Best Compact Digital cam??

[Jerry Olexa]

I'm sure we have some digital photo gurus on this site so I'm asking your advice. I started digital a few years ago w a Nikon 5700 and then went to the Minolta A2 (which I love). When traveling or hiking, etc, ,however, the A2, while a great cam is bulky, cumbersome. I have been looking @ ultra compact digicams the past week as I want to have a more convenient (smaller) backup cam that i can slip in my pocket or carry-on and hopefully, still produce decent quality images. I've settled my short list to the SonyP200, the PanasonicFX7 (has image stabilization but no viewfinder) and the Canon SD 300 and 500. Also found a great price on the Olympus C7000 w 7mp, 5Xzoom and still relatively small. What's your opinion on these cameras or the approach? Thanks in advance...

[Allan Johanson]

I recently bought the Canon SD300 for my wife who wanted a tiny camera for herself. My Canon G1 with its extra lenses and filters scared her. :)

I also bought a couple Sandisk Ultra II (fast) memory cards for it. The typical digital camera delay before taking a pic has been greatly reduced. I'm very pleased with the performance of the camera for such a tiny point & shoot.

My fav digital camera source of info is www.dpreview.com (no affiliation, etc)

Good luck with your purchase!

Allan

[Jim Becker]

I like the new metal Nikon S1 (http://www.nikondigital.com/main.html?page=s1)...great specs and really portable! Reasonable price, too. I may spring for one as a "travel camera" for when it's inconvenient to bring the D70. My older Coolpix 880 is a bit long in the tooth at this point, although it works fine with the battery door taped shut! ;)

[Jerry Olexa]

Oops Forgot to report back! Thanks for your input, guys! I agree Alan on the Canon 300 SD. It was on my short list. That is a beautiful small package but only 4mp. Jim, I know you're loyal to Nikon and for good reason. I ended up buying an Olympus C7000 w 7mp, 5X optical and nice compact package. Good price plus $100 rebate. So my 30 day trial begins. Good return policy to protect me while I learn the menus, etc. Thanks again ! I'll be using to post pix.