[Jim Retzner]

All the ads and reviews about digital cameras, when read or observed separately, are confusing. What, in your opinion, is the best USB digital camera for non-professional use retailing at or near $600? Thanks for your input!

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i dont know the camera price in the states, but the best digital camera is the nikon coolpix 990. i am very impressed and superhappy. the picture quality is great, full automatic or manual control and you can take pictures at night without flashlight in a very cool quality.

carlo, hamburg, germany, earth-one

[Misha]

Kodak's DC 240 is a good buy, although it's only one megapixel, so if you plan on printing the photos you take you'll want to step up to their two-megapixel camera, which I believe is the 260. Both are good buys.

[Evangellydonut]

I bought a used Kodak DC280 for US$320 from another member of the board, and gotta say, its a great 2.0 megapixel camera. Thx Eric!

At $600 price range, you are looking at a 2.x megapixel camera. The 3 megapixel camers (990 being one of them) retails for about $850, so that's a bit high...
Personal recommendation, Kodak DC290. Similar to 280, but better battery life and 3x optical compared to 2x optical zoom of the 280. It comes with a 20 MB flash card, instead of 8 that you'll generally find with these type of cameras. A quick search through ZDnet reveals that it goes for US$568 + 10 shipping and maybe tax. Perfect price! Olympus 2020z is in this range, but no USB. Nikon Coolpix 950 is a bit old, and I'm not aware of its replacement. Sony is generally over-priced or their new D70 is not all that accurate in color...so I'd say consider the Kodak.

Also, check out http://www.dpreview.com for extensive digi-cam review if you have the time.

Oh yeah, another guy from San Diego! cool! (i'm listed as Pasadena 'cuz that's where I go to school, but I live in Scripps Ranch whenever I'm home ) If you want to drop by, I'll let you play with my DC280...

[This message has been edited by Evangellydonut (edited 08-18-2000).]

[slboett]

I've seen the Nikon CoolPix 950s going for under $600 - we bought one for $1000 when they came out and it's an awesome camera! The new 990 is about $1000 and has many more options, but the 950 is a superb camera.

Scott

[Evangellydonut]

I'm not disagreeing with what slboett said, but keep in mind that the 950 is over a year old. My DC280 is close to a year old now, and looking at the specs of the new generation of 2.0-3.x megapixel cameras, the difference is definitely there. (battery life, zoom, general performance speed, etc)
That is also why I recommended the DC290 instead of DC280, which you can find for about $100 cheaper.

As far as picture quality is concerned, DC280 is slightly worse than Coolpix 950 from the reviews I've read, so DC290 is probably on par or slightly better. Also, the 290 is about $30 cheaper...(to pay for shipping 'n tax on your $600 budget ^_^)

(I almost feel like a dirty Kodak salesmen...oy...)

[This message has been edited by Evangellydonut (edited 08-18-2000).]

[drfrank]

I currently use an Olympus C-2020z. The camera is 9-months old now and prices have dropped from the original. I use it for web work, general photography, and prepress publication design.

The 2020 produces great images and can be used full automatic or full manual depending on your skill or preference. I suggest you take a look at some of the online retailers for price and the Olympus website for specifications. There are also a Lot of reviews available for the 2020 online.

Frank

[Evangellydonut]

yeah, C2020z is a good camera too. The ONLY thing I didn't like 'bout it was that it doesn't have an USB port, so you'll have to get a reader for US$30. Otherwise, photo quality is one of the best for 2 megapixel camera.

btw, did you know that you can play Doom on that DC290 from Kodak? the site was slashdotted for it not too long ago...

The FujiFilm FinePix 4700 is the absolute best you can buy now. It is second to none in quality and it far and away the coolest digital camera out there.
http://www.fujifilm.com/bridgepages/finepix4700.html

I've got a friend who bought one for just over 600$ at buydig.com and he absolutly loves it!

The coolest thing about this camera is it's incredible versatility. It can take pictures in nearly any situations, and has modes for all sorts of environments. Night, day, landscape, portrait, action, high-speed. You can even put on manual and set things like ISO, shutter speed and focus. It also takes pictures in less than 3 seconds which is really fast considering it takes 4 megapixel photos! It supports all sorts of resolutuins (up to 2000x1800!) and can even capture 80 seconds of video and even has a high-speed shutter mode which snaps 3 photos in succession very quickly.

The USB drivers are great, and I had no problem at all getting them to work- just copy 2 extentions and plug in the camera. It also has an A/V out port so you can hook it right up to your TV! It's also REALLY small. MUCH smaller than you expect.

I can't reccomend this camera enough! The features I've mentioned here are really just scratching the surface. I STRONGLY suggest you go out and try it before getting anything else!

[This message has been edited by Lunchbox (edited 08-24-2000).]

[andi*pandi]

Yes, Kodak 280 is excellent--good quality, I can take 40-50 pix on the card (I got a free upgrade on my camera, so have 48 card. More space GOOD!) Usually, battery life lasts as long as it takes you to fill the card, as long as you don't have active preview turned on (digital viewfinder.).

I'm very pleased, cross-platform on both my imac, my sister's old mac, and my fiance's PC. Had some trouble at work G4 OS 9, but there is whatall of extensions loaded there...

I used an older Nikon Coolpix, and was unhappy with a constant green overcast... the Kodak seems to have better color, brighter, more true.

[Evangellydonut]

I'm not a Fuji fan 'cuz their cameras are not "true." By that I mean their 4 megapixel cameras use something like 2.5 megapixel CCD and all the other pixels are interpolated...

Like I said earlier, read up on the reviews at the professional sites, then go to zdnet or cnet to find one that fits your budget.

[zigzag]

After doing much research, I bought the $600 Canon Powershot S100 Digital Elph and I love it. What distinguishes the Elph is its compact size. Unlike any other digital camera, it unobtrusively fits in a shirt or pants pocket (it's about the size of a cigarette pack). You can therefore carry it anywhere and never miss a shot. I think this is more important than big lenses or resolution. The worst shots are the ones you miss.

Other advantages of the Elph: the lens is self-protecting (no lens cap to fiddle with or lose). The zoom lever is located on the shutter release button for easy control (no having to fumble to find the zoom while framing a shot). The body is all-metal - very classy and very sturdy. Rechargeable lithium-ion battery and charger are included. Built-in USB and video outputs, with cables, included.

All the other usual features are standard - flash, auto, manual override. You can get more arcane features with more expensive cameras, but very few people other than pros ever use them. I've been using the Elph in a variety of environments for 2 months and haven't even used all of its features.

Image quality is excellent for 2.2 megapixels, which I feel is more than enough for non-professionals. Don't forget that image quality depends on the quality of the lens as well as the number of pixels.

The Fuji is also an excellent camera. In comparing the two, I found that I didn't like the vertical form-factor of the Fuji. Hoever, this is a matter of personal preference, and I suggest holding a number of cameras in your hands to see which are most comfortable. I find the Canon to be very easy to handle.

Also, while the Fuji is advertised as over 4 megapixels, it's really a 3 meg camera - the extra meg is extrapolated. Nonetheless, a great camera. It all depends on your priorities.

Go to the canon-usa.com site - there are links to a number of reviews.