Best Rated Digital Compact Camera

At the moment, there are four major types of camera:
a) Ultra Compact
b) Compact
c) Full Size / Big Zoomer
d) DSLR

Ultra compact and compact camera are usually light and small enough to carry and fit in your pocket. While the full size & DSLR camera are big, bulky and quite heavy.

Your photography style and need will determine what kind of camera feature you'll need. If you only take a family / friend picture, self-portrait and other point and shoot photos, digital compact camera's features are more than sufficient to give you great pictures.

However, if you like to take an action photo (such as sport), landscape & nature photo, low & high lighting; it's better for you to purchase the big zoomer / DSLR camera.

Choose the digital camera which has all the features you need for all your photography needs.

The two main important features that you must understand before purchasing any camera are: the camera's megapixel and its optical zoom / digital zoom range.

Megapixels

Many people believe that the higher the megapixel, the better the picture quality will be. Unfortunately, this is not 100% correct.
I have a 8.0 megapixel camera with has a small camera sensor & lens, and its image quality are worse than my friend's 5.0 megapixel compact camera which has quite good camera sensor & lens. My 8.0 megapixel camera produces photos with lots of noise so I now understand that higher megapixel doesn't necessary means better picture quality.

Optical & Digital Zoom

Normally we hear about optical and digital zoom from the camera salesperson. What are they? And what are the difference between these zooms?

Zoom-in means you bring the object closer to you without the need of you move closer to the object.

I take my camera as an example. It is a 15 optical zoom & 24 digital zoom camera. When I zoom-in the camera lens, the lens moves and it can zoom up to15x and bring the object closer up to 15x. After the 15x mark, I still able to zoom-in up to 24x, but the lens is not moving anymore and it's no longer pulling the object closer. Anything above 15x is no longer called "optical zoom", it is actually a "digital zoom".

Digital zoom is an enlarged image of the image that has been displayed by the optical lens, so basically digital zoom is to enlarge the existing image that has been captured by the camera. The consequences of using digital zoom is the image will have reduced sharpness quality and blurred. It will take away the quality of your images. Stay away from the digital zoom. It's recommended for not using the digital zoom.

On the other hand, the optical zoom is the real zoom, it will bring the object closer to your lens camera It keeps the quality of the object.

Tip from me: Choose the camera which has higher optical zoom range. Ignore the digital zoom range.

And all other basic features such as:
- Image stabilization: to prevent capturing a blurry image
- Face recognition
- Automatic red eye reduction
- Larger LED Screen
- Higher ISO sensitivity

Decide on your budget.

How much do you want to spend on your camera? Would you rather spend less for an older camera which offer basic features that you need for all your photography need?

Or are you prepared to spend more for a newer camera which offer more advanced features?

The camera's brand is also another important factor for you to decide.

What's your favorite camera brand? Are you going to stick with it or are you going to choose another brand?

Accessories for digital camera are:
- Memory cards
- Battery
- Charger
- Camera bag
- Tripod

Out of all the above, memory cards, battery and charger are the most important factor for me to look at before I purchase a digital camera.

Memory Card

We must use a memory card to store our digital images. The storage capacity of the memory card limits the number of images / videos you can save at one time. Of course you can transfer the image from the memory card to your computer. The most common memory cards are Compact Flash and Secure Digital (SD) Card.

However, different digital cameras use different type of memory card. For example:
- Most of Sony digital cameras use Memory Stick
- Most of Olympus and Fuji cameras use xD Picture Cards

Battery
Different digital cameras use different battery types. At the moment, many digital compact camera use standard AAA or AA battery, so it's very convenience. If you run out of battery, you can replace them easily.

But many digital cameras also use a specific battery, in which you'll need to recharge it directly from your camera or from the provided battery charger. It may be quite expensive to purchase a spare battery / a replacement battery.

Are you prefer to purchase it online or in-store?

Both have their own advantages. In-store, you can touch and play around with many cameras first before deciding which one you like the most. However, price-wise, it will be better to purchase it online.

My tips: Go to the camera store first, play around with the camera, ask as many questions as you can to the storeperson. When you're happy with the camera, check & compare the deals online & in-store, then you can decide which store will give you the best price & deals.

- Megapixel: 12.1 Megapixels
- Optical zoom: 4x wide angle optical zoom stabilized zoom, to prevent fuzzy / blurred shots
- 28mm wide-angle lens
- 2.7 inch PureColor Sytem LCD
- Smart AUTO mode intelligently selects from 18 predefined settings
- 15 Shooting modes
- Light Sensitivity: ISO 100, ISO 800, ISO 400, ISO 200, ISO 80, ISO auto, ISO 1600; Shoot in Low light mode for dimly-lit situations (ISO 400 - 6400)
- Exposure Control: Beach, Kids & pets, Snow, Portrait mode, Slow shutter, Night mode, Fireworks, Low light, Snap shot, Underwater, Indoor, Foliage
- Available in 5 colors: Blue, Brown, Green, Pink & Silver
- Product dimensions: 3.6 x 0.8 x 2.2inches; 5 ounces
- Date first available : February 8, 2010

Comes with the Lithium-ion Battery Pack NB-6L, Battery Charger CB-2LY, Wrist Strap WS-DC7, USB Interface & AV cable.

[As at 1 December 2011]
Price: $179.00
Sale: $124.43; You Save: $55.56 (31%)

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