Cameras

[Sun Tzu]

I am not a techie so you guys into this stuff cut me some slack. I have a 3.2 MP Sony camera I bought 2 or 3 years ago. Seems to work fine but in this day and age 3 years old might as well be a hundred years. Today at Best Buy I saw there are now 7.2 MP cameras out there at $3-400. With a baby now it seems pictures are more important than ever.

Is what I have good enough, or are the new cameras worth the extra jack?

I also have about a 5 year old Sony Video Recorder. Spent a fortune for it. They are better and cheaper now of course. Same deal..

And if I buy,what do I get? I have a Sony lpatop with built in slots for memory sticks so i am partial, but will listen...

 

[dawgball]

If you want to upgrade your pocket camera, I will suggest the Canon SD400. I believe you can get it around $200-250.

a 3.2 mp camera will be perfectly sufficient for what you are doing more than likely. What higher megapixels allow you to do is to enlarge prints without losing any quality. I believe a 3.2 megapixel camera will carry you up to an 8x10 print (I could be off on this). Most people will never make a larger print than this, so the higher megapixels is a waste.

You should only upgrade if you are not happy with what you are getting from your current product. There will always be bigger, better, faster products coming out so don't chase your tail with it.

btw, 7.2 megapixels is complete tech-overload for damn near 100% of consumers.

www.cnet.com is my favorite website to look up reviews for tech products.

 

[BleedDodgerBlue]

just buy a decent camcorder. i just bought a sony dvd92. spent around 600 on it. records on the mini dvds. it also takes stills if that's your thing. weighs about 2 pounds and its the size of an apple. you can take regular pictures with it as well and print those after you upload it to your computer. if you are gonna spend 4 or 5 on a camera, might as well get a camcorder capable of stills. especially with a baby. just my opinion.

 

[saint]

My take on 7mp cameras...they will only be of use if you are going to be blowing up your pictures to very large scale. If not, you can get by with what you have or go w/ a 5mp. I have the small 5mp canon, SD500 I believe.

www.dpreview.com is a good site for camera reviews.

 

[Sun Tzu]

Thanks.

BDB that is actually what i got originally on my 5 year old Sony camcorder (still capability) but the stills are crap for prints. Looked great on the computer or tv screen though. So how is the still quality on that thing?

 

[BleedDodgerBlue]

Thanks.

BDB that is actually what i got originally on my 5 year old Sony camcorder (still capability) but the stills are crap for prints. Looked great on the computer or tv screen though. So how is the still quality on that thing?

not too bad. haven't used it that much. more interested in the dvd part for my needs. took a couple stills and look good on computer, but haven't even printed em yet, so can't give you an honest answer. probably not as good as a digitial camera, but probably better than an older camcorder. if you get good printer and good paper i'm sure it can do.


gl with whatever you decide

 

[vanbasten]

sun,

everyone's pretty much nailed it.

as long as your 3.2 is giving you the quality pix you want, no need to upgrade. i have the same 3.2 as you, which i use at work. uploads great pix and prints great pix. (btw, if you aren't already printing your own photo's and want to, i suggest the hp 8050 photoprinter. lab quality in minutes. prints from laptop or from memory stick).

i also have the sony 7.2 for myself. it is a little overkill. i keep it set at 3 mp most of the time. if i use the 7.2, and want to send photo's via email, the higher the resolution, the bigger the file, and the longer it takes to email them. i never print larger than 8 X 10, most of the time i'm printing 4 X 6, and the 3.2 setting gets me quailty at both these sizes.

only benefit of the sony 7.2 is the size of the camera. our 3.2 looks a little clunky compared to most these days.

agree with bdb, if you want to upgrade something. i'd upgrade the video camera. sony handycam dvd camcorder (mini dvd's). size is great, quality is nice, and the ease of use is awesome. a/v jacks allow immediate hookup and playback on tv's. usb port allows you to upload to computer. the still pix are ok, but your 3.2 will give you better quality stills.

several versions of this sony handycam, from the $600 bdb mentions up to $1000. this is where i'd do some research to see which one fits your needs.