Finding a digital camera on a certain budget is a tougher task than you might think. There's plenty to choose from, and you don't always know what will work best for you no matter when you plan to use it. But the good news is that there are some great models out there for all price ranges. Here are some examples for models under $200, $300 and $400.
$200 OR LESS
Fuji Finepix Z20fd, Retail Price: $179.99
A stylish camera that offers several user-friendly features, the Z20fd has a 10-megapixel image sensor, 3x optical zoom and a 2.5" LCD screen in the back. Those are the basics, but the other cool features include IrSimple, where you can wirelessly exchange photos and videos with someone who has a Fuji IrSimple camera. And in a nice touch, the Z20fd takes both xD and SD memory cards.
Face Detection and Auto Red-Eye keep faces in focus and eyes the right colours. Picture stabilization helps you keep a steady hand, while the natural light mode lets you take two photos at once - one with a flash and one without. The Z20fd comes in five different colours.
Kodak EasyShare M1093, Retail Price: $199.99
Kodak has tried to pack as much as they can into this diminutive digicam without bumping up the price too much. You get 10 megapixels, 3x optical zoom and a 3" LCD screen. Face Detection and Image Stabilization are standard functions here, but there is also Smart Capture, where the camera's sensor automatically detects and adjusts the ISO, exposure and focus to give you the best possible shot.
Kodak also says that the M1093 IS can shoot photos and video in 720p high-definition (HD) though results may vary depending on what you're shooting. The M1093 IS comes in three different colours.
$300 OR LESS
Olympus Stylus 850, Retail price: $279.99
Part of the toughest line of digital cameras due to their durability, the 850 SW can handle a drop off up to 5 ft., water depths up to 10 ft. and temperatures down to -10 degrees. You get 8-megapixels, 3x optical zoom and a 2.5" LCD screen. Face Detection and image stabilization are in here, complemented by 28 dedicated shooting modes that cover everything from beach, sunset, snow, underwater and even panoramic settings.
Perfect Fix is a unique function that helps automatically correct things like shadows and red-eye, while Shadow Adjustment is supposed to let you capture moments when the sun is behind your subject. The 850 SW comes in five different colours.
Sony CyberShot DSC-W170, Retail Price: $279.99
This CyberShot models offers some specific features that could prove to be useful. The basics start off with 10.1-megapixels, 5x optical zoom and a 2.7" LCD screen. Face Detection is expanded by what Sony calls "Smile Shutter", where the camera will capture a photo once it detects the faces and smiles of the subjects. The Super SteadyShot image stabilizer is supposed to help reduce blur and noise in an image, though you'll probably get the best results by resting the camera on a flat surface or tripod.
Intelligent Scene Recognition will automatically change the scene mode among five different options, and you can do more with it by taking two simultaneous shots with different settings. The DSC-W170 comes in four colours.
$400 OR LESS
Nikon Coolpix S710, Retail Price: $349.99
Starting off with a whopping 14.5-megapixels, 3.6x optical zoom and a 3" LCD screen, the Coolpix S710 lets users take a little more manual control over how images are captured. Set it to shutter priority and the S710 will select the aperture, or set it to aperture-priority for the opposite setup. Smile Mode works only when it recognizes that subjects in front of the camera are actually smiling - an extra perk that comes with Face Detection.
Optical image stabilization and motion detection work together to eliminate blur that comes from either the subject moving too fast, or your hands jittering too much. The S710 comes in black only.
Canon PowerShot SD990, Retail Price: $399.99
The SD990 IS comes with a huge 14.7-megapixel sensor, along with a modest 3.7x optical zoom and 2.5" LCD screen. Face Detection is a given, but you also get Face Self-Timer where the camera will recognize new faces and make adjustments accordingly. Intelligent Contrast Correction can be used to adjust the dark and light areas of a photo, either before or after shooting the image.
There are 21 different shooting modes, some of which give you much more manual control over how to take the shot. You also get colour options like, keeping one object in colour while having everything else in grayscale, or switch the colour of an object with another for a special effect. The SD990 IS comes in three colours.
