Ok, so my cousin from Croatia sent me $200 to buy a digital camera with. I'm kinda stumped on what to get him though as the only cameras I have been looking at are in higher price ranges. Anyhow, does anybody have a good recommendation for a camera that's under $200. Doesn't have to be super simple, just something with decent quality that won't break on him or go through 50 batteries an hour. Thanks.

 

Fujifilm E510. All auto settings he'd want, and full manual settings as well, + 5.2 megapixel. Incredible price for the camera - tough to find anything comparable anywhere near the price.

Plenty of all-auto 5MP P&S models out there in your budget, though. Kodak, Olympus, HP, and Fuji all have a few 5MP models for that price. They all are decent cameras, the main difference that would matter, I'd think, is if he already has some memory cards he'd like to use with it, in which case, you'd have to buy whatever model uses that media. They all take decent pictures, all have very similar modes, and lab testing aside, very little differences that matter, IMHO.

 

Go to wallmart.

 

stay away from fuji/olympus. They use that stupid xD card system. I have a Fuji 2650 (my first digicam) and although it is good, it paled in comparison to the competitors from Canon and Nikon.

Under $200- Best is still Canon. It is the only one that has a lamp assisted AF and manual controls. Model A510 for 3.2mp and A520 for 4.0mp. (my advice would be to stick with the A510 if you can find it...the 520 has noisier pics).

 

wtf is "stupid" about it that isn't "stupid" about any memory card? Other than the fact xd cards are smaller than almost every other format out there? Please share.

 

go here
http://www.overstock.com/?PAGE=CATLIST&PRO...RO_SSUB_CAT=999

Get a great deal.

I would take anything from Canon or Nikon. I would stay away from others. I have a Nikon Coolpix 4300 and have had incredible pictures. They 4600 is currently on sale at overstock. I also have a Canon Rebel XT, and is much better than the Nikon D70. But the Nikon Coolpix line is great, as is the SD line from Canon. I don't like the A510 as it is rather bulky. Buts its a good camera for the money.

 

Thanks for the input guys. I don't think he has any cards already. If he does, chances are they are CF or SM which none of the cameras in the price range have. Anyhow, the Fuji E510 seems to be the nicest package. Plus it will leave me with enough money to get him some batteries and an extra card.

How do the tried and true brands compare to some of the newer stuff that's offering 12megapixels like the SVP brand? Are they any good or is it complete garbage?
http://www.overstock.com/?page=proframe&prod_id=1736322

Edit: Nevermind on that SVP. Just found out that the CMOS is only 3mp and that the camera is not so great.

 

The price of the card in relation to the memory size you get is one. Another is it is the LEAST favored type of memory card on the market(there's a reason for this). Third is, AFAIK, the LARGEST mb size is a paltry 512mb which costs on average $80 compared to at most $40 for a SD/CF. The largest SD right now is 4GB, while CF can go considerably higher with the microdrive.

Let me reiterate that I HAVE a Fuji Finepix 2650 which uses this card. I don't like this system for the reason's listed above. Another nitpick would be it's extremely small size. I don't think it affords any greater design leeway when creating a product with its smaller than SD size yet is a PIA to handle compared to SD.

Finally I add, if it works for you then fine, I'm happy for you. But if someone asks for advice, I'll always direct them away from any cam that uses expensive, limited xD card systems.

 

I can relate to the concern about the xD cards. I've been using compact flash forever b/c of the cost and size options and think that camera makers just need to find a few good standards and stick to them instead of making 20 different varieties. Anyhow, I don't think my cousin will be shopping for the cards in the future so I'm guessing he'll just be using what I buy him. Probably not for any heavy duty graphics either. Just family photos and such. I think, to him, anything other than SM and CF would be the same in his eyes. I appreciate your input though.

 

um, a 1gig XD card is only $100 at OfficeMax, it's hardly expensive, ignoring the fact that 1 gig for a 5MP P&S is just silly. I'd agree that XD isn't always the cheapest, but the cost differences are $10 at the most. Unless you already have some sort of memory card you'd like to use with your new camera, picking a P&S camera based on the media is foolish.

I'd agree that a very small size will naturally limit capacity, but on the flip side, it reduces the size of the camera. Unless you have a *need* for greater than 1 gig storage per card (which no-one will with a 5MP camera), I fail to see how XD is inferior to any other media. In fact, I think only CompactFlash has a greater capacity, and depending on where you shop, a 1 gig card may or may not be cheaper than XD, and definitely more expensive for greater than 1 gig capacity, i.e. ~$250 for 2 gigs.

Honestly, there are far more important considerations when choosing a P&S camera than media type. Especially since the differences in media costs are more dependent on where you buy than media format. And knocking XD for some perceived failing of XD is not exactly intelligent, IMHO. FWIW, the BEST price I could find on a 512 CF card was ~$56, $40 would only get you 256 MB, while $30 will get you a 256MB XD card.