I'm currently considering purchasing a new digital camera. My old one (Kodak Easyshare /C1450) still works okay, but thinking I want to get one that offers a better zoom and better video quality.

Anyone have any suggestions or opinions on what would be one to get? I've tried to research online, but haven't a clue what to look for. I have read that some have a (built-in?) rechargeable battery, but found those were a pain to use...(ie. your battery goes dead when you're out in the middle of no where and no way to recharge it!)

Note that I'm not looking for anything for professional type photography, just an easy "point and shoot" type camera.

Thanks!

 

You have a contradiction in terms. You want zoom capabilities, yet you want "point and shoot". As far as recharging your battery or running with a dead battery, you can always buy a solar charger. The one I have stores enough energy to run my Ipad for a while, so a camera wouldn't be much of a challenge. Check the camera for the mega pixel rating. The higher the better. Look for peripheral ports so you can connect that charger or connect the camera to your TV to show friends on a larger scale. Nikon, Canon and others make a vast array of cameras, so you may just have to shop for the best for your use.

A side note. My phone takes better pictures than some of my older cameras

 

Although it is a digital SLR, the Cannon T5i I have is very good. I feel it is still a point and shoot when you have it in auto modes but you can also go crazy with settings and lenses if you choose. The best part is how fast it is. I can take shot after shot with no waiting for the camera to catch up.

 

What is your budget?

How physically large a camera will you tolerate?

How much zoom do you want?

I'll toss out your concern about internal batteries and charging. Most cameras have internal batteries so you'll not have a choice and it's really not an issue. Most cameras will take at least several hundred photos on a charge. Just get in the habit of charging the camera at night with your phone and you'll have no trouble. I take hundreds+ pictures a day when traveling and have never had a battery issue.

The Kodak Easyshare camera you mentioned is really low end by current standards. Almost any camera you pick today will be a improvement. I would not sweat the details too much but go with what features are important to you.

 

Been using a Canon Powershot SX520HS for a couple of years and really like it. It has a removable Li-ion battery that goes into a wall charger. I have a couple of spares, so I always have power. I'm an old 35mm Canon SLR user but didn't really want to invest the big bucks to go digital SLR.

Our daughter shoots with a Canon DSLR, I think the same model Tolyn mentioned. I started her out with a Canon AE-1 when she was in high school, so she wanted SLR in the digital. Plus she's young and does a LOT of photography; most of my photo days are behind me.

 

You have asked a question that is difficult for anyone to answer.
As already said there is an overwhelming choice of features, sizes and price ranges to choose from.

A suggestion is to go to a hands-on camera department, look at several models and write down prices and model numbers of what you like.
Return with some possibilities for us to pick apart.

The recent effort to help my daughter was wasted when after all my research she told me she wanted a camera that would not take up too much space in her small purse!

 

Thanks everyone for your input. I'm certainly having a difficult time in trying to locate places that even offer many choices in cameras anymore! (I suspect due to many people using smartphones these days to capture their pictures & videos!)
Doesn't help that I'm in a rather smaller community, (Wal-Mart & Shopko are the biggest retailers in this local). I did however, manage to visit a Best Buy (about 50 miles from my home) this past weekend. Guess that's what really spurred me into asking questions. I'm hesitant to try purchasing online. I like to see & feel what I'm buying!lol
But the comment about any other camera being an improvement is spot on! :-) I'll keep on researching, but certainly appreciated the helpful ideas!
Thanks for being such a great community forum!

 

Determining your price range will be the first big cut in the selection process. Do not fear ordering online. Almost no retailers actually repair or service cameras so your local Walmart won't be able to offer you anything other than the convenience of walking into the store. I have good luck purchasing from Amazon as well as from more camera specific retailers like B & H Photo and Adorama. Even if you don't want to purchase online these website often have customer reviews that can be very helpful. You can also read the reviews on DPReviews but because they review so many cameras you may find it easier to search specifically for any cameras you are considering.

 

 

Years ago I bought a Canon point and shoot. It was a great camera and took a lot of pictures. When it finally wore out I bought another Canon simply because I had such good luck with the first one.

One thing to consider as you shop.... There is optical zoom and digital zoom. Optical zoom is how the lens mechanically moves back and forth to frame the pic you want. Digital zoom takes over after the optical zoom hits it's limits. I may have this wrong, but I think digital zoom just makes the pixels bigger so you lose a little clarity as you zoom in.

So... optical zoom good, digital zoom...is OK. Just be aware that as you zoom to the extremes of the zoom range you are probably in digital zoom and the final picture may be slightly grainier.

I hope this makes sense...

My vote is for a Canon P&S that fits your budget.

 

I consider digital zoom in a camera to be useless. It does the same thing as cropping and enlarging using Photoshop or other apps in your computer after downloading the pictures there. Given a picture with so much optical zoom only and a picture of the same subject using a camera with the same megapixels and using the same amount of digital zoom only the digital zoom picture will be much grainier or blurry. On my camera I turned off digital zoom so the maximum zoom is the maximum optical zoom.

Note: Zoom expressed as 4x or 6x or similar is relative to the widest angle view (unzoomed view) for that camera or lens and not necessarily to the view of a different camera or any standard.

I consider an f/3.5 lens (with no zoom in effect) to be a minimum and f/2.8 or faster to be desirable. Good shots indoors or in other low light situations are hard to get unless you have a fast lens. (All lenses "slow down" as you apply optical zoom.)

Most stand alone cameras have much more optical zoom than most phones, although some phones may have enough megapixels of picture quality to partially make up for this.