[pct-l] RE: Digital Camera

[jcoyle at sanjuan.edu (John Coyle)]

If money were no object, I would get a Sony DSC-150 digital camera. It has a
3x optical zoom, 7 mega pixels, and weighs 6.3 oz with
batteries(proprietary).  It is expensive at  about $500 and Sony memory
sticks are also more expensive that other types.  I was able to hold and
examine one at my local Sam's Club and was very impressed with it, but I
wasn't willing to spend that much money on a digital point and shoot.

A somewhat cheaper camera is one that I recently bought and am very happy
with.  A Kodak CX7430.  It has a 3x optical zoom, 4 mega pixels, and weighs
7 oz with 2 AA batteries.  Somewhat cheaper at $184 from Sam's Club.  Keep
in mind that you will only get about 25 shots with AA alkalines.
Rechargeable NiMh or the even better rechargeable CRV3 Lithium AA batteries
would be a better choice for this camera.  You may have to go to a special
battery store like Batteries Plus to get the rechargeable CRV3 batteries,
which is what I did.  In a pinch though, you could use readily available AA
alkaline if you got caught short. I haven't tried the non-rechargeable AA
lithiums, so I can't comment on them.

You can see reviews of both of these cameras at www.dpreview.com

John Coyle
Sacramento