Looking to buy my first digital camera, with no experience in this area i want to be sure of getting value for money with good quality results.Can anyone recommend a camera under 拢100 wether it be bought online or not,with a zoom feature,pc hookup,decent memoryetc.... After searching the internet the Canon A610 seems a good buy ,Any thoughts?Priced at 拢89.99. It would be easy just to list a load of my favourate cameras but I don't think that's what you need. Based on the criteria in your question you should understand a bit about the why's and wherefores of camera features then you can make up your own mind.
Completely disregard digital zoom figures. They are a cheap con by all manufacuruers. Digital zoom works by enlarging the central area of the imaging chip. They do not increase the number of pixels available so as you "zoom" your resolution reduces significantly. At anything above 2x your pictures will look fuzzy if you enlarge to 10x8 (about A4 size). If you want to 'digital zoom' then do it on your computer.
Also, disregard 'special effects'. These can also be done on your PC with any cheap editing program so why bother with them in the camera? They're just marketing gimicks and you'll soon tire of them.
Go for optical zoom of at least 3x if you can afford it.
Almost all cheap digital cameras do not have an optical viewfinder. They make you use the screen on the back to frame your picture. There are two main disadvantages to this:
1) In bright light the screen can sometimes be hard to see clearly (the contrast is poor).
2) The battery goes flat twice as fast as a camera with an optical (old fashioned look-through) viewfinder.
If your budget will reach then I wholeheartedly recommend that you buy one with an optical viewfinder. You will also find that these cameras are also better made than non-opticals.
Most digital cameras allow you to select from a range of picture qualities. High quality will use more memory space than low quality.
If you buy one with a rechargable battery then get a spare battery at the same time, and keep it charged and with you whenever you go out. A flat battery will spoil your shooting session.
Make sure that your camera is 'future proof'. That means that accessories should be easily available if you decide to 'expand'.
You asked about memory. There are several non-compatible ways that digital cameras use to store their images. There are Sony memory stick, SD cards, Compact Flash etc. You should know that although the Sony card is a "SONY", it is expensive and not widly used by other makers. The SD Card is the most common memory card type installed by most camera, television, computer, dvd manuacturers. So it has greater across the board compatibility.
Note that most cameras come with a relatively small capacity memory card provided.
Whatever type of card you use you will typically get over 100 standard definition photos on a 256MB card. This will vary considerably depending on the number of megapixels your camera has and the resolution (quality) that you set it for.
Whatever you buy please read the book. Digital cameras can do all sorts of clever things and it's easy to not bother reading what can look like a complex book. You don't want to make silly mistakes or miss out on a good shot. Any zoom facility needs to be optical, as opposed to digital, zoom.
Optical zoom gets you closer to the subject, Digital zoom gets you closer to the pixels, you lose picture quality I'm not really sure where you can buy one for that price. But I do know that you want to buy one with a 5.0 mega pixel and higher. if you want to have better picture and clarity. Also if you want a faster camera ( that way you will be able to a another picture right away or you will have to wait a longer time to take another pic) you'll need to buy one with more memory. But more expensive. If I am completely honest for less than 拢100 you are probably looking at a pretty basic model or end of line model (which is probably the bestmodel). If it is your first digital you will probably want a good point and shoot mode but at the same time there is nothing more frustrating than outgrowing the capacity of a camera.
I have a Fuji S5000 myself which is an old model but at the same time it is adaptive to both basic ability to a high intermediate level which means that it has more longevity as it enables me to progress without needing to get a new model. It also has a very good optical zoom. They no longer produce the models but may have old stock available at a cheaper price as I have seen one for as low as 拢119. I have also seen a Fuji FinePix F460 Digital Camera for 拢89 which has a pretty poor 3x optical zoom but is a good starter camera. If you are looking at only printing pictures of 5x7 then 3million Mega Pixels will be sufficient it is only if you are looking at larger prints you start to see a reduction in clarity and crispness to the image. I also find Canon to be very good cameras but have limited experience with other brands although a friend swears by Olympus.
I would recommend going to comparison site such as the one I mention below whereby you can search through a variety of sellers for the best deal. Go along to your local Jessops and have a talk with them. I done it when I wanted to buy my dslr, and although I told them that I might not end up buying it from them, they were still very helpfull... Good luck... Forget the internet(heresy I know) but go to WH Smiths and purchase a copy of Digital Camera Buyer. This magazine compares cameras in the same price bracket and gives an independant, fair and honest review. Make your mind up from that rather than the blurb put out by the manufacturers. | 