pls recommend digicam

[weng]

it's meant for my sis. thinking if possible can get during comex hoping for a better deal. her requirements are very simple... basically to get a digicam just for the sake of having a digicam coz right now she dun have anything, so whenever go tour must borrow from me.

- no need very high mp. i was thinking perhaps 4mp good enough (i'm still on FX1 which is 3.2mp, still printing 4r quite happily). probably won't be printing >4r anytime in the near future. but if got more, the merrier.

- preferably more compact in size... duwan those canon A series kind of size.

- zoom.... 3x optical should be ok. again, if got more, the merrier.

- no specific requirement for strength but well, just like a layman, preferably an all rounder with decent day and low light shoots.

- video........ hmm... never thought of it... just general "standard" standard will do.

- good battery life (quite important). duwan like my FX1... sux man...

- budget $400.


haha... basically a cheap, compact, all rounder value for money cam. no need to be super class. it's meant to be entry level after all... just for her to take pics when go tour and misc. to her probably as long as got picture come out satisfied liao haha....


however a quick browse around the shops seems to me compact + not-so-high-mp + cheap dun really exists now leh... or did i miss anything? my preferred brands are canon, panasonic, nikon.... fujifilm and olympus also can... sony... i only like their discman leh hahaha.... casio... hmm... unless really trash all else i still can't get past the branding/impression barrier.

 

[weng]

ok my impression on the different brands...

canon

the A series is out. a bit bulky... see liao also a bit sian. but the ixus like only got quite high end ones... all 5mp and above, and like >$500. so nothing in between?

panasonic

ok i'm using panasonic so i won't mind to get one for my sis too. looks compact and nice too. generally satisfied with mine except for the lousy battery life and low light shoots ain't exactly good. heard that panasonic's low light generally not very good (last time my FX1 era hear one), so is this a myth and if it's isn't, are the current models "rectified"?

nikon

same as panasonic... cosmetic wise looks good. but never really look into the various models. dunno what kind of price range are there. any worthy models to shortlist?


others... never see liao...


hopefully can garner some quick advice and i can chop chop settle over the weekend. thanks guys!

 

[Galdor]

Hi,

why not pass your existing cam to your sister and upgrade to a better one for yourself. Maybe you want to check out Sony and Olympus too.

 

[weng]

Hi,

why not pass your existing cam to your sister and upgrade to a better one for yourself. Maybe you want to check out Sony and Olympus too.

coz i also anything-also-can one heheh... moreover i duwan to spend money on digicam...

 

[londonray]

MS Colour is selling Fuji F11 for $399 brand new with 512mb xD card... that camera has 6mp and should be more than sufficient for your sister's needs...

if you dun mind 2nd hand... i have lohbang for a F11 at $400 with 1gb xD card and extra batt and external charger... contact me if you are interested... cheers

 

[night86mare]

If your sister is not interested in serious photography, rather just point and shoot with good image quality, nothing done: here's a recommendation:

Sony DSC-S600
6 MP,3 x optical zoom, 31-93mm focal length, 100 x 52 x 37 mm
3.9 x 2.0 x 1.4 in

not sure if it's small enough for you but it's pretty ok looking, very value for money for entry entry entry level - last I saw it was going for $299 @ Best with free 512mb memory stick. Not sure if Comex/Cathay Photo/Alan Photo/MS colour canl get it cheaper, but probably yes.

Imaging Resource review @ http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/S600/S600DAT.HTM

Low level Panasonic cams tend to have so-so batt life, and I personally do not like all of the low level Nikon cams so..

Might also consider getting some of the older Casio Exilim models, should be within budget, with roughly 5MP specs and some optical zoom. I think almost all, if not all use rechargeable Li-on so long battery life is not a problem so long as she remembers to charge. (newer models would be out of budget)

Hope I helped.

 

[weng]

hmm... is it me cok eye or is it that there's no fujifilm in comex?

anyway i didn't look at sony booth. went to the other booths and in the end with the budget of $400 i narrowed down to 2 models:

Olympus FE190
- 6mp
- 3x optical, 4x digital
- 2.5" lcd
- image stabilizer
- movie recording with sound
- $399

free gifts: 512mb mxd, extra battery, card reader, mini tripod, and a 512mb mp3 player.

Nikon Coolpix L3
- 5mp
- 3x optical
- 2" lcd
- unlimited movie recording with sound
- uses AA battery
- $229

free gifts: 1gb sd, mini triopod, umbrella, case, digital imagine interactive e-book.


only these 2 caught my eye as they are very compact. i'm also surprised by the L3 coz it's using AA batteries and yet it's so small. the rest of the brands like canon, panasonic and casio... all dua leng gong if under $400. the smaller ones all way out of budget.

any comments on the above 2 models? the nikon seems to be a damn good buy for just $229. any negative side on this model such as night shoot sux or what? else next choice is the olympus liao... and i must say it looks very cool and chio (size and design) for the price.

 

[wrx_sti_22b]

The Nikon L3 performs very leisurely... cheap price for it's looks though... cannot ask for too much... maybe sold out by the time you post this question.

There is Fujifilm, this time they not big time with big booth at centre. They are at smaller type of booth like those Sim Lim shops at a corner. Look for it using the map layout near entrance.

 

[weng]

i also scared sold out... will be going tomorrow with sis to buy either one.

read the L3 review in dpreview and seems like the flash isn't very good.

the olympus seems too new until nobody has actually reviewed it. this "steve digicam" got review but no conclusion yet.

hmmmmm... tough choice leh... the L3 so cheap and use AA somemore... no need to scared battery spoil gotta buy proprietory ones. also it uses normal sd cards, same as my panasonic fx1 so no problem to interchange... friendly...

the olympus is very nice and looks better in terms of specs, although at $170 more, and using xd card... sorry noob here... xd and sd not compatible one right?

my head goes to nikon, but my heart goes to olympus.... but the fe190 is still a question mark... nobody used it and feedback still... haizzz...

 

[weng]

also chanced upon fujifilm f11 among the websites that londonray has mentioned... this one is good at low light right? hmm... fits the budget too. ok i'll go look at the fujifilm booth tomorrow...

probably won't touch sony for now. dunno why but i just dun feel right with sony for digicams hehe...

thanks everyone for your advice! but do keep them coming..... i got until tomorrow 1pm before i make my way there haha... **** man tonight can't sleep liao... that's the problem with me... always super dilema when buy things. although it's my sis buy, i also want to recommend the best option... i'll also feel good.

 

[weng]

come to think of it..... aiya also not going to scrutinise until dunno wat... even if new model, can't be that bad right... for a layman, dun think will go and hiam this hiam that... hmmm................... maybe should just go for the olympus?

or unless the fujifilm f11 is so good until no reason not to get?

 

[night86mare]

I don't like Nikon low-end models, very cheap look, and cheap feel about it.

More like toy, but that's a personal view of course. Sony does appeal to girls hehehe, and the recommendation I'd given didn't get too bad reviews (for the price). Any particular reason why don't want Sony? =D

When purchasing perhaps you might want to check online review sites like Imaging Resource and DCPR and DPR:

Since you seem inclined towards Olympus, here are some links for the reviews:

http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/FE190/FE190A.HTM
(Hmmm only Imaging Resource seems to have reviewed this one out of the 3 suggestions I gave - and even then the review is pretty limited, probably because this is a relatively new offering.)

If you're looking out for batt life, Li-On in FE190 does seem like a plus.

 

[weng]

yup i had a look and feel of the L3... does look and feel a bit cheap though...

sony... dunno leh... maybe from last time impression... expensive for the quality/feature and expensive memory sticks. now times changed liao? hehe...

 

[night86mare]

Not really, memory sticks still more expensive than SD, but Olympus uses XD anyways, so that's expensive too! Hehehe.

$299 is pretty cheap for 6 MP (DSC-S600), the trouble is lack of control, but that's no trouble based on how you describe what you want. Suggest you give it a chance, would save $ hee hee hee. Good bang for buck for the layman.

 

[weng]

went to sony booth... dun have DSC-S600, only have DSC-W30, 50 and so on... very slim and niceee...

anyway both L3 and FE190 out of stock, but FE190 can pre-order and collect from alan photo 1 week later. the other nikons are cmi for the budget... all too big and obiang.

canon also cmi... cheap ones too big, small ones too ex... so only can reject. so looks like she may have to up her budget slightly after all...

saw casio EX-Z600 going for $499. liked the advertised super long battery life (up to 550 shots), biggest lcd (2.7"), slim and nice... using sd too... however it's the most expensive in the shortlist.

saw panasonic DMC-FX3 going for $469. thickest among casio and olympus but still ok acceptable la. they giving out 2 x 1gb sd compared to the olympus and casio only 1 x 1gb.

think think... still better to have a common platform (sd), and also a bit leh chey to purposely make a trip to sls to collect the olympus, so in the end settled for the FX3 because:

- already an existing panasonic user so will tend to be more comfortable with it. and true enough, once i open up the cam at home, straightaway use liao without flipping the manual coz all the algo same as mine.

- common sd platform more convenient (for eg my sis gave me the other 1gb sd hahaha... i only using 256mb)

- as said, a bit leh chey to collect another day.

- somehow still have more "faith" in panasonic than the olympus. made in japan somemore haha... although olympus got give extra battery...

- also some of the not-very-encouraging comments i read on olympus in general yesterday already formed a thin barrier in me liao...


the only downside on the surface is it's the biggest among the shortlist (casio and olympus).. more on the thickness la. it was really a huge dilema... really didn't know which to choose... FE190 or FX3... either way it can't be too bad i guess.


and kns walk so long keep trying to find fujifilm and the layout but still can't find. buy already then suddenly see it at one corner small small booth. walao damn sia sueh man... all other brands have big big decorated booths... even pentax, kodak have bigger booths... even SHIRO is more prominent. seebeh sia sueh.... anyway see all the models not interesting... so didn't miss out much ba...

 

[aaron80]

Ya I got the same prob as u.. I went Comex on Fri trying to find the Fujifilm booth.. Walked here walked there for 1 hr still can't find end up I gave up.. After I went home, then my friend told me the booth is at a very little corner near the end..

 

[d3faultuser]

u din miss much la.. fuji at the fair, pricing not exactly fab. it depends on which sales intro to u. dif pple quote u differently with dif freebies, some higher some lower even they give same freebies -.-""". that small booth actually is just a auth. retailer not the actual fujiflim.co thats why small time booth. just be happy with what u have bought! haha comex is over..

 

[weng]

ya haha... just realised the FX3 also pretty new model... ok lah maybe not fantastic but i believe won't be too "disgusting" also heheh... in any case it's better than mine... more than good enough liao! bought my FX1 for $500 2yrs ago... 3.2mp... hmmmm... wonder how much can it sell for now? condition 9/10, very well kept. $200 thereabouts possible?

 

[panzerpunk]

What about the F20? Its going at $499 and has superb noise control and optical stablisier :thumbsup: Fuji is doing well in the PnS market

 

[d3faultuser]

haha thats why i got my f30! simply loved it! going gaga over it! lol sumtimes its not the cam, also depend on the skill of the photographer? hmmm am still learning.....

What about the F20? Its going at $499 and has superb noise control and optical stablisier :thumbsup: Fuji is doing well in the PnS market