to fit in my pocket, takes fairly good pictures for a 3MP camera and has enough manual modes to keep me happy. $269 for a 10MP sounds like a pretty good deal considering what I paid for the A510 almost two years ago.

You've probably already been there but I've used these sites in my digital camera research:

http://www.steves-digicams.com/
http://www.dpreview.com/
http://www.dcresource.com/
http://www.imaging-resource.com/

Purcy · #3 Post by **Purcy** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 7:48 pm

I have the Sony Cybershot 5mpx and am very delighted with it, as I often use the video option and the .mpegs are clear and sharp and the sound is loud and clear. At 5mpx I can easily blow them up to 8x10, which is my limit for framing anyway. But for your requirements, that Canon Powershot is great, it is a good camera (a friend had one) I also like the 5 different file size options on the Cybershot, and it will also resize a photo you have taken at a smaller file size and save it as a new image. For a 10mpx camera you cannot beat that price of the Canon.

#4 Post by **ryengineer** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 8:31 pm

The camera you mentioned (A640) looks very exciting but I would suggest it will be better for you if you can see it in person to check out it's features etc. and most importantly to make sure you like it afterwards or not, before buying; in a local shop or something.

I was looking for this camera for year and finally when my wife bought me one, I realized it's a very tough cookie to deal with.

syedj · #5 Post by **syedj** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 9:45 pm

I am also in the same boat.

My kids have been using our family digital camera as their personal toy and now clearly the poor camera has seen better days. This time around I would also like to keep the price to sub-$200 level and perhaps buy a digital SLR camera with strict usage sanctions against the kids. I already have a couple of Canon ESM SLR zoom lenses from my days of youth and 35mm photography that if I stick with Canon digital SLR cameras I might be able to put to use again. So far I have been looking into Canon XT and XTi but perhaps go with the XT model at the end. Given my aesthetic sense and photographic artistic talent (or lack thereof) I cannot really justify the price of the XTi.

#6 Post by **tomh009** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:08 pm

The XT will take very, very good pictures still -- in the end, the lenses matter more than the number of pixels, and the person behind the viewfinder matters most of all!

#7 Post by **KristianJ** » Tue Jul 31, 2007 8:12 am

Another vote for the Canon A series - I have an A550 (7.1MP, 4x optical) and it's a great and simple point and shoot. Easy to use, plenty of features and as Purcy said, the several different file sizes available are a big advantage.

ambientscape · #8 Post by **ambientscape** » Tue Jul 31, 2007 8:30 am

I have been using Olympus digicam for years now. I like the quality pictures produced by Oly's. You might want to read up some reviews by professional photographers : http://www.megapixels.net

dr_st · #9 Post by **dr_st** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 3:59 am

I like the Canon cameras myself. I recommend one of the following three. The first two shoult be easily below $300. The last one may be slightly more on average, but you can probably find it below $300 if you look.

Canon A710IS: 7.1MP, 6x optical zoom, image stabilization. Medium weight for a compact camera (210g w/o batteries), runs on 2xAA batteries. Downside: long flash recycling time. My sister has it and is very happy with the camera. You can easily carry it in a coat pocket, but not in your jeans pockets (unless these are especially large pockets).

Canon A570IS: 7.1MP, 4x optical zoom, image stabilization. Slightly newer than the A710, uses an updated processor and has ISO 1600 mode, which is probably next to useless in real life. It is somewhat lighter too (165g w.o batteries) and runs on the same 2xAA. I seriously considered this one for my sis, but opted for the A710, for the extra zoom (and the slightly nicer looks - the A710 is dark silver as opposed to white, and the corners look more rounded)

Canon SD800IS: 7.1MP, 3.8x optical zoom, image stabilization. My girlfriend has it, and as you can guess, is also very satisfied. This one is a slightly different class - it's an ultracompact, so it is very thin and light, and uses a proprietary Canon rechargeable battery (can be an advantage or a disadvantage, depends on the situation and how you look at it). This camera is different from the above two because it has a wide-angle lens (equivalent to 28mm, not 35mm). This means that you get more into the picture, and can take pictures in close quarters without stepping backwards - a GREAT feature if you are into that kind of photography. However, it comes at the expense of zoom - its max range is only half that of the A710. Another downside is the lack of powerful manual controls on this one (the A series have more). But knowing how you value low weight, it might be just the camera for you.

None of the cameras above has a rotating LCD (like the A640). Personally I find the A640 too bulky and heavy (and it also requires 4xAA batteries), and so I opted to give up some features in favor of others. I also like the image stabilization feature that's present on all the cameras above.

7.1MP may not sound as much, but you really don't need more, unless you want to print huge banners. If the camera is good, the pictures will turn out fine. The noise is usually caused by a limitation of the sensor and processor, not resolution.

Purcy · #10 Post by **Purcy** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 10:25 am

ambientscape wrote:I have been using Olympus digicam for years now. I like the quality pictures produced by Oly's. You might want to read up some reviews by professional photographers : http://www.megapixels.net

Way back in the day before digital photography and when I was a prof. photographer, all of my bodies and lenses were Olympus - best darn lenses ever.

braxx · #11 Post by **braxx** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 6:44 pm

I've had a couple of Olympus camera's about 4-6yrs ago. I then got a Canon A40 and I loved it. About 18 months ago I got a Canon A620 and it is even better. I use a 4gb sd card in it and I can take TON's of good video and pic's. It uses 4aa batteries and I can take at least 150 and maybe 250pic's and some video on one set of batteries.
My vote is for the Canon!

#12 Post by **tomh009** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 2:35 pm

dr_st wrote:I like the Canon cameras myself. I recommend one of the following three. The first two shoult be easily below $300. The last one may be slightly more on average, but you can probably find it below $300 if you look. (...)

I second the recommendations: Canon has both excellent optics, and a top-notch 7.1 Mp sensor. I have the same one myself in a Canon S70 (the S, series, alas, is now discontinued -- the S80 was the last in that line). I also like the 28 mm wide-angle zoom, as I find 35 mm not to be quite wide enough.

As for batteries, AA is easy and cheap, but the models with dedicated rechargeables include a compact charger, and will quickly charge up the battery. And you can readily find third-party batteries on eBay ...

losmeme · #13 Post by **losmeme** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 6:27 pm

I once asked a manager who happened to be on the floor at a Circuit City in New York (Yea, I know, what are the chances of that?) which brand camera had the least rate of return. He thought for a second (Yea, I know, what are the chances of that?) and he said "Canon".

I purchased a Canon Powershot A300 on NewEgg after that and couldn't have been happier. Three years later it died, totally. Purchased a Powershot A640 and was amazed even more at the quality.

Three digital camera years is like 60 human years, so more than happy to upgrade. Wouldn't even consider another brand from this point.

#14 Post by **bill bolton** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 7:32 pm

pianowizard wrote:Would that be a good choice?

Whatever you buy, there will be a bunch of higher spec'd ones on the market in 6 months.

In my experience, the thing to watch with a digital "pocket" camera is the control "surface". You need to have a basic set of stuff available by hard switching of some sort, even for basic point and shoot purposes. Beware of any camera user interface that has little hard switching and wants you to pick most options off menus.

I'm using a discontinued Sony DSC-7 model (7.2 MP) and its great because I can dial up a bunch of settings quickly, and it uses AA batteries so I can run it off store bought Lithium, or even Alakaline, bateries if I have too.

There are higher resolution, and smaller, Sony models on the market now but they have much less usable human interfaces! The same seems to be true of many other current "pocket" digital camera models as well.

Cheers,

Bill B.

#15 Post by **tomh009** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 7:37 pm

bill bolton wrote:There are higher resolution, and smaller, Sony models on the market now but they have much less usable human interfaces! The same seems to be true of many other current "pocket" digital camera models as well.

What's happening is a combination of two trends: smaller camera bodies (to easily fit into a pocket) and larger LCD displays. The unfortunate end result is that there is little surface area left for placing "hard" controls.

#16 Post by **RealBlackStuff** » Wed Aug 08, 2007 5:00 am

My daughter has the Fuji F30 (superseded in the meantime by F31D).
That camera is amazing, it can even take pictures in a pitch black room.
It also is one of the few cameras with ISO 3200.
It is well in your price range also.
Look up some reviews on the F30 and be amazed!
Highly recommended.

DrummerDave · #17 Post by **DrummerDave** » Wed Aug 08, 2007 8:31 am

I just baught a Canon SD 750 and LOVE it!!!!
I really like Canon cameras and this is just perfect for my use.

WTB the best digital camera that's under $300

WTB the best digital camera that's under $300

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