Ultra compact

[lexuz]

* What budget have you allocated for buying this camera?
300 and down


* What size camera are you looking for? Or does size not matter at all to you?
Prefer ultra compact, buying a system later


Features

How many megapixels will suffice for you?
6-10


* What optical zoom will you need?
Standard = 3x-4x


* How important is “image quality” to you? (Rate using a scale of 1-10)
8


Do you care for manual controls?
No, saving that for next camera buy


General Usage


* What will you generally use the camera for?
Sports and social life


* Will you be making big prints of your photos or not?
not


Will you be shooting a lot of indoor photos or low light photos?
probalbly a lot of those yes


Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos?
Yes


Miscellaneous


Are there particular brands you like or hate?
no


Are there particular models you already have in mind?

SONY CYBERSHOT DSC-T100 : little more expensive but good looking and a lot of nice feat.
Fujifilm FinePix Z5fd: Heard alot of good things about this camera.
OLYMPUS MJU 725SW: wont brake in the first time, good because I'm into extreme sports :-P


Do you need any of the following special features?
1: burst mode
2: good nightshots

Take care =)

[David Metsky]

If you're really into shooting sports, cameras with 3-4x zoom will likely be a bit of a disappointment. It's tough getting close enough to participants, more zoom is often the only way to frame the shots.

The Canon SDxxx series has a good burst mode, solid design, average low light performance, and excellent image quality. You might want to look at the SD700 IS or SD1000.

If low light really is a major concern, the Fuji F30 (a little bigger then a true ultra compact) would be the clear choice. It's the only small camera that will really allow you to push to high ISO.

-dave-

[undefined]

If you consider the Canon SD series, I would strongly encourage you to look to the Canon SD700 as opposed to some of the newer models. The SD700 IS was, in my opinion, the best SD series camera Canon has ever built. While the indoor, low light (flash free) performance is not up to the level set by the Fuji F30 / F31, the outdoor performance of the SD700 is second to none. Canon has an excellent menu system and loads of features, including a top notch continuous shoot mode that far exceeds that which Fuji offers.

If indoor, low light, flash free photos are a requirement - the only pocketable models worth giving serious consideration to are the Fuji Fxx models (F20, F30, F31fd). The Fuji cameras, while lacking some of the features of the Canons, can produce cleaner output at high ISO speeds - a critical requirement in capturing low light shots.

If your low light plans are for stationary objects or scenery, the advantages of the Fuji are a moot point. A lower ISO speed and longer shutter, combined with either the image stabilization feature of the Canon or a small tripod, will produce far better results than high ISO speed.