My older mother needs a very simple but cool camera

August 28, 2012 11:41 PM

Very Simple Camera For Older Person

I'd love to buy my mother a digital camera but she is the opposite of tech capable. As tech moves so fast, I ignored posts more than two years old and after looking them over...I found nothing. So, simple camera for a tech-phobe.

For example, I've been looking at the cute cameras for kids and seriously considering them. I'm a nut for the Panasonic Lumix line. She refuses to let me spend more than $100, and while I could get her a lumix for less than that, It'sreally too much. She basically wants a camera like on a cellphone (yep, she has one, don't even go there...this must be seperate) with easy to see buttons, will take pretty pics without having to pick f stops scene selection and tiny prompts for it all. Tiny button will not do.

Could this camera possibly exit?

Truthfully for her, cute trumps function. I can deal with that ( Studied photo in college but simple digi? haven't followed the trends.)

Point is, I know too much about what I'd like her to have. Okay, not really, I shot my whole senior project on a 4x5...i reluctantly own a digital camera for...some reason. I don't use it and would just send it to her...butbutbut...I am wrong. Simple simple simple. And hopefully cute. She'd prefer it to be orange. (not an important bit, but including to explain her level of interest.)

I want to get her a simple camera that she can pull out the card in her little town and take to Fred Meyer (or wherever, NOTFREDMEYERIST) where a capable person can help her get pics or a cd back.

FYI- I in no way mean to imply that my mother is not the coolest, smartest raddest person who ever raised me or my brother or most of the kids in town who needed refuge from bumbling or plain bad lame parents. this is how she phrases it to me. She's a painter and really doesn't care for technology, and her eyes are not what they once were. she wants a cute tool. I want her to take pictures again. hope me.

posted by metasav to technology (7 answers total)

Get her a PowerShot. I've linked that one because it comes in at just under a hundred bucks. They're super easy to use. Simple simple simple, and great 'hand-feel' too.
posted by trip and a half at 12:31 AM on August 29, 2012

We got my 13-year-old son this 16MP Lumix camera; it's teenager-proof, waterproof, and the full auto mode (enabled by default) works like a charm, even automatically focuses on faces and such.

As a bonus it comes in bright colors so it's easy to find in a bag, and has a separate video recording button so you can easily record photos and video without having to do any switching between camera modes & such.

That said, a lot of the current digicams out there have equally simple controls- maybe it's time to swing by Costco and take a look at some in person?
posted by AaronRaphael at 1:17 AM on August 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

Something to consider - if she wears reading glasses, but not bifocals, she may prefer a camera with a viewfinder to one that requires you to use the preview screen.
posted by mr vino at 4:17 AM on August 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

It really is a shame there aren't regular cameras with the same form factor as the currently pricey Lytro.

I mean look at that thing. It's perfect... just a big fat button that you click to take a picture. Point at a thing, push the button.
posted by odinsdream at 6:23 AM on August 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

Might this one work? Fairly cheap, nice big shutter button, optical viewfinder so you don't have to deal with the screen if you don't want to. Takes AA batteries so you don't have to deal with a charger.
posted by thegears at 1:09 PM on August 29, 2012

Well, the Clap camera comes in orange and is pretty cute but it might be too small/simple even for her.
posted by clerestory at 12:31 AM on August 30, 2012

In my experience, the quality of Canon's point-and-shoot cameras are unparalleled at virtually any price level, though they will usually be slightly more expensive ($10-50 more is typical) than their competitors. Get her the closest Canon PowerShot to $100 that you can find. I'm sure that the one linked above will be fine.
posted by stleric at 10:43 PM on September 3, 2012