In terms of Price iam looking for somewhere in between 200- 300$ price range. What is your budjet? You can't compare between Nikon and Canon generally, each have their good and bad models.
I would suggest you (an entirely personal opinion) to buy Nikon Coolpix 7900 if you are a beginner.
If you want some manual settings etc go for Canon Powershot A620.
Read the reviews of these models on internet and decide what features you want..
Does tht help? Well, it really does come down to your budget. However, I don't like either Canon or Nikkon. My favorite digital camera at this time is the Konica Minolta Dimage X1 which is an 8MP camera with a 3x optical zoom. It will come down to how much zoom are you looking for, how many megapixels are you looking for and what price are you willing to pay. Answer these questions and I believe you should be able to find a balance. The Dimage X1 is a pretty good deal at $300 or less from various online stores. | 