Need help with digital cameras...

[kexodusc]

Poor ol' Kex doesn't know much about digital cameras other than how to use one.
I've got $100 to spend...can I even get a half-decent digital camera that will allow me to take pics, and burn these on to a DVD so I can watch them on my system? (linking thread to HT Forum) ;)

[PAT.P]

Poor ol' Kex doesn't know much about digital cameras other than how to use one.
I've got $100 to spend...can I even get a half-decent digital camera that will allow me to take pics, and burn these on to a DVD so I can watch them on my system? (linking thread to HT Forum) ;)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +++++++++++++++II use a Samsung and it works great .Future Shop sells it around $120 Canadian comes with usb cable application cd .It works great 2.0 prixels ,digital zoom ,LCD monitor .I then burn on MJPEG format to view on dvd player.Pat.P

[sy_lu]

Poor ol' Kex doesn't know much about digital cameras other than how to use one.
I've got $100 to spend...can I even get a half-decent digital camera that will allow me to take pics, and burn these on to a DVD so I can watch them on my system? (linking thread to HT Forum) ;)
You can get an entry level Kodak 3 Mpixel for less than $100 from just about any retailer. If you can spend $20 more, you can get better ones from Olympus or Fuji. You don't need 3 M pixels to show pictures on TV but it will give you the option to get decent prints up to 8x10.

[kexodusc]

Thanks guys, so for generally good quality, large pictures, like the type you'd put on a web page (or ebay listing should I sell some gear), how many Mpixels does a guy need?
I've got an old, (and I mean old) 0.3 Mpixel jobber right now...it sux. Anything else to look out for?

[sy_lu]

Thanks guys, so for generally good quality, large pictures, like the type you'd put on a web page (or ebay listing should I sell some gear), how many Mpixels does a guy need?
I've got an old, (and I mean old) 0.3 Mpixel jobber right now...it sux. Anything else to look out for?

For web pages, sub 1 M pixel camera will be more than enough. The problem however is that all the sub 1 M pixel camera has very poor quality lens and sensor and thus produces very poor quality pictures. With a name brand 3 M pixels camera, you will get better lens and sensors and better image quality. You can down sample the image for web. In addition, a 3 M pixel picture will allow you a lot of room for image cropping if needed. For close up e-bay shots (if the item is small or you want to show partial details), you want a camera with marcos that allows clos up focus.

[Woochifer]

I got my parents an Olympus digital camera last Christmas for around $100. It was a 2 megapixel camera and the image quality on it was decent. When you go with a lower priced digital camera, you do lose quality with the lens, the image processor, some features, the camera body, and especially the LCD screen. As the others have indicated, you can get a lot of camera for not a lot of money nowadays if all you're looking for is something that can point and shoot. As sy mentioned, the extra resolution comes into play if you're looking to print large images. For screen viewing and basic 4x6 prints, a 2 megapixel camera will work fine.

From what I understand, the image sensors don't really vary all that much if they're at the same resolution, it's really the lens and the image processing that differ more. And what differentiates a $300 model from a $100 model is stuff like the build quality (plastic versus metal body, etc.), the LCD screen resolution, and the features. It's also stuff like the kind of accessories and memory cards that come with them (definitely also price out the memory cards for the types of cameras that you're looking at).

If you want more information, there are several review sites that post sample images for you to download and compare. If the samples look fine and work well for your intended purposes, then you got some candidates. Here are a few of the sites I've poked through.

http://www.steves-digicams.com/
http://www.dcresource.com/
http://www.imaging-resource.com/DIGCAM01.HTM

[sy_lu]

From what I understand, the image sensors don't really vary all that much if they're at the same resolution,


Actually, the quality of the sensor can differ alot. The lousy ones has very poor dynamic range and sensitivity. The cheap ones also has poor color filter on top of the cells.