What Digital Camera to buy in the <600 price Range? (1 Viewer)

[KyleS]

Ok people so here is my situation:
I was in Chile for Christmas with my in-Laws and my Wife's uncle begged me to sell my Sony DSC-S85 4.1MP Camera to him. So I did but now I need to replace it either with another S-85 or???
I don't know what else has come out from other manufactures that I should look at instead of the Sony in the $600 price range including at least a 128mb memory stick.(purchased separately included in the $600 price range).
Here is what I am looking for:
4.1mp or greater
Can accept Wide angle and Telephoto lenses w/ or without adapter.
So whats the best bang for the buck?
Sony S85
Canon??
Edit: I dont really want to go over the $600 price range even though the new 5mp+ cameras are in the $800 price range.
KyleS

 

[Dave Falasco]

I'm pretty happy with the new Canon G3. It's my first digital camera, though, so I'm probably not qualified to compare it to anything else.
Takes damn fine pictures, though.
edit: whoops, that's closer to $800 than $600...but the G2 that it replaced can probably be had for about $600, and that was also a well-regarded camera

 

[KyleS]

What no one else? I can get the G3 close to the 600 price range but a little higher then I want when you add in a 128 or 256mb card and the reviews are about the same as the S85 by Sony thanks for the suggestions Dave. hmmm nobody else...

KyleS

 

[DaveBB]

Have you taken a look at the Olympus C730? It's a 3.2mp camera but has a 10x optical zoom.

 

[Cam S]

No questions, the Canon G2, or even better, the G3. I've had my G3 for 3 weeks now and I love even more and more each day, it's a wonderful camera with tons of upgrades for it.

 

[Glenn L]

Well, around now I hoped to be qualified to comment on Canon's S40. But my gf (bless her heart) misunderstood and got me the A40. It may have turned out for the best. I can learn with the cheaper camera, then upgrade to something fancier next christmas when I know more.
Anyway... look at the S40, or it's new big brother, the S45

 

[Cam S]

As far as I know, the S30/S40/G2 are being phased out, and will be replaced with the S45, G3, and supposedly the S35. The S30 is a GREAT bang for the buck camera, especially right now with the new models coming up. I had a S30 back in September and I took some incredible pictures, and get them blown up to 8x10 at London Drugs. No one can tell whether it was from a 35mm camera or a digital, it's that good.

 

[DonRoeber]

I used to have an Olympus 3030 (now a few models old), and didn't like it at all. I got a Canon S40 this past summer, and use it nearly all the time. It's a fanastic camera to use!

 

[DonnyD]

DPreview.com is a great site for checking out all the prospects and feedback on them. After much reading and studying, I switched from a Canon A40 to a Fuji 3800 and consider it a great upgrade. If I were going to spend more, I would have bought the Fuji 602z.

 

[Tom_Mack]

Another vote for the G2/G3. I have the G2 and it is wonderful. I wasn't very impressed the the Sonys nearly as much.

 

[Dave Smith]

My main problem with the Sony cameras is that they only take memory sticks, which is a pretty moribund technology and only allows sizes up to 128MB.
CompactFlash is much more versatile, offers higher storage capacity, and is cheaper.
So saying that, my favourites right now are the Nikon 5700 (though at $1000 or so, that's outside your price range, and mine ), and the Canon G2/G3. You can get the G2 for just over $500 now, throw in a 128MB CompactFlash for $40 or so and you're under budget.

 

[KyleS]

My main problem with the Sony cameras is that they only take memory sticks, which is a pretty moribund technology and only allows sizes up to 128MB.

They are coming out with 1GB chips here this year so that really shouldnt matter. I bought a Magic Gate chip so I could also use it with the MP3 products from Sony as well. I thought about going with the G3 but honestly couldnt see spending around the $800 mark for it when I can get the Sony F717 which is a better camera then the G3 at that price. So I bought another S-85 with 128mb memory which hold 65 pics at full resolution, and a wide angle lens, case, extra battery for less then $600. Thanks guys for the feedback I just wasnt sure what else was out besides the Canons.

KyleS

 

[Trevor Schell]

I just purchased a Canon G3 last week and am very happy with it.
It replaces my Kodak DC-4800.
Here is a sample picture.

 

[Rives Elmore]

Another vote for Canon G2...heres a RAW photo I took during Christmas :
Christmas Tree (Big File....no Flash, natural light)
I LOVE this camera, it can do just about anything

 

[Ray Chuang]

KyleS,
However, there is a bad rumor going around that the new higher-capacity Sony Memory Sticks are incompatible with older hardware that use them. :frowning:
As for a decent new digital camera in the US$600 range, I'd hold out for the Canon PowerShot S45--I've seen results from that camera and the picture quality is outstanding.

 

[Dave Smith]

Yeah, the S45 is nice. It's basically the G3 with a different (smaller) body and lens.

 

[Max Leung]

Canon G3 owner here...fantastic camera. Probably has the best user interface of all the cameras out there in its class.
Check out www.dpreview.com and read the reviews on the Sony F717 and the Canon G3.
I like the ergonomics on the G3 much better than the Sony. Plus, you have much more options regarding memory, and you can mate the G3 with the excellent Canon 420EX E-TTL external flash for near-flawless indoor shots (no redeye, even lighting when using the bounce swivel, etc.).
The S45 and the G2 are also excellent choices. I also heard good things about the Olympus C5050 (is that under $600 now? Hmmm...). Nikon Coolpix 4500s are popular too, although the user interface trips some people up.

 

[KyleS]

However, there is a bad rumor going around that the new higher-capacity Sony Memory Sticks are incompatible with older hardware that use them.

Its not a rumor its fact and that was coming from a cousin of mine who is a Product Line Manager for Sony in South America.

The newer camera F717 are compatible and all the Laptops/memory adapters are since they can have their firmware updated. Of course we will have to wait and see but even with the 128mb Memory sticks I can hold 65 pics at full 4MP quality so a 1GB chip would be overkill IMO right now. If you were running a 10MP+ camera and taking pictures for weddings and the such I could see having the ability to take practically unlimited pictures without in essence reloading.

KyleS