Travel Technology - Digital Cameras

For graduation, my parents have offered to give me a new digital camera since mine has been through the ringer. Currently, I have a Sony DSC-P3.

The most important factor is size. I travel to some dodgy places from time to time and I like to be able to throw it in my pocket like I don't have it if I feel that I am in a more dangerous area. Obviously, picture quality and usability are keys.

I am looking at four cameras. The Sony P150, P200, and the Canon S500 and SD500. As I said, I have a Sony now and so I am used to it and have several memory sticks. But the SD500 appears to be a little smaller.

Any suggestions or input would be very much appreciated. I am leaning toward the P200.

Thanks in advance.

I liked the P200 but ended up with a T-33 ... 5MP rather than 7.2MP ..but smaller and lighter... and cheaper

SD500. I've got the SD300 and love it.

I have a larger Canon and like their digital cameras a lot. I think one of the biggest advantages over the Sony is not using memory stick.

I have a larger Canon and like their digital cameras a lot. I think one of the biggest advantages over the Sony is not using memory stick.

I totally agree about the memory stick comment. On the other hand, I love some of the new Nikon cameras. They are definitely becoming more user friendly and are a quality product.

I totally agree about the memory stick comment. On the other hand, I love some of the new Nikon cameras. They are definitely becoming more user friendly and are a quality product.


Yes, I agree about Nikon. The OP didnt list them as an option. At the time I bought my Canon at B&H (in the store, not online) I was chosing between Canon and Nikon. The salesman told me that those two brands basically flip-flopped on who had the best camera out at any given time. Mostly depending on which one had been released most recently. At the time I bought mine he said the Canon was newer and a big jump over the current Nikon and recommended to go with that. But I totally agree, if I was getting a digital camera I would only consider Canon, Nikon and possibly an esoteric one like Leica. The Leica doesnt have the megapixels that the others do but it has outstanding optics and I think the fastest shutter response of anything in the point and shoot class.

Go to www.dpreview.com. They should have your camera choices and reviews about them. I think they are all fine cameras. I believe the Memory Sticks are more expensive and depending on how much shooting you do, you may want more than one. Look at the features and gauge it against how much you are willing to spend.

Hi. I'm trying to buy a new digital camera right now also -- thanks for the links and suggestions. I've been looking sround on ZDNet a little. They seem to have good reviews and articles -- they even have a "don't buy these cameras" section. Here's the link:
http://reviews-zdnet.com.com/Digital_cameras/2001-6501_16-0.html?tag=ont-cam
Hope it helps!

i second the recommendation for the SD500. i just bought a SD200 and it's great. the battery life sucks though so be prepared to shell out for a couple extra batteries. i based my purchase on the reviews from steve's digicams (http://www.steves-digicams.com/) and digital photography review (http://dpreview.com/).

I have a couple of them, and have bought a couple for family, friends
canon has a new, slightly smaller form factor camera with the 5.0 MP digic procesor, big screen but even smaller than the SD500.

I think is it S300 or something like that. Should be out about now.

My wife has a P150 and couldn't be happier with it. Great pics and very good battery life

Sony DSC-L1

Small to tiny, 4MP, 3 x Optical, Zeiss lens, huge battery life. Picture quality is very good, but it's not the best at flash. Needs MS Duo, which at the moment is a bit more expensive than SD or CF - but that will change.

Feels better to use than the Canon Ixus 40 (Powershot S40 in US?). The casing is stainless steel - it feels very robust, and looks the part too.

Asking what the best digital camera is on FT is like asking "what is the best frequent flyer program" :D

Possibly, yes, but it's been many years since I bought the one I have. Actually, it's a p-5 not a p-3. I had a P3 that was stolen and replaced it with the P5.

I do appreciate all the inputs. I had an Elph 2 (APS) for a small period of time and liked it. The size was good. I returned it for the digital. I have been generally happy with the P5 which is why I am reticent to try something brand new. My biggest pet peeves are that the lens cover now sticks closed (more due to age than faulty design I imagine) and that it is very, very slow. The lens is slow to open and retract and the speed of reading and writing to the card is slow. I was used to my 40 year old SLR which was only limited by my own slowness in focusing and framing the shot. Great for action shots. Still have the camera but I dont use it much. The memory sticks probably aren't too big of a deal *except* that the P5 was a non-MS-Pro so my cards are all 128mb or smaller. IIRC, the P5 is a 3.2mp. I imagine a 128mb card isn't going to hold a whole lotta photos with the max setting on a 7.2mp or 8.0mp camera.

The megapixals isn't that big of an issue. At this point it's like a testosterone display. I have 7.2 megapixels. Well, *I* have 8.0 megapixels. Lemme whip it out and slap you around with them so I can feel all manly. I would rather have a better CCD than the extra megapixels though I know one is often found with the other. The max I print is 8x10 and that is very rare. I have a few of my photos on my wall but that's about it beyond simple 4x6 prints. Mostly, I share the photos with friends and family and there is no reason to have a 18000x26000 picture or whatever the heck an 8.0mp camera would render.

Unfortunately, I am not going to be able to afford to replace it for several years so I am laboring over this maybe a little more than I should. I think I will need to find who sells the SD500 and check it out in person.

Thank you for the input and any more is greatly appreciated.

The biggest advantage for having a lot of pixels is if you decide to crop your pictures. Then, you still have enough pixels to get a good 8x10.

Well, I ended up with the Canon. I hope that it is as good as everyone says. Thanks a lot for all your input.