canon a95, g6 or something else?

[lordv2500]

I'm looking for a fairly compact camera with at least 5 mega pixels. Picture quality is very important to me above all else(9-10). Standard optical zoom is enough though more is better. The camera has to have a rotatable lcd and not built in. I have never owned a digital camera before but plan on learning about all the manual controls, so manual is a must. I prefer lithium rechargable batteries over aa with ~300 pictures at least per charge. The camera will be used for general point and shoot as well as more "artsy" photos. I don't expect to be shooting indoors a lot but prefer that the camera have an af assist lamp non the less. Not many action shots either, mostly scenery. I like the idea of IS, but with average zoom not sure if there's any use. Budjet is $250-500 - less is better!

Now my main question is wether to get the g6 which is twice as expensive or the a95. I don't think I'll be needing 7.1 mega pixels, I'm no proffesional photographer but the lithium battery and mostly metal body are very big advantages of the g6 compared to the a95 for me. Is the price difference worth it, are there any other advatages that I don't know about or understand because of being new to cammeras? Should I maybe take a look at something else entirely?

[Geoff Chandler]

Not easy to answer - the G6 is certainly the better camera!
However - the A95 picture quality is very good for a 5mp and I would say it's 95% as good as the G6 - so it's up to you if you want to pay the extra. Remeber you don't have to run at 7mp all the time - I use my A-200 at 5mp as my default, switching to 8mp when I want that last tiny detail to be there if I blow it up super large. Still the G6 at 5mp would still be better than the A95 at 5mp but not a huge amount. The G6 has a better lens which is worth considering.
Me? I would go for the G6 and leave it in middle quality 5mp for every day shots - reserving higher quality for special shots.

[PhilR.]

Since budget appears to be a concern, then I would recommend that you only purchase the amount of megapixels you need. IOW, if all you are going to print are 8x10 or less, then just get the lower priced A95. If on the other hand you need the extra mp, then by all means get the 6.

One other thing to consider is your battery requirement. Only the G6 meets your stated requirement. However, you should be able to get ~300 shots (probably more) with a set of rechargeable AA 2500mah batteries in the A95. Certainly an extra set of AA's ($10/set of 4 at Wal-mart) will be cheaper than an extra G6 battery.

The nice thing is that you can't go wrong with either camera...

PhilR.
p.s. the G6 is a lot cooler-looking..... ;)
p.p.s. - the G6 is a lot bulkier.... :p

[Rex914]

If size isn't an issue, I'd say go with the G6. It's a better long term investment, and you won't outgrow it as fast.

This should take care of cost. The lowest price for a G6 right now is at Micro Center for $480 after that excellent auto-20% off promotion. Somebody else in the forums here bought on that way and is VERY happy at such an incredible deal.

The A95 can also be had for $240 after that same promotion.