Digital camera indecisiveness

[nydance844]

I compelety blame my indecisiveness on being a Gemini, but I have about 2 and 1/2 weeks before my trip to the UK and I still haven't been able to commit to buying a camera. I was doing reseach and found that I really liked the Kodak DX7440. It is a good price for a seemingly good camera. What I am getting snagged on is that everyone seems to think that Canons are better. But I found reviews of the A series braking down after 6 months to a year. I don't want to get a new camera in such a short time. I look for durability, which frankly seems like an oximoron in the world of digital cameras. Does anyone have the Kodak or had any bad/good experiences with it. Or is there another camera that is easy to use, like this one that is a good substitute?

[space virgin]

I have yet to read a review about the canons breaking down after 6 months to a year... where did you see that? Maybe it depends on the individual camera. A lot of people on these boards have had their canons for a while without any problems.

I would go here and here to check out good technical reviews of the Kodak you mentioned. I personally do not know anyone who has had a kodak digicam, sorry. You could also try epinions and New Egg and amazon for consumer reviews. Let us know what you end up getting!!

Oh, and WELCOME to the boards!

[voyd]

I never heard the rumor about Canons breaking down in 6 mo - did a Kodak sales rep tell ya that?

I mean, I've had mine for probably a year or 2 already and it still works totally fine.

[omisan]

Personally, I'd steer away from the Kodaks. I've known a few people who've owned them, and they weren't exactly tops in reliability. I've posted on several threads regarding digicams, and I'll repeat this again - you pretty much can't go wrong with a Canon. They have some of the best optics and color reproduction around, and since most of the cameras have metal bodies, they are quite durable. The earlier generation A-series (like the A60) had some reliability issues, but you get that whenever you buy any company's bottom-of-the-line.

The other brand I always end up recommending is Sony, particularly if you stick to the middle and upper end of the lines. I go with them because of all the memory sticks I already have (and some silly brand loyalty issues) but also because some of the models they make are among the best values in terms of what you get in quality and features. The P100 series is quite nice, and both Jake here (I think) and I both recently bought W1's. I dunno about him, but I'm pretty ecstatic about mine.

[TheJake]

yupsir... the Sony DSC-W1 is a way pimp camera.. with a HUGE viewing screen... comes in very handy with checking out your photos in the field... its one of those cameras that makes it hard to take a bad picture....

check out shopping.com and go to the digital cameras link on the left side about middle of the screen.... very helpful

[crious]

My digital camera has become my most valued item on my backpacking trips. I recently picked up the new panasonic DMC-FX7. It is the thinest 5 mega pixel camera I could find. I must admit out of the 9 digital cameras I have been through this one is my favorite. I am not sure about your budget, but if you have the cash it is a good buy at $499.99 USD. An being able to slide this into my frount pouch of my hip belt is a Huge Plus for me. If you want to check it out here is the web site:

<a href=\'http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/vModelDetail?displayTab=O&storeId=11251&catalogId= 11005&itemId=71473&catGroupId=17168&modelNo=DMC-FX7&surfModel=DMC-FX7\' rel="nofollow" target=\'_blank\'>Panasonic DMC-FX7</a>

[psypher]

i bought the canon powershot a75 and absolutely love the camera itself. everyone is amazed by the picture quality and the clarity of the lcd screen. although it is a little bulky, i think it's worth it.

only problem i've found w/ it are the accessories. i dont' know about the other canon cameras but the a75 (and i'm assuming the rest of the A series) uses 1.5v batteries. this means you have to buy THEIR batteries since i can't find 1.5v rechargeable batteries ANYHWERE. that and the camera doesn't come w/ an ac adapter.

since it's starting to cost a lot to get all the accessories for the camera, i suggest taking into account what comes with the camera too (not to add to your indecision or anything! )