Hi! I know that many of you have digital cameras, and I was wondering if you could give me some advice.
I would like to buy a digital camera with the money I got for my birthday, but I only have about $60 to spend. I don’t know anything about digital cameras (what features to look for, etc.).
Are there any cheap but halfway-decent digital cameras you would recommend?
Thanks!
Nikki
Digital cameras are generally quite a bit more than $60. But I think it’s definately worth saving up to get one…they’re really great. You might want to have a look at the least expensive of the Sony range. From what I gather they’ve got good lenses and my Sony DSC-P20 goes for about $450AUD these days. It’s been really great.
Good luck,
Andrew
I’m assuming you are in the states, but in australia $120 (bout the equivalent of 60US) wont get you anythign worth using…save up for one.
They are definatly worth having, for a million reasons…no. 1 being how quick and easy they make photography, and being able tot take over 300 photos before uploading is always good as well…
www.dpreview.com but I don’t know how much it’ll help you in finding a budget camera. They do seem to focus on bang for buck though
This is a good one
Look at the FujiFilm A101 digital camera and look for a discount coupon for it. You would be happy with this camera. It is $120 retail but you can get it for much less if you try. It has lots of features and the pictures are very good for the money. More than good enough for sharing web pictures. Good Luck.
zook,
That Fujifilm A101 camera looks pretty good. Do you own one?
I found a refurbished one on www.overstock.com for $95. By the way, I read that the list price is $250, not $120. But I don’t know.
I could probably swing $95 if I save up for just a little longer. My neighbors haven’t gone out in a while. (Therefore, I can’t babysit their kids and make money). Hopefully they will soon. 
Would you suggest buying anything extra like extra smartmedia cards?
Thanks!
Nikki
It’s no joke: you wish you had: this one !! (has to do with ray’s).
Sony took the cam off the market.
Personaly I like the 1st Canon IXUS (named ELPH in the Americas),
it has 360 functions inside, that -together with software- can make pictures as on my homepages’ main menu.
The later models don’t have these functions.
how about this ?
I’m a computer expert and I may help here.
If you really nead a good Digital Camera. Go for the 2megapixel or 3. Possible 4 for better closeups. Go for at least 64megabyte Memory card. 32MB Memory Card is better for a start then gradually work your way up. Depends on your wallet you could try to buy a 128MB Memory Card. Don’t forget Software that is a must for your computer to download and Upload and you must have Windows 98 98SE, ME and XP running at 300Mhz, 64MB Memory 256MB Better, About Say 60 to 300MB Hard drive Space depends on your system with CD Rom Support.
Brands I’d go for is Richo, Sony, Canon, Fuijifilm, Panasonic, Kodak and Oylimpus. Good luck hope I’m Helpful if not, Disregard this Topic.
David.
There are PenCams like those made by Aiptek that are in your price range. http://www.aiptek.com/index2.php
Some of the photos here were taken with an Aiptek PenCam
http://www.martinsweb.org/biker/photo.htm
The focus isn’t always good. Detail is washed out. Colors aren’t what they’re supposed to be. But on the plus side the camera is small and inexpensive so you’re more likely to take it with you. You can’t take a picture if you don’t bring the camera.
Check reviews for the different models. I know nothing of these style of cheap digital cameras. Do some homework before plunking down money. I’m sure there are some big duds in the price range you’re looking at.
One thing to watch out for with digital cameras is the price of memory. Most digital cameras don’t come with enough memory to be useful out of the box. You have to buy additional memory to be able to use them the way you would expect. What good is a camera that only has enough memory for about eight photos?
Go Cheap and have fun not things.
Yes I own one and I’m happy with it. I like John Child’s Aiptek suggestion too.
Don’t bother thinking about smart media etc. My suggestion is to go cheap and have fun taking pictures. Digital cameras are changing so fast that in a year there is something better and cheaper. Stay on the cheap side and have fun not things.
I went to the Aiptek website, and they have an outlet with pretty good prices. I found the Pocketcam 1.3, and it looks pretty good. It’s only $50. It has a flash, and it seems like it would be better for taking indoor pictures than the pencams. I read reviews on the little black pencam and many people said that it took pretty bad indoor photos. Here’s a link to the pocketcam: http://shop.aiptek.com/?page=product&product=PK13
This is within my price range, and it holds a pretty good amount of photos, especially on lower resolution.
What do you think?
Thanks again!
Nikki
By the way, would you recommend getting a battery charger and rechargeable batteries or just using disposable ones?
I think it is a fine camera for the price. And the lower resolution is still decent enough to post photos to the forum.
Digital cameras are energy hogs. Now probably this baby doesn’t have an LCD screen on the back and that may lighten the issue. Yet, unless you plan on very light usage, it’s probably cheaper to use a charger from day one. Hopefully you can start using similar rechargeable batteries in other appliances too (like walkmans etc). AA is a pretty standard size.
Klaas Bil
Indoor pictures are a challenge for even the best digital cameras. If you’re intent is to take mostly indoor pictures you’re going to end up with more bad pictures than good ones. The consumer cameras do better with outdoor pictures in good light.
But all is not lost. With digital pictures you can fix a lot of bad pictures by adjusting light levels (brightness, contrast, gamma), sharpening details, etc. The cameras usually come with some basic software that can do this, and there is also free software (like IrfanView) that can fix digital photos too.
You’re going to want rechargable NiMH batteries. Check out Thomas Distributing That’s where I buy my batteries. Good prices and good selection. NiMH batteries are expensive but will save you a lot of money in the long run. Don’t get NiCAD batteries. They don’t work well in devices like digital cameras (especially a camera with a flash). If you go with standard alkaline batteries you can easily end up spending more on batteries than the cost of the camera. Check out the NiMH Battery FAQ at Thomas Distributing for more info on NiMH batteries.