help me decide please

[benoro]

My wife wants a new camera for our anniversary, her main priorities are that the camera is small, cute, and easy to use. Being that I will use the camera as well, I'd like to get something that can do something beyond look nice :P

Budget

Mine - Under $200...hers under $100 lol

Size

Smaller is better, but not so much that its uncomfortable to use.

Features

* What optical zoom will you need?

We're flexible here, but I like to take outdoor pics, and find myself using zoom quite frequently

* How important is “image quality” to you?

10. I'd rather lose out on other features for high quality/detailed photos

Do you care for manual controls?

I'd like them, but I think for this camera we won't be needing them.

General Usage

* What will you generally use the camera for?

Vacations, nature, lots of pics of pets indoors

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

generally, no

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

yes

Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos?

no sports, but lots of photos of pets

Miscellaneous

Are there particular brands you like or hate?

Don't know enough to know better :P

Are there particular models you already have in mind?

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W230
Canon PowerShot SD1200IS

If there is something fairly comparable for cheaper that'd be nice...

(If applicable) Do you need any of the following special features? (Wide Angle, Image Stabilization, Weatherproof, Hotshoe, Rotating LCD)

I don't know enough about these features to know what I need...I'm guessing at my price range I'll be happy with whatever we get.

Thanks very much for your help!

[speaklightly]

benoro-

Whenever I see the a need for lots of indoor photos, flash range becomes a concern. You see with cameras getting smaller and smaller, the flash units built into those cameras have also gotten smaller and les powerful as well.

The result is that some of these small and cute cameras have a very short (around 8 feet) flash range, or these cameras are programed to numerically increase the ISO setting so that you gain flash range, but at the same time loose image quality due the numerical increase in ISO speed.

Here are some cameras to look at:

(1) The camera with the best flash range (up to 20 feet) is the Sony H-20. It has 10X optical zoom and is capable of very good quality images. It is selling on the internet for around $240.00. However, it might not be categorized as "cute" by your wife.

(2) The Fuji F-70EXR has some "cute" appeal. It also provides 10X optical zoom and a wide angle position. The F-70EXR has a flash range of 15 feet. However, to get to that 15 feet of flash range, the ISO has to be increased to ISO 1250. The F-70EXR is very new and has just gone on sale October 1st. It is cureently selling on the internet for around $235.00. The F-70EXR's image quality is on a par with the Sony H-20 and it has excellent sharpness and the ability to capture a huge amount of fine detail, as the attached photo sample shows.

(3) The Canon A-2000 has 6X optical zoom, and just average flash range at 10 to 12 feet. It is small and hopefully cute as well. It is currently selling on the internat at around $190.00.

My personal suggestion would be the Fuji F-70EXR. It has the most features and capabilities. However, I will leave the choice up to you because by now you must probably be "a small and cute" expert.

I hope this helps. If you have more questions or a need for added information, just let us know. I am also attaching that Fuji F-70EXR photo as well.

Have a great day.

Sarah Joyce