Which compact digital camera - max £200 (ish)

[dave_s13]

As the title really. Just been round the shops and had a good look on dpreview.com but only managed to utterly confuse myself

I have sort of narrowed it down to these cameras:-

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5

£178inc delivery
Also available down the road at Costco for same price

Canon Ixus 870 IS Silver

£194inc delivery

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX500

£198inc delivery
Also available down the road at Costco for £218

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX37

£198inc delivery
Also available at PCworld for £195

So, you get the jist anyway. I'm not exactly a keen photographer or anything but would like something that I can learn to use properly and get the most out of. Size is an issue but not enough to sway me too much, I'd rather have a slightly bigger but better camera.

Budget could be stretched a tad I suppose but definitely not more than £230 (unless it was super trick!).

Over to you lot then, any and all comments much appreciated. Cheers

mods; I know there's a photo forum but could you let it sit here for a bit before moving it....if you want to move it that is!! ta

[dave_s13]

Oh and the simple search on here needs some work chaps.

Putting "which digital camera" into the search box neither brings up this or any other similar thread but lists the top match as

Safety Deposit Raids by Police.....



Or am I doing it wrong?

Edited by dave_s13 on Friday 2nd January 20:17

[ALawson]

I have a Canon 960IS takes good photos and is probably at the top of your budget, although the 870 is probably almost the same camera, but a later version. They are probably all the same though why it probably comes down to usability, why not go give them all a go in Jessops etc?

[Bee_Jay]

The IXUS or the FX-35 would be my pick. Mainly because the wider lens is more useful and the FX-35 is smaller than the rest even though is is as wide as the 500.

You can always crop a picture, but adding bits on the edges you cannot do... Most compacts are not wide enough which is shown by the cramped pictures of people usually taken. They also both won the group test on dpreview.

To be honest, there is not much in in between these bodies, I would find a way of holding them all and choosing that way - all are very good.

Don't forget to include some memory in your budget, but 7dayshop are doing SD Cards at silly prices at the moment so you won't need more than a tenner or so for that.

Edited by Bee_Jay on Friday 2nd January 20:23

[Gemsbok1000]

I bought a DMC-T25 just before Christmas as I'm really happy with it.

[ukwill]

under £200 - you have 2 choices:

Canon Ixus 90
Lumix FX-35

My money would go on the Canon Ixus 90. Actually my money has

[Bee_Jay]

ukwill said:

under £200 - you have 2 choices:

Canon Ixus 90
Lumix FX-35

My money would go on the Canon Ixus 90. Actually my money has

Except the 870IS is also under £200 and better than the 90.

[voyds9]

Canon 860IS getting a bit old now but still very good, can be picked up for around £130.

[dave_s13]

Bee_Jay said:

The IXUS or the FX-35 would be my pick. Mainly because the wider lens is more useful and the FX-35 is smaller than the rest even though is is as wide as the 500.

It's a 37 not a 35, is there a big difference?? Handled them all today and the FX-37 was indeed perfectly sized. I think I may be buying that one tomorrow in fact.

Typically, the one I want is unjustifiably expensive

Panny Lumix LX3


They look lovely but >£300

Edited by dave_s13 on Friday 2nd January 20:37

[Bee_Jay]

voyds9 said:

Canon 860IS getting a bit old now but still very good, can be picked up for around £130.

Got one for B-I-L for Xmas - fantastic camera. I still have the 800IS and love it, also have the 40m/130ft waterproof case for it from Canon which makes it bombproof and great for beach/sailing/general cocking about...

[wiggy001]

ukwill said:

under £200 - you have 2 choices:

Canon Ixus 90
Lumix FX-35

My money would go on the Canon Ixus 90. Actually my money has

Me too, but it's nowhere near the £200 budget. Picked one up from Currys just before xmas for £129

[sparkythecat]

I watched the Christmas edition of the Gadget Show.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5 was chosen as one of the top 5 gadgets of 2008

[celticpilgrim]

bought a Samsung L201 just before Christms- should have been about £150, got it half price - really happy with it

[ukwill]

Bee_Jay said:

ukwill said:

under £200 - you have 2 choices:

Canon Ixus 90
Lumix FX-35

My money would go on the Canon Ixus 90. Actually my money has

Except the 870IS is also under £200 and better than the 90.

Blimey didn't know it was under £200 already!! Great deal!!

[Holst]

I posted avery similar thread a month ago, with a similar budget of 150-200.

In the end I went with my heart and bought the LX3 which im very very happy with.
Although it was expensive it is brilliant.
But its worth bearing in mind that you can get a SLR for the same money.

[sjg]

dave_s13 said:

So, you get the jist anyway. I'm not exactly a keen photographer or anything but would like something that I can learn to use properly and get the most out of. Size is an issue but not enough to sway me too much, I'd rather have a slightly bigger but better camera.

Budget could be stretched a tad I suppose but definitely not more than £230 (unless it was super trick!).

Canon Powershot G9 is down to that price now. Superb cameras, every manual control you could want, 6x image-stabilized lens, flash hotshoe, RAW capability, takes SDHC cards, long battery life (same chunky battery as the Canon DSLRs), good tactile controls (usable with gloves on too), incredibly solid build.

A little bigger than the typical compact these days but fits in a jacket pocket fine.

I traded down from a DSLR as I didn't want the bulk of a big camera and did want something that would do video and that I could use in a underwater housing. I've not missed the DSLR at all.

[JRZed]

The Panasonic Lumix TZ5 has 10x optical zoom - that's pretty good for a compact digital camera, comes in handy at racetracks (although still not a patch on proper digital SLR's)... depends what you want to use it for really. I have its predecessor, TZ3, very happy with it. It may not be as "compact" as others on your shortlist, but it is still small enough to carry around without hassle.

[ThatPhilBrettGuy]

Just read where most people have got their opinions from

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/Q408premiumgroup/

and

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/Q408slimgroup/

[dave_s13]

sjg said:

dave_s13 said:

So, you get the jist anyway. I'm not exactly a keen photographer or anything but would like something that I can learn to use properly and get the most out of. Size is an issue but not enough to sway me too much, I'd rather have a slightly bigger but better camera.

Budget could be stretched a tad I suppose but definitely not more than £230 (unless it was super trick!).

Canon Powershot G9 is down to that price now. Superb cameras, every manual control you could want, 6x image-stabilized lens, flash hotshoe, RAW capability, takes SDHC cards, long battery life (same chunky battery as the Canon DSLRs), good tactile controls (usable with gloves on too), incredibly solid build.

A little bigger than the typical compact these days but fits in a jacket pocket fine.

I traded down from a DSLR as I didn't want the bulk of a big camera and did want something that would do video and that I could use in a underwater housing. I've not missed the DSLR at all.

Now they look the business, amazon are doing them new for £230 delivered too!!

I think I'll go feel one up and buy online, thanks for the tip

[dave_s13]

ThatPhilBrettGuy said:

Just read where most people have got their opinions from

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/Q408premiumgroup/

and

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/Q408slimgroup/

Read through all that before posting which gives you a god idea of what was good at the time of writing. You then travel round the shops only to be presented with a vast array of gadgets of similar look/feel/spec/price, I was hoping for some real world and, more importantly, unbiased opinions (do they exist?) off here too. I'm off to the shops later anyway.

I will either be returning with a panasonic FX500, TZ5 or ordering the G9 off Amazon.