[Request] Best Value Digital Camera

cormie

Hi,
I'm looking to get a decent enough Digital Camera for less than €150 and less than €100 if possible. What kind of quality will I get for this? I need it pretty soon, I'd like to wait around for something to pop up on the FS Forum but don't know if I can. Preferably a plug and play (no drivers needed) camera, I suppose having a small one would be nice but size doesn't really matter. I'd say a 64mb card would be fine and video recording would be a nice feature, but not necessary.

Basically I'm just looking for the best value digital camera for about €100-€150:)

Any feedback appreciated, thanks.

maco

Try www.pixmania.com, wide range of selection is available for you to choose . . .

unklerosco

this

Get the above one or this one.

I have the 3meg one(bout €120) as does the GF as does her sis as do my folks... Great little camera, had it on hols.. with a 256mb card i took about 240 pics n 10+ mins of vid and the batteries lasted the full two weeks(actually lasted longer than two weeks) Pics are class, haven't faulted the camera at all...

Get one!!!!

Can e-mail u some pics i took with it if u want..

seabee

Try this website

cormie

See the problem is I really don't have a clue when it comes to digital cameras so I wouldn't know which one to go for by looking at a list

Unklerosco, you're a man for the selling, are you or anyone else who owns one, getting rid of it soon? Where did you get the 3meg one for €120? Does the Kodak one plug and play or does it need drivers? I suppose it's not a big deal, just handy.

unklerosco

IT was on pixmania but its gone for some reason... I got the easyshare one(includes printer etc.) Only had it two weeks(ordered 3 at once)so they wont be getting sold..

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Kodak-CX7330-7330-Digital-Camera-3-1MP-10x-Zoom_W0QQitemZ7550053003QQcategoryZ30012QQssPageNameZWD3VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Above one on ebay at €110 incl. shipping.... Bargin!!! There's a few more, maybe cheaper... Highly recomend the camera, great if u just want a camera that takes good pics, doesn't eat the batteries and is easy as hell to use... Not sure if its plug n play. Most are, they just show up in explorer...

cormie

Thanks for that, I think I'll just go ahead and get one of them.

I clicked your deviant art link, just curious, was this taken with that cam? Judging by the species of fly, I'm guessing no.. but if it is, I'm impressed, could you pm me some sample pictures please?

Edit: Is this one on komplett better? It's 3.2mp + 5x zoom compared to 3.1mp + 3x zoom on the ebay link. It's also cheaper

unklerosco

Dont get the komplett one, its a fixed lens(digital zoom is nothing compared to optical zoom) and i think its fixed focus(90% sure it is)... the one i recomended is miles better...

I'll post up some pics tomorrow(don't have any on the laptop)... The fly pic was taken with my old sony, my mate broke it n i got the kodak to replace it... Took that pic out my back garden..

cormie

Ok thanks for all your help. I think I'll go for the Ebay one then, look forward to seeing some sample pics. Maybe I just never looked close enough at Irish flies to recognise them in photos :rolleyes:

peckerhead

One more contender, within your budget (£93.95/€137 incl p&p).

And for my money, Olympus beat the hell out of Kodak, esp. in terms of lens quality.

Whatever you buy, bundle some extra memory with it - at least 256Mb, and more if you can afford it.

cormie

So you reckon the Olympus is worth the extra €20? My brother has an Olympus and it's good alright and I'm pretty sure Olympus cameras don't need drivers, allot of them anyway. Are 7dayshop reliable?
Thanks for the help everyone.

dancin

Argos carry a range of digital camera's, Vivitar. Know nothing about them, and can't find a lot of info about them in Europe. They seem to be an established American brand that are using Argos to expand into Europe (or argos are bulk buying from them).

Know nothing more about them, but they are cheap (probably says it all really). Argos have a 5MP vivitar with 3X optical zoom for €149 (http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/5604061.htm)

peckerhead

I used to have a couple of Olympus (35mm) cameras, and the Zuiko lens was brilliant compared to any non-Olympus lenses I had. The lens quality will affect your pictures just as much as the number of megapixels.

There's a lesser-featured version of that Camedia reduced to €160 on p. 899 of the Argos catalog, so yeah, I reckon €137 is pretty good for the one I linked to... (btw I'd stay well clear of the cheaper Samsung yoke Argos have on special offer at the moment!)

I've bought various stuff from 7dayshop over the last couple of years, and never had any hassle, although the goods can be a little slow in the post (7-10 days). However, the £3.95 shipping is flat rate, so you could add a 256Mb xD card for only £17.49... and I've heard they're v. good on honouring warranties/dealing with problems.

You could compare features/reviews on www.dpreview.com, but personally I'd rate the Olympus well above the Vivitar, even if they're pretty close on features. Vivitar make decent flashes and filters, Olympus make good cameras...

cormie

Think I may just go for the Olympus if it's so much better than the Kodak for only €20 more. Thanks for the help. Wont really need a 256 flash card but we'll see:) thanks for the help again everyone.

unklerosco

kodak pics...

The last pic was taken by a 3 year old... Thats how easy this camera is to use....

cormie

Is that the highest quality option from the Kodak UR? Pecker, do you have that cam to compare pics? What's your opinion on the Olympus UR?

unklerosco

2nd highest...I had to reduce the size of the pics to upload them. pm me ur e-mail addy n i'll send u the originals

cormie

PM sent, but just thought of it now, www.imageshack.us is a great place to upload photos if you want to upload them there so other browsers can see too maybe:)

peckerhead

Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking the Kodak...

I'd just marginally prefer the Olympus, on the basis of other Olympus cameras I've owned, not that particular model. It also seems to retail for a bit more than the Kodak, barring that 7dayshop special offer (which I see has just gone up by £5...! )

But they're both good buys, and for your average snaps, the difference won't even be noticeable.

cormie

Hmm, well here is the page that compares the two side by side. I don't have a clue what allot of the things listed mean or how they would effect it. Does anyone else know from that page, which is better? If the Olympus is technically better, I think I'll just go for it as my price range was under €150 and that fits into it. So if I can get a confirmation that the olympus is definitely better than the Kodak, tech specs wise, I think I'll just go for it. I'm also pretty sure that Olympus doesn't require drivers which is, actually, now that I think of it, quite important as the way MP3 players are developing, they now have USB on the go, which would mean I could dump my photos onto the HD. If the camera required drivers, I could do this.

thanks for the continous help

EDIT: Just googled and the d580 definitely doesn't need drivers. Tried to find info on whether or not the Kodak does, but didn't find any.

peckerhead

They're really pretty neck-and-neck. The Olympus has 3.9Mp over the Kodak's 3.1Mp (= slightly higher resolution*). It's ISO/ASA range goes up to 400, over the Kodak's 180 (= better performance in low light, without using flash) and it focuses a little bit closer (if close-ups are important?). It also has a slightly bigger LCD screen, for what that's worth. None of the other minor technical differences are worth worrying about... (click on the '?' button beside each term for a definition/explanation). And both cameras are USB compatible and almost certainly won't need drivers under Win2000 or WinXP - is that what you're running?
Again, the price difference shown on that page suggests that normally the Olympus would cost you a bit more than the Kodak, which means that if they're both available for in or around the same price, the Olympus is the better 'deal'...

* Here's a picture taken with an old Fujifilm 2.1Mp camera - give you an idea of what 3.1Mp or 3.9Mp should get you in terms of sharpness...
http://img140.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscf00133os.jpg

cormie

Ok, I think I'm sold on the Olympus, yes, close ups are really important. Will be using it mainly to take photos of college work.

I noticed that about the pricing too. The olympus being 50% dearer than the Kodak on that site, but now I can get the olympus for less than 20% more.

unklerosco

The olympus is the better camera... Better macro, higher pixels, more functions, prob better lens... I still like my kodak. Still, must get me another 300D. I miss my old one

cormie

Cool, thanks for all the help everyone.

Olympus D580z it is so:)

peckerhead

Happy snapping...

cormie

Ah Jahayzus, 7dayshop seem to no longer have the D580 and I haven't ordered it yet:(

I need one sooner rather than later, any other reputable online places with a good price anyone knows of?

How about getting a 2nd hand one on boards for about €150? Do you reckon any camera with an asking price of about €150 on boards will be better than the Olympus at €150 new? Worth the gamble?

cormie

Think I'll just get it from this ebay seller:)

Subliminal

Hi Cormie. just in case you change your mind, i have a Vivitar Digicam for sale here: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=3480901#post3480901 its 5mp, 1.8" lcd, has loads of options etc, including a plug n play cable for XP ( ie: plug the cam in to pc, it shows up as external drive! ) simple to use, great features. Im selling it to try and buy a Powershot G6.

Let me know anyway....

Sub

cormie

Sub, thanks for the heads up. I actually saw your post selling it before you replied to this thread and I had actually started a reply and I was going to ask could you wait until I got some opinions on which is better. Since you said your vivitar is €160 new, I'm assuming that's Irish pricing so I think I'd be getting a better camera for €138 off ebay rather than the €150 your asking?

I really don't know allot about cameras but that was just my conclusion so I never finished the reply

If it is actually a better camera than the Olympus, for what I need it for, I'm interested:)

Subliminal

Hi, yes the cam i have is 150, but you are getting a lot for your cash!

Considering its out of box only 1 day, still have all original wrappings/box in perfect condition. Weither its better than the Olympus your looking at, well all i can say is mine is 5mp whereas the Olympus D580z is 4mp. same zoom, but mine has just a few more options. Its really up to you, i dont want to sway you if you have your mind made up. If it helps, i can sell the camera to you at 140 Euro, same price as the one your looking at... PM me if interested.

Sub

cormie

I'm hoping either peckerhead or unclerosco will reply. I'd prefer to be able to drive out an pick it up rather than having to wait and order online. I think there are differences between zooms as mentioned above. I see you said in your other thread you were going to ask your bro in law for the receipt, if you could get that please. If I do get feedback on this saying yours is better, I'll collect it for €130 with receipt:)

peckerhead

cormie wrote:

I'm hoping either peckerhead or unclerosco will reply.

PM sent...

Subliminal

Cormie, tbh im dropping it to 140 to help the deal wouldnt go lower, but will throw in 2 new duracell for that!

blobert

Hello,

I think this is a very good deal, I'm going to get one myself probably:

Its the 5.2-megapixel Fuji A350 for only €133 from these guys:

http://tinyurl.com/czotb

Here's a review

http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/A350/A350A.HTM

seems pretty good.

Have a look around the website:
http://www.technikdirekt.de

Just heard of them recently, got 2 dvd recorders sent over this week. Cheap and fast delivery. Recommended.

cormie

gah, so many to choose from

Ok, well here is the above Fuji and Olympus side by side. Which is better? That page has the Fuji as being more expensive. Blob, is €133 inclusive of delivery do you know?

Thanks for the help everyone, appreciate it:)

cormie

Hmmm.. them ones on ebay are factory refurbished.. should I be wary? I think I'll just go for the Olympus and get that 256 card for £18.

Thanks for your suggestion Blobert, but shipping is an extra €22 I think.

I will mainly be using the camera for close up indoor shots of my work in college if that makes a difference from the spec in the comparison table.

Subliminal, the one you have is £99 on argos.co.uk which is €145, I also read reviews saying it eats batteries and as Peckerhead said, the Vivitar lenses aren't the best. I wouldn't pay more than €100 for it as I'm kinda set on the Olympus.

RicardoSmith

You should check out the reviews and sample pics here...

http://www.steves-digicams.com
http://www.dpreview.com/

I'm using a Nikon 3700. Only a 2mp but thats all you need for snaps. Excellent quality photos and has a unlimited 640x480 very good quality movie mode which is one of the reasons I bought it. Sound can be out of snyc but you can edit that. But theres few cameras this cheap with a decent video mode. Most are limited in time or are 320x240 which is too small. Theres is a problem with nikons though, their lense mechanisim are weak so you really need to be careful of the camera getting knocks. Lots of posts on the web about lense failures. Most of their range seem to be afliced with it. With all digital cameras the nikon response time isn't amazing. Better in natural bright light, then indoor at night etc.

But if was you check out the photos samples of the cameras you are thinking about. Photos can be all good, but each one is a little different to the next. You might prefer one style of image that a specfic camera produces more than the next.

I liked the natural colours produced by the Nikon and the fact it has a great movie mode. It meant we didn't need to buy a camcorder.

Subliminal

cormie wrote:

Hmmm.. them ones on ebay are factory refurbished.. should I be wary? I think I'll just go for the Olympus and get that 256 card for £18.

Thanks for your suggestion Blobert, but shipping is an extra €22 I think.

I will mainly be using the camera for close up indoor shots of my work in college if that makes a difference from the spec in the comparison table.

Subliminal, the one you have is £99 on argos.co.uk which is €145, I also read reviews saying it eats batteries and as Peckerhead said, the Vivitar lenses aren't the best. I wouldn't pay more than €100 for it as I'm kinda set on the Olympus.

No probs, but just to let you know, the one on argos.co.uk is not the lastest model 5358. A few upgrades were made, including a 1.8" LCD instead of 1.5. A new macro mode, And as for batteries, use rechargeable, and they would last 100 or so pics. Anyway, good luck getting the camera you want

cormie

Subliminal wrote:

No probs, but just to let you know, the one on argos.co.uk is not the lastest model 5358. A few upgrades were made, including a 1.8" LCD instead of 1.5. A new macro mode, And as for batteries, use rechargeable, and they would last 100 or so pics. Anyway, good luck getting the camera you want

so you're not budging for €100 then?

Subliminal

Heh, no, the VERY least id take is 130. Very bottom price.

cormie

Ok, thanks anyway, I don't wanna risk it for a biscuit since you have no receipt and I've been advised against Vivitar and for Olympus for the same price. Blame the other posters on this thread:D

Good luck with the sale anyway:)