New Camera

[witch]

My Canon Powershot A80 is giving up the ghost and I suspect it can't be mended or isn't worth doing so. Which is disappointing when it is only a few years old.

So...I need a good digital camera with a big screen and a good zoom. Other features would be nice but frankly it will be used on 'auto' most of the time so it doesn't need to be fancy. Price is an issue too

It's just a family and holiday snap type camera.
There are so many on the market I just don't know which one to choose.
Can anyone help me?

[SPC]

Hello,

I actually misread your original posting and I retract my comments.. If this is a point and shoot that is required at a reasonable price which will live most of its life on Auto then hows about :

http://www.kikatek.com/product_info....source=froogle
http://www.kikatek.com/product_info....source=froogle

or this one but it is slightly more expensive: [ame="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-Digital-IXUS-Compact-Camera/dp/B0015RXA1S"]Canon Digital IXUS 970 IS Compact Camera - Silver 2.5": Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo[/ame]

Its always a good idea to go to a shop to buy one though at least then they can demo it for you so you can really tell that its the one for you..

[tom_newton]

If you're going compact/auto - Canon IXUS 850IS. You'll lose some of the manuallyness of your powershot, but win on size... battery life is excellent, images great... IS is a must-have these days.

[webman]

For the point-and-shoot type, I would recommend one from the Panasonic Lumix range with OIS image stabilisation.

[westleya]

Hello,

I personally have a Canon EOS 450D

Canon EOS 450D, Canon EOS-450D, Canon EOS 450D Body - UK Digital

Never had any troubles and its perfect. The 400d is just as good but marginally cheaper so maybe a better buy.

Check out the link and go into your local camera shop and get them to give you the run down on it. Honestly I may be slightly bias but you would struggle to beat it for the money.

I think witch is looking for something a little less bulky than an SLR. Not only that, the standard kit zoom can hardly be discribed as long and alternatives would be rather expensive...

I'd second the comment about Panasonic stuff. From what I've seen, they're very good.

[Domino]

If you're going compact/auto - Canon IXUS 850IS. You'll lose some of the manuallyness of your powershot, but win on size... battery life is excellent, images great... IS is a must-have these days.

I've an 860IS

love it, great CCD and lens, auto mode produces some fantastic images and its easy enough to slip in a pocket and run with

[jedmondson]

I have recetnley brought myself a ixus 821s . Nice camera and it took a few good photos of the snow.

[SteveBentley]

I love my Sony A200 - while you may not think you need an SLR the difference in the quality of the shots and the depth of field - even in auto mode - is immense.

Flickr's camera finder is a great way of finding pictures that have been taken by people who have the camera you are proposing to buy so you can see what it can do in real world conditions.

[yabbadabba]

I am a very big fan of Fuji, some times a little over priced but they seem to last very well and provide excellent results.

I cant really comment on any specific camera as I am biased towards the Fuji's but I would look for the following details if purchasing another one.

1 - Batterys, I would always buy a camera that makes use of normal batterys, this makes it cheap enough to have a couple of sets of batterys for days out. Also if you need batterys and cant get yours charged you can pop into the nearest Newsagents, Tescos, Fuel Station and buy some.

2 - Picture quality on screen and in print.

3 - Optical Zoom, I think the general standard now is x6 which for a point and shoot is pretty good.

4 - Ease of use, are the buttons easily placed, large enough to use.

5 - How long does it take from turning the camera for it to be ready to actually take a picture.

6 - How many batterys, I would rather have a camera that takes 4 x AA's and can take lots of photo's without continually changing the batterys.

Just a couple of thoughts to play with.

[triggmiester]

Nikon S210 gets my vote, nice and compact decent screen, great price

[witch]

Just to clarify - I know there are a lot of camera buffs out there but I am not one.
I really don't want an SLR as I wouldn't do it justice. I just want a cheap digital camera that'll give me good pics and is easy to use. it's got to be less than £100 as well (preferably a lot less!!)
I agree with yabbadabba about ordinary batteries.

Anyone prepared to come down to my level??

[powdarrmonkey]

Canon's Ixus range are very good point-and-shoot cameras if you're not after an SLR. They're not too big either, but picture quality is excellent.

[Gibbo]

Buy Canon PowerShot A470 7MP Digital Camera - Silver. at Argos.co.uk - Your Online Shop for .

Half price - £49.98, was £99, comes in different colours too.

[SteveBentley]

I used to use a Kodak Z740 which is a "bridge camera" and I was very pleased with the pictures that took.

[danIT]

[ame=http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-Digital-IXUS-Compact-Camera/dp/B0015ULMTM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1233674017&sr =1-2]Canon Digital IXUS 85 IS Compact Camera - Silver 2.5'': Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo[/ame]