i need a digital camera for my forthcoming trip. less than aud500, and with the ability to use a 2GB SD (or miniSD) card (which i already have).
any suggestions?
oh and i got a new phone. it’s not amazing but it is a big step up from my previous one (i’m still waiting for my ideal ‘portable device’ (to become affordable)). now to figure out how to use it for email… it’s a shame that the vodafone live 3g content is almost entirely rubbish, but i s’pose i shouldn’t be surprised.
what’s the image quality like with the camera phone? you can’t just use that?
Here’s Choice’s picks for stills cameras:
$500 to $750
CANON Digital IXUS 65 $629
CANON Digital IXUS 750 $699
CANON Digital IXUS Wireless $599
FUJIFILM Finepix E900 $649
CANON Powershot A700 $549
Less than $500
OLYMPUS SP 500UZ $499
RICOH Caplio R30 $449
NIKON Coolpix P2 $499
Personally, I hate Canon. So I’d be going for the others.
Thanks Greg. Why do you hate Canon?
The phone has a pretty good 2 Megapixel camera, but no focus or flash. I may end up just using it for now, as I have to be careful with $. The phone takes a microSD card, up to 2GB (although the biggest available atm is 1GB) but I’ll be using it for MP3s as well. Unfortunately I bought a 2GB *mini*SD card by mistake, so thought maybe it wouldn’t go to waste if I bought a camera for it!
Shannon
I’d recommend the Canon IXUS range. Super small, but the shots they take are good and the start up on the models from the IXUS 50 and onwards are superfast. Basically turn on and shoot in
Well I’ve bought a number of Canon products (mostly video cameras) over the years, and all, without fail have had problems. I’ve also warned friends against getting them, and the one time my advice was ignored, the guy had major problems with his digital stills camera.
That being said, I had a play with a friends 300 a couple weeks ago, and was impressed with the quality. No idea about the reliability, though.
Yeah I’d probably agree with Greg with video cameras.
But with the digital still cameras I (and friends) have had no problems. Many places offer a 5 year warranty as part of the deal now in any case – that is assuming you are really going to still be using the device in 5 years time . . . . which is highly unlikely.
shit . . . why did my first comment get truncated? damn.
(maybe you can fix my comment in the WP backend?)
i was going to suggest the IXUS 50 and higher
OR the powershot s2 is which is great for macros and has image stabilising.
we buy from http://www.eyo.com.au or http://www.dirtcheapcameras.com.au to get the best prices. you can still get the gst back at the airport if you buy from these places.
IXUS 50+ looks good. Takes SD, too.
Seb, I’m guessing yr comment got truncated cos you may have used an angled bracket to express ‘less than’ or ‘greater than’, which WP interprets as HTML. That’s tripped me up in the past. Unfortunately I couldn’t find the rest of it.
Canon does not suck!
And you can get some good prices if you look around for compacts
Like this
Canon IXUS 65 – $560
http://www.ccccamerahouse.com.au/store/product.asp?idProduct=1169
Canon IXUS 750 $619
http://www.ccccamerahouse.com.au/store/product.asp?idProduct=973
Personally, I’d go with the Canon A700 or A620. Both of them are pretty good but aren’t as small as the IXUS. They are cheaper though. But super compacts like the IXUS series are usually not as good as the cheaper but bigger models like the A700 or A620. The choice is really between portability and performance. Which do you want more, something small or something with more bulk but better features?
Be aware that all Fuji and Olympus camera’s don’t take SD cards, only XD cards, which suck and are expensive. So If you’re planning a trip down Olympus/Fuji lane, add another $120 at least to the camera price tag.
Most importantly, go down to a shop and try the cameraes out before you buy. Nothing worse than buying something someone else told you to get, and having it suck on you. JB-Hi fi generally has very good prices and lets you molest their stock.
Whatever you do, avoid most camera stores for buying anything. They’ll charge you a massive markup for no reason. Carry a price in with you if you’re going to a dedicated camera store. Usually what I do is go to the camera stores to check out their stock, then go over to Jb-Hi fi and buy the stock at a much lower price
These two stores
http://www.digitalcity.net.au/store/index.asp
http://www.ccccamerahouse.com.au/store/index.asp
Are actual store fronts, and have good prices. Get the prices off the website, then go into their stores or somewhere else and make sure they mark the camera down to their website price.
And check out this website for some reviews
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/default.asp?view=rating
Depreview is very good review site, so read through some of their reviews and see what camera’s you might be considering. Then check out the online stores above so you’ve got some good prices under your belt. Then buy something you like!
Good luck Shannon, and see you next semester!
-The Powerdrill
Yeah IXUS65 is $495 at http://www.eyo.com.au . . . . .
super cheap.
That reminds me
Go here
http://www.staticice.com.au/
And type in whatever model you choose. It lists heaps of stores in Australia, with the cheapest prices starting first. You can find some real bargains. Providing you’re willing to travel out to the store or get it mailed to you.
Again, good luck!
Tim, are you drunk again?
I got the IXUS 65. Went to Harvey Norman at the Broadway Shopping Centre and was pleasantly surprised that they agreed to match EYO’s price of $495. It’s a very cute little camera (with a BIG screen) and looks like it’ll serve me well for quite some time, including doubling as a video camera for little holiday vids.
One day I’ll get a decent video camera – when a good HD one with huge flash memory becomes affordable. Before then I’ll get one of those nice new flash audio recorders. But for now I can’t afford to spend any more money, or my trip will be pretty miserable. Does anyone have a minidisc recorder or something they could lend me for a month? It’s not a major issue, but it’d be nice to do some field recordings during my travels.
Btw Seb you mentioned getting the camera’s GST back at the airport. I’m ignant about this – pls tell me more!
hey shannon
nice one.
you can borrow my minidisc if you want.
gst . . . yeah as long as you buy something within 30 days before you leave AND you bring it with reciept to customs at the airport you can get the gst back on it.
because with gst the whole duty free thing became worthless overnight, this is really all that ‘duty free’ means now. unless you are buying booze or smokes.
more info on the refunds at http://www.customs.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=4646
basically you have to have the stuff with you and minimum amount is $300.
get there early though to get the refund because they always seem to make it really hard to do when you get there.
I’m always sober Greg ;-P
And for information, drunk gatherings have allowed me to keep in contact with other MAP students over these long holidays. Believe me, there will be some juicy stories to hear once MAP 2 starts. And a screaming match or two if it all works out horribly wrong.
And good choice Shannon, hope you enjoy your camera. You might want to look into buying another battery for that camera though. Backups are always important. Type the battery model number into ebay and you should be able to pick up a cheap one. Don’t buy one from a store, they’re a rip off.
Enjoy your trip!
-Tim
Seb, that’s a great scam, er, scheme!
Tim, a spare battery is a good tip! I’ll have to get one. Btw, you won’t see me next semester, cos I’m on leave – so see you next year!
MAP 2 is all about screaming matches, so no surprises there Tim.
In fact, the only real surprise is that other MAP students would allow themselves to be seen in public with you after the end of semester screening…
Greg, when you look this good
It’s hard to resist not wanting to go out and get drunk with me.
I hope you’re looking forward to seeing me for your tut in about 2 weeks time
. Until then!
-Tim
I’m counting down the minutes… now remind me, which one are you?
Maybe my two cents comes too late here, or perhaps you are now too broke ($4k for the plane ticket!). But I bought an IXUS 65 six weeks or so ago at digital city to replace the smaller ixy that got stolen in Manila. Its a compromise because its so small, but compact was important for me. Compromise compared to the big digital slrs like the canon rebel, etc. Its a lovely camera though, boots very fast, incredibly smooth low grain pics, wonderful motordrive facility. Portability wise I would have actually liked to go a bit more compact, but it is nice to have at least a bit of an optical zoom. All that being said when the other one was stolen I started using the 2mpxel cam on my sony phone a lot more and its perfectly adequate. Printed some of them up to A3 and they held up very well. The IXUS is holding about 500 pics on a 1gb card btw & cost around $560 or so with card & case.
Ah, really should read the whole thread before commenting shouldn’t I? I heartily concur with your choice though, of course.
hooray for the ixus 65!