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Hi all,

I need to get a new point and shoot camera after our Canon IXUS was dropped and cracked open. I am thinking about the Olympus waterproof / shockproof ones as then I can let my 5 year old use it without worrying to much. Has anyone had any experience with these cameras?

Are there any other waterproof models on the market which would be worth looking at?

If not which point and shoot model would you recommend? It does not have to have a lot (or any) manual controls as it will be used purely for family occasions, my main requirements would be sharp images and fast shutter lag (is this an issue anymore?).

Comets and suggestions are most appreciated.

Cheers,
W00DY

g/day woody, we bought a [canon powershot a450]...5 mega pixels 3.2 optical zoom.....our 7 year old grand child and her friends use it....was about $140.00.

cheers pa

I have one of the Olympus Waterproof ones and it is one noisy beast...

I am not happy with it but I would rather spend my money on Lenses than a new P&S

Hi,

My wife just bought Olympus SW 790 (I think it was). She seems to like it. It's shock and water proof. Seems quite easy to use.

Cheers
Alex

Havent herd many good reports of Olymus's latest waterproof offering.
There earlier model seemed ok though.

Pentax make a W20 and W30 waterproof P&S, dont know much about them, but havent herd any bad reports about them.

I just bought a 790SW, for the same reasons as above. It's tiny, and fairly Moz-resistant. As you'd expect, it's noisy but the 7.1MP means you can get reasonable 3MP shots at 400ISO or more. For a compact camera I find it pretty good - it goes in my shirt pocket, the zoom is fairly usable, it turns on quickly enough to be accessible, it takes photos most places, and it's a lot easier to carry than my DSLR. The painful bits are not being able to turn noise reduction off and the not-actually-mini-USB connector that it uses (looks similar from a distance, but is not even close). Obviously I'd like RAW and a wider wide angle, but it's the least awful subcompact that I could find.

I paid $390 from ApeShop, a 2GB XD card for $100-ish and another $50 for two spare batteries. The batteries are tiny and it has a big LCD on the back...

It's a lot better than my cellphone camera, it has a clock built in (the other thing I use my phone for) and it is a lot more waterproof than my Siemens M65 "water resistant" phone that can't reasonably be made waterproof (mine had silicone waterproof "grease" on all the seals but 10s in the sea was enough to kill it).

Oh, and it comes in "Offensive Orange" as well as "Yachtsman's Yellow" and the usual beige, light beige and dark beige options. I chose orange, but it's actually not that bright and there's big chunks of dark plastic on it... I was hoping for something that would stand out when I drop it somewhere

what type of IXUS did you have? I just bought my sister an IXUS 75 - 7.1MP. Not shock or waterproof, but a solid little body and from what I've seen, a great p&s camera!

Thanks for all the replies...

Still not convinced on the Olympus waterproof. I like the sound of waterproof, shockproof etc but might find I am disappointed in the image quality.

I am NOT comparing this camera in anyway with my S5, I actually would prefer this P&S not to have any manual controls and JPEG is fine. It is just to be used when carrying the S5 becomes to much (to theme parks, the beach etc...)

We used to an IXUS something, can't remember. It was a solid camera (even if it didn't survive a drop from about 3 foot onto concrete) but I was never really impressed with the sharpness of the images, always thought they were a bit soft.)

Are the new IXUS any better? Nearly every site you go to rates the Canon's as the best P&S cameras. A fuji model got a mention as well though, no nikon!!!

Anyway, keep the recommendations coming. I want to buy in the next week as we are off to the Gold Coast for a family holiday in November.

Cheers,
W00DY

Nikon is just about to release the P50 which I reckon will be an awesome little camera for the momey ...429 RRP. 8 MP, 28-105 zoom, 2000 ISO,Expeed processor, compact stylish size.
I'll be getting one for my other half although I am guessing I will get some fun out of it as well.

I Bought my wife a Nikon s50

Optical Zoom: 3x
Digital Zoom: 4x
Memory Card Format: Secure Digital
Resolution: 7.2
Battery Type: Li-ion
Features: Video Recording,
Sound Recording
Display Size: 3 inches

She loves it and it doesn't take too bad a shot either. It's no DSLR but then with this style of camera you wouldn't expect it to be.

... Obsolete ...

VK4CP wrote:Waterproof, eh? How "waterproof"?

I dunno how you test that, all I've done is dunked it in a bowl of water and taken photos from there. It worked just fine.

My requirements are also fairly limited - I mostly want a camera that wont fail if it starts raining. Being able to use it in the water is a bit of a bonus.

But if you want a dive camera this is not what I'd be looking at. For starters it's usable at 400IS but only just, the flash is a gimmick and with a max aperture of about f/4 you'd not going to get very far down before it's all over.

hi

I recently bough a point and shoot, I wanted something that can replace my nikon d2xs so I bough the canon G9!

It is an amazing little camera, I can shoot raw!! also manual! I have posted a few photos in my website check the about page where I posted a time lapse video that I made with it.

oh

it is a 12.1 mp!!

Christian
http://www.6701.sunpixs.com

byrt_001 wrote:hi

I recently bough a point and shoot, I wanted something that can replace my nikon d2xs so I bough the canon G9!

It is an amazing little camera, I can shoot raw!! also manual! I have posted a few photos in my website check the about page where I posted a time lapse video that I made with it.

oh

it is a 12.1 mp!!

Christian
http://www.6701.sunpixs.com

Hey Christian,

How big is the G9? would it fit in a pocket or is it bigger than the normal P&S's?

Looks pretty good, even though I don't expect o have manual controls and RAW if I can get a small enough camera with it then all the better. I can always get a waterproof case for it if I want.

Cheers.

The main criteria for "family point and shoot" i think are
1. small to fit in any pocket, after the last purchase that does not quite fit in the pocket, this is no.1 one priority for me for this style of camera
2. just full auto is fine
3. the result is just the best quality you can get from a P&S.
4. as water resitant and shock resistant as resonably possible.
5. quick actuation of taking photo
6. Battrey system that lasts! (AAs or not AAs that is the question)
7. an adequate?? flash

(and after I grabed one for my son, not Samsung)

Waz

I like the Fuji F50

Well today I decided on the Canon G9... No photos yet to judge it on but was happy with the deal I got...

JB HI FI
Canon G9 - $670 (cheapest I could find on the net was $630 (delivered) from HK)
Sandisk II 4gig (with SD HC reader) - $80

Off to the Gold Coast tomorrow with the fam so will give it a work out at the theme parks and at play.



W00DY