Digital Camera

[Patten]

Well I have done a lot of research and I just cant make up my mind on any digital cameras that I think would be good for what I need so I have come here. What I am looking for is a cheap ($100-200) camera that is very sturdy, uses something like SD or compact flash for large storage capacity, and takes decent pictures and video. This might be hard to find with the price range that I am in but was just wondering if anybody had ever owned any cameras or had any experience with on that could meet the expectations that I am looking for.

The camera doesnt need a ton of options or anything like that and I was hoping to try and get a small one that is pretty flat. (the lens dosnt stick out or anything when off)

If you guys could recommend anything you think that would fit my needs go ahead and post the name or a link or somthing.

Thanks

 

[Asus]

If you want something that is slick and doesn't have a lens sticking out at that price range you might want to look at some year old Casio models. That's a tough price range to recommend a camera for since most are...terrible IMO. Got to wade through a lot of less than par cameras to find some decent ones. And I'm just talking about the basics (not extra features), lens quality, how it does with flash, handles different lighting etc. Canon usually has their entry level camera for the A series right at the 200 price range but they have a grip and the lens sticks out a bit. Their SD series (slim model) is a bit more expensive. Maybe see if you can get a SD300 (maybe SD400) in your price range. I think they used to be about 300 when they first came out though they may have dropped into your price range by now. Just hope they aren't discontinued and no where to be found.

It's been about a year since I was last researching cameras a lot though.

 

[Qonfused]

Canon SD300; I have one and love it!

http://reviews.cnet.com/Canon_PowerShot_SD300/4505-6501_7-31122722.html
7.4/10 (very good) from CNet.

You can find it under $200.

 

[Patten]

I found this camera at a local best buy today and yes, it is a simple camera but I liked the way that it felt and was designed. I am not looking for something that will take really good quality photos, just something that will take okay photos and if I brake it and the warranty doesn't cover it for some reason then I wont have a heart attack because I spent so much money. I did some reviews and although it doesn't have a lot of features or anything, the picture quality seems to be decent and like I said I don't need a ton of features

http://www.kodak.com/eknec/PageQuerier.jhtml?pq-path=9/19/31/10487/10489&pq-locale=en_US

 

[Asus]

It looks like a lot better than kodak used to make in that price range a year ago. The body reminds me of an Olympus camera. Definitely look at it in store and if you can buy it from some place that has a good return policy on Digital Cameras so you could take it back and get a different model if you wanted.

Just an FYI, megapixels don't mean quality. It's possible to get a better picture from a 3MP camera with a good lens over a camera with a poor lens at 8MP or whatever. So if the pictures are sub par for ya from the Kodak then don't be afraid to step down on the megapixels to try a different camera that is rated well.

Edit
Doesn't look like it has a view finder. Shouldn't be an issue if most of your shots will be inside. Although you would want one if you take shots outside where it will be hard to see the LCD. And it says flash is weak so you'd want plenty of light when taking indoor shots. The redeye flash doesn't work well but you can remove redeye after the pics are on your PC.