OTopic- What is the cheapest decent digital camera you'd recommend?

Would appreciate someone's help on this as I am not a camera buff at all. I just got a free digital camera from a bank promotion today & while it is superthin, the pictures it takes are beyond bad. My cel phone digital camera takes a much better picture (Nokkia 3660). Anyway, can anyone give me any recommendations, please give brand name/model, of the cheapest thinnest digital camera available that I can get at least a decent- doesn't have to be fantastic or anything, photo on. I don't take many photos anyway and this would be something to use only on occassionals such as taking tours of Hollywood (I live in LA). The alternative is to just buy disposable cameras which is what I've been doing. I'm satisfied with the quality of pictures I get from disposable cameras. Your help is appreciated.

I just got a Casio Exilim EX-Z40 for X-mas. Its 4.0 Mp .I got it because its thin, and made it more attractive to carry with me since something bullky is annoying The 3.2 is alot thinner, It has a nice docking bay to hook up to the computer and charge.

Thanks for the info but I looked it up on Amazon.com and that model is going for $230 before shipping which is about $130 more than what I'm looking to pay. If I used a camera with some regularity, I would have considered yours.

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Originally Posted by Kaiser Sosze

I just got a Casio Exilim EX-Z40 for X-mas. Its 4.0 Mp .I got it because its thin, and made it more attractive to carry with me since something bullky is annoying The 3.2 is alot thinner, It has a nice docking bay to hook up to the computer and charge.

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I would also like to buy an ultra-thin digital camera that takes high-quality pictures for $100.00!!!

Unfortunately, You need a digital camera of fairly high-quality to make prints that will compare to prints from even a disposable film camera. The prints I get from my 3 MP Olympus (wouldn't consider purchasing less than a 3 MP) aren't really as sharp as what you would get from a film camera (even on 4"X 6" prints) but look pretty nice and I like all of the features of a digital camera. (seeing the pics as you take them, printing what you want + saving the rest on disk, adjusting pics in Photoshop etc...) When I print my own pics, I don't have to worry about all of the prints from my vacation having a green tint or something because the photo lab had a bad day. I will say that the color and lighting on my digital prints often look better than what I used to get from film.

I wouldn't even look at digital cameras without at least a bit of optical zoom. With there being a little less detail than from film (on the more affordable ones anyway), it's nice to get in a little closer sometimes.

Anyhow... You're talking more than $100.00 for a respectable brand. And you're not going to get ultra-thin for less than $200.00. And don't forget the accessories!!! Digital cameras usually come with a memory card that's too small to be of much use. Often they come without cases and rechargable NIMH batteries which are a must. (Digital cameras devour batteries)

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Originally Posted by hershon

Would appreciate someone's help on this as I am not a camera buff at all. I just got a free digital camera from a bank promotion today & while it is superthin, the pictures it takes are beyond bad. My cel phone digital camera takes a much better picture (Nokkia 3660). Anyway, can anyone give me any recommendations, please give brand name/model, of the cheapest thinnest digital camera available that I can get at least a decent- doesn't have to be fantastic or anything, photo on. I don't take many photos anyway and this would be something to use only on occassionals such as taking tours of Hollywood (I live in LA). The alternative is to just buy disposable cameras which is what I've been doing. I'm satisfied with the quality of pictures I get from disposable cameras. Your help is appreciated.

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Given your specific requirements, I would recommend the Minolta DiMAGE X31 or the Minolta DiMAGE X20.

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Originally Posted by hershon

What is the cheapest decent digital camera you'd recommend?

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That would be Canon PowerShot A310 3.2MP Digital Camera for around $125. Consumerreport magazine gave their picture quality the highest rating (excellent).

<img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0001G6U4I.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg">

Thanks the price sounds appealing on that one, I'm going to do some research on it. I actually went to a camera shop today & fell in love with an Olympus Stylus 500 a 5 MP small digital camera but right now it costs way too much for me, between $350 -$450 depending on the seller plus additional money for accessories.

What 5.1 receivers did consumer reports give their highest ratings on? Were they based on sound quality or other factors.

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Originally Posted by Smokey

That would be Canon PowerShot A310 3.2MP Digital Camera for around $125. Consumerreport magazine gave their picture quality the highest rating (excellent).

<img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0001G6U4I.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg">

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Originally Posted by hershon

What 5.1 receivers did consumer reports give their highest ratings on? Were they based on sound quality or other factors.

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Last couple of evaluations they did on receivers, Panasonic SA-HE100/HE200 Receiver got great reviews and top their chart. The rating was not based on sound quality, but rather on performance (quality of DACS, AM/FM tuner, etc..).

Also, if you are looking at camera with optical zoom, check out Canon A75 ($179). It top the chart in CR camera evaluation in term of picture quality :)