Wanted: Companion Point and Shoot

August 21, 2008 9:39 AM

I'm looking for a companion point and shoot camera to my much-loved SLR. I'm looking for a camera with a super simple (even dumbed down) interface, a small size so I can keep it in my purse at all times, the ability to easily shoot short movies (very important!), and as cheap as possible. What I don't care about: photo quality.

Any suggestions?

posted by warble to Shopping (17 answers total)

Do you have a cell phone? Does it have a camera in it? That would meet all of your criteria.
posted by amro at 9:46 AM on August 21, 2008

Response by poster: I've thought about upgrading my cell phone if it met these camera requirements (especially the movies part and ease of use). My current cell phone is a kind of a brick. Does anybody have any specific cell phones they could recommend too?
posted by warble at 9:50 AM on August 21, 2008

I'd recommend the Canon PowerShot SD1000.
posted by mattbucher at 9:53 AM on August 21, 2008

Pentax Optio series. I had one a few years ago and it was TINY, these are the cameras that fit inside an Altoids tin. It actually took pretty decent pictures and I'm pretty sure it had a movie mode. I sold mine because I just use my phone for digital snapshots now, they are <$100 on Ebay if I remember right.
posted by bradbane at 9:58 AM on August 21, 2008

I'd agree with mattbucher that the SD1000 is a lovely camera; I carry mine everywhere, and use it daily.

However, if photo quality doesn't matter, this is far too good a camera. Go with the cell phone option and save yourself some space.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 10:01 AM on August 21, 2008

I'll second the Pentax Optio recomendation. I have a Nikon DSLR, and a Pentax Optio as my go-anywhere point and shoot. I've been really pleased with it. I've recommended it to friends and they've been really pleased too.
posted by 2oh1 at 10:20 AM on August 21, 2008

"As cheap as apossible" and not needing amazing photo quality suggests to me something like the Aiptek PenCam (or competitors' products in that niche; I think there are a couple). $30, tiny, shoots brief video if you want. Not too many pixels, but the photo quality is OK regardless. I have one rattling around somewhere and my only gripe is it runs down its batteries even when you're not actively using it (the video storage is RAM-based)— this makes it less suitable for a casual always-with-you camera unless you're in the habit of swapping the batery out and recharging it frequently.

Getting a cameraphone also seems like a good solution to me.
posted by hattifattener at 10:34 AM on August 21, 2008

One more vote for the Canon PowerShot SD1000. I carry it everywhere, and even left my SLR at home during my most recent vacation.
posted by ellenaim at 10:45 AM on August 21, 2008

I disagree with the Optio recommendations. Mine broke while I was putting it back into a soft case. And it had awful image stabilization - many of my shots were blurry and I got used to holding my breath literally in order to take a decent shot.

I'll second the Canon recommendation. The SD1100IS is my new camera and I'm loving it to death. Great shots, excellent image stabilization, I'm very pleased with the videos it produces. The 1100 certainly isn't "as cheap as possible" as it is pretty new, but I have no doubt going down a few rungs to the 1000 or below would be fine and cheaper.
posted by Meagan at 10:56 AM on August 21, 2008

Just about any standard bar-of-soap camera will do the trick if you're not picky about image quality or manual controls. Do get something with IS (image stabilization). Any major brand (Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus, Fuji...) will do you just fine.

Although if you're really looking for 'as cheap as possible', then the Aiptek or any similar off-brand camera might be alright. You might find it pretty limiting compared to the SLR, but people also like Lomos, so why not?
posted by echo target at 11:09 AM on August 21, 2008

Mefi recommended to me the powershot (i got an sd1100IS) and I am super happy with it. Very small, great video quality, easy to use, is droppable, changes the orientation of your images while viewing them when you move your camera ... heh
posted by shownomercy at 11:40 AM on August 21, 2008

Anything in that Canon SD line will probably make you happy. Get a cheaper SD camera if the SD1000/1100 recommendations cost more than you want -- I have an older SD450 and it's fine for your criteria. But this is the brand/line you want.
posted by theredpen at 2:17 PM on August 21, 2008

My only suggestion is to make sure both cameras can use each others memory cards. So if the DSLR takes CF, but the P&S takes SD cards you're going to regret it.
posted by iamabot at 4:03 PM on August 21, 2008

Cell phone cameras are pretty awful still, but it seems like you should be able to find one that will do what you want.

If you want a good standalone point and shoot camera, though, anything in the Canon SD series would work. I love my Canon SD700IS and carry it everywhere, using it almost daily.
posted by gemmy at 4:13 PM on August 21, 2008

Another vote for the Canon Powershot.
posted by diogenes at 5:29 PM on August 21, 2008

I got a Fuji Finepix Z20 a few months ago, and I'm loving it. It's very small and light enough to carry everywhere. The battery life is great; I charged it up before a 3-week trip abroad and it lasted just fine. It's got a single button on top to start taking video, and the quality is more than enough for wacking family vids up on YouTube. The only drawback is that it didn't come with a case, and while the sliding cover on the front protects the lens, there's nothing protecting the beautiful big screen on the back. So I knitted myself a little cotton pouch to keep from scratching it up.
posted by web-goddess at 6:12 PM on August 21, 2008

The Canon SD1000 is great. You can probably get one for about $160 dollars. (I did earlier this week.) There is a newer SD1100, but I don't think it's worth the bump in price. The camera is tiny. Metal body too, which is nice.
posted by chunking express at 7:22 AM on August 22, 2008