Compact for Daughter
Discussion
Hi all, my little girl is 8 this months and would like a camera. She's pretty careful and looks after stuff so it hasn't got to be rugged-ised.
Needs to have the following features
Compact
Very good battery life
Decent flash
Simple controls (Not bothered about manual features)
Simple PC connectvity
Ability to take movie clips
Around £100-£150
Any recommendations?
Cheers
Needs to have the following features
Compact
Very good battery life
Decent flash
Simple controls (Not bothered about manual features)
Simple PC connectvity
Ability to take movie clips
Around £100-£150
Any recommendations?
Cheers
Andy,
It is just about impossible to keep up with the changes in the market place at that price bracket but to be honest almost anything you select will very likely keep her happy. The easiest and most flexible connection to a PC is to us a USB card reader - probably faster too - so don't worry too much about connectivity.
Casio do some cameras with nice menus that explain what all the presets can do in both summary and detail and that user interface may appeal to your daughter. Chances are she will adopt more quickly than you!
You may need to consider whether a camera that takes regular batteries (AA or maybe AAA) would be useful. They can be a litle bulkier but mean that you can always source some power whereas being sure that a dedicated battery is charged (even if you buy a spare) is not so easy.
If you do buy something with a dedicated battery DO get a spare but NOT a manufacturer version (expensive). The third party alternatives are a fraction of the price but work just as well, sometimes better.
I wish it was easy to give an answer but it isn't simply because almost any recognised brand with a retail price in the range you suggested (but you should be able to get them for the bottom end of your price range or lower at 'street' price) will likely make your daughter very happy. Buy a memory card though - 2Gb minimum, they are not expensive. Even some of the 'non-brand' cameras can produce excellent results so long as your daughter and the rest of the family are not expecting her to become and instant Annie Leibovitz.
Just remember that all small cameras will struggle if you ask a lot of their flash systems. Used within the range of they capabilities (about 3 meters) they are excellent. Outside that they just cannot perform - but that is a factor of size and convenience so easy to live with.
HTH.
It is just about impossible to keep up with the changes in the market place at that price bracket but to be honest almost anything you select will very likely keep her happy. The easiest and most flexible connection to a PC is to us a USB card reader - probably faster too - so don't worry too much about connectivity.
Casio do some cameras with nice menus that explain what all the presets can do in both summary and detail and that user interface may appeal to your daughter. Chances are she will adopt more quickly than you!
You may need to consider whether a camera that takes regular batteries (AA or maybe AAA) would be useful. They can be a litle bulkier but mean that you can always source some power whereas being sure that a dedicated battery is charged (even if you buy a spare) is not so easy.
If you do buy something with a dedicated battery DO get a spare but NOT a manufacturer version (expensive). The third party alternatives are a fraction of the price but work just as well, sometimes better.
I wish it was easy to give an answer but it isn't simply because almost any recognised brand with a retail price in the range you suggested (but you should be able to get them for the bottom end of your price range or lower at 'street' price) will likely make your daughter very happy. Buy a memory card though - 2Gb minimum, they are not expensive. Even some of the 'non-brand' cameras can produce excellent results so long as your daughter and the rest of the family are not expecting her to become and instant Annie Leibovitz.
Just remember that all small cameras will struggle if you ask a lot of their flash systems. Used within the range of they capabilities (about 3 meters) they are excellent. Outside that they just cannot perform - but that is a factor of size and convenience so easy to live with.
HTH.
Edited by LongQ on Thursday 4th June 21:27
been there seen it and, up to a point, regretted the route I took. My son is 5.5 and daughter, like yours, 8. When she was 6, we bought her a Vivitar 4MP- it was only around £50 but did the trick for about 5 mins until the batteries died. It hasn't got any great features. With technology having moved on, my son was bought a Samsung S760 which has 7.2MP, face recognition, and image stabilisation. It's small and actually pretty good to use and image quality is fine. Again though, battery life isn't great.
However, this is what I would do in your shoes....Buy a second hand Ixus or similar. They are a doddle to use, the battery life is excellent (note that I keep coming back to this....) and the quality great. As long as you find one in decent condition, I'm sure your daughter will like it as if it was new. My daughter uses my Canon G7 as my 'assistant' when I'm using my SLR!
The only reason I keep mentioning the battery life is because kids take LOTS of pictures and the compacts that use AA/AAA batteries I've found just go through them far too quickly - If you enjoy carrying spares and/or consistently recharging then fine but the 'proper' batteries in things like the Ixus will be far far better.
My G7 only cost £160 so in your budget you won't find a problem getting something suitable.
Hope that helps a bit.
However, this is what I would do in your shoes....Buy a second hand Ixus or similar. They are a doddle to use, the battery life is excellent (note that I keep coming back to this....) and the quality great. As long as you find one in decent condition, I'm sure your daughter will like it as if it was new. My daughter uses my Canon G7 as my 'assistant' when I'm using my SLR!
The only reason I keep mentioning the battery life is because kids take LOTS of pictures and the compacts that use AA/AAA batteries I've found just go through them far too quickly - If you enjoy carrying spares and/or consistently recharging then fine but the 'proper' batteries in things like the Ixus will be far far better.
My G7 only cost £160 so in your budget you won't find a problem getting something suitable.
Hope that helps a bit.
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