camera for 7k

[bharat_14101991]

i need to buy i camera for my girlfriend. she likes to take pics of herself. my budget is 7000. n i want a li-on battery in it. please suggest me something.

btw i searched in my budget n got this, is it fine?Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-W530 Digital Camera + Warranty | eBay

also i can get the camera without bill if theres a markable difference in pricing.


thanx

bharat

 

[desiibond]

Sony Cybershot W510
Nikon S2500

 

[bharat_14101991]

Sony Cybershot W510
Nikon S2500

what about the w530? check the link in first post

 

[Sounava]

@bharat: Since she likes to take pics of herself, she will need a camera with a generous wide angle.

So none of the Canon models will do. Because widest they go is 28mm.

The Sony camera you said, i.e. W530 is better with 26mm in the wide end. But the actual cost of the camera is much more, at around 8.8k. I think there is something fishy about the eBay link. In all probability, the camera in eBay comes with dealer warranty, which is basically without warranty. So I will advice you against buying it from that link.

The W310 is also 26mm at the wide end, and costs around 6.7k. So that will fit in your budget.

But, if you listen to me, what I will really suggest you to buy for her is this:
The only camera with Front and Back LCDs by Samsung - PL120 - Compact - Digital Camera | SAMSUNG

Believe me, this camera is specially designed for self portraits with extended arms, which she will do. You will probably get this in 7.5k. So extend your budget by another 500 rupees and go for it. And yes, this also has 26mm in the wide end.

 

[bharat_14101991]

@sounava what if i buy a camera without bill (i.e. no warranty), someone told me that if you buy w/o bill you can save alot, n if sometime your camera gives problem get it repaired from official service center. they do it for some charges< the difference in price cost of with bill n w/o bill (this is for normal repairs n service.)

my dad bought some canon camera, dunno the model, w/o bill. actual price was around 22k but he bought it in 17-18 k (not confirmed but yeah it was too low). and the camera is working great for 2 years now.

what do u suggest?

btw thanx for the samsung camera, looks awesome with the front lcd will check it out in local stores

 

[Sounava]

Well, if you buy your camera without bill from a good store who keeps their goodwill in selling items without bill, you will get a good product. And the rest depends on your luck whether the item will develop some fault or not. Generally digicams do not develop faults as such. So there is always a win in some sorts when buying without warranty.
But when you are gifting a camera, isn't it better to get it with warranty?
Warranty = Peace of mind.

Yes do check out the camera. You can check out the official Samsung Showrooms also. In Kolkata atleast, the official Samsung Showrooms do not overcharge. Their price is in accordance with the other stores.

 

[AcceleratorX]

At flipkart, Kodak Easyshare M575 is available at 7K and M580 at 9K. Maybe you can get these two models cheaper without bill locally.

At the prices you mention, I will recommend nothing else, other than maybe a Panasonic (Maybe the DMC-F2). The Kodak M-series simply kicks most Sony and Samsung competitors out the window. It has a Li-ion batter, 14MP sensor, 5x (M575) or 8x (M580) zoom. It also has a schneider lens.

 

[bharat_14101991]

Well, if you buy your camera without bill from a good store who keeps their goodwill in selling items without bill, you will get a good product. And the rest depends on your luck whether the item will develop some fault or not. Generally digicams do not develop faults as such. So there is always a win in some sorts when buying without warranty.
But when you are gifting a camera, isn't it better to get it with warranty?
Warranty = Peace of mind.

Yes do check out the camera. You can check out the official Samsung Showrooms also. In Kolkata atleast, the official Samsung Showrooms do not overcharge. Their price is in accordance with the other stores.

actually she wont mind it without warranty as i'm the only one who will get it repaired if something goes faulty n i'm insisting on buying without bill because that will increase my range by 1-2k i guess...

At flipkart, Kodak Easyshare M575 is available at 7K and M580 at 9K. Maybe you can get these two models cheaper without bill locally.

At the prices you mention, I will recommend nothing else, other than maybe a Panasonic (Maybe the DMC-F2). The Kodak M-series simply kicks most Sony and Samsung competitors out the window. It has a Li-ion batter, 14MP sensor, 5x (M575) or 8x (M580) zoom. It also has a schneider lens.

thanx alot for the suggestion... will check these too..

 

[AcceleratorX]

Regarding the suggestion of Samsung PL120, I've tried the PL150 (slightly better camera with the same features) and the front LCD feature is really cool. However, the image quality just isn't up to what the Kodak models produce.

It's actually a pretty good camera on par with any Sony (it's comparable to DSC-W370) in terms of image quality (of course you get two LCD displays, one on the front and one on the back), but the M575/580 is just better value as it produces better images.

So, the decision is up to you - better images or more features.

 

[Sounava]

AcceleratorX: Please provide review links of the Kodak cameras you mentioned. Or give full size image links of pictures taken by the camera at different ISOs. Otherwise I will not believe what you say. Your views seem quite biased rather than based on concrete facts.

The Kodak M-series simply kicks most Sony and Samsung competitors out the window. It has a Li-ion batter, 14MP sensor, 5x (M575) or 8x (M580) zoom.

So what does it matter whether it has Li-ion battery or such and such zoom lens? Who said other cameras don't have these?

It also has a schneider lens.

Doesn't matter. Do understand Kodak now stands nowhere near the competition. Sony, Samsung, Panasonic, Olympus apart from Nikon and Canon are spending millions in camera research and the cameras and lenses they are now producing are simply great. Like I said, please give me review links where it distinctly states that it kicks the ass out of Sony and other cameras.

M575/580 is just better value as it produces better images.

Proof please.
And don't get me wrong. I am not saying the Kodak cameras are not good. I am simply saying that you are sounding too biased. So give me proper reviews and then I will apologise and accept your points.


And Bharat, in that case you can surely go and buy without warranty as then you will save quite a lot. No problem in that. But make sure you buy from a reputed shop. Like in Kolkata there are 3 shops who have amazing goodwill in selling photography stuff without warranty. One can practically buy from these 3 stores eyes closed.



Oh and I forgot to mention: Both the Kodak cameras have 28mm at the wide end and will be more or less unusable for self portraits with extended hands.

 

[bharat_14101991]

^^^^^ yeah i will go for a reputed shop,i have bought 4 cameras from them, so i know they are good.

btw i'm thinking to go for cybershot w530. i will check out the ebay link if that smells good then i will buy from ebay else will check that out in local store. am i making the right choice?

EDIT: i guess the seller on ebay is fine, he has 98.5% feedback n total feedbacks >3000.. so i think this seller can be trusted.

 

[AcceleratorX]

@Sounava: Just check the reviews of the M580 at about.com, steve's digicams, and pcmag. You will see it received the editor's choice at PC Mag, which rates it even above Canon's IXUS 130 (SD1400IS).

Here are some comparison shots to begin with:

CANONS 870 980 1400 KODAK M590 PANASONIC ZS3 TESTPHOTOS - Photographs from PanoramaBob, Bob Thompson | SmugMug

(Note that the Canon SD1400IS = Ixus 130. You can see the image quality is quite comparable. The author made an error, the listed camera is M590 but the images are from M580 - this can be checked by seeing the image properties. Also note that the Kodak camera has somewhat different colours - this is due to some proprietary color tweaking in all Kodak cameras. Whether you like it or not is upto you).

Some other reviews just to name a few:

Kodak EasyShare M580 Review - A Review of the Kodak EasyShare M580 Camera
Kodak EasyShare M580 Review & Rating | PCMag.com
Kodak M580 Review: Steve'S Conclusion

There are somewhat bad reviews too: From PhotographyBLOG, mainly. But you can find somewhat bad reviews about the W310 too, for example:

*www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/W310/W310A.HTM

That's not to say that the camera really is that bad. But the fact is that PC Magazine used the Kodak M580's scores as a benchmark to compare cameras in the price range.

Heck, PC Magazine even put a comparable canon model against it and found it worse in some respects and better in other respects. In fact, PC Magazine actually recommends the M580 over the Canon SD1400IS (IXUS 130):

*www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2374575,00.asp

The $230 PowerShot SD1400 IS is great choice if you're a Canon devotee who wants a truly small camera that's easy to use and pumps out good-looking images. If you care less about size and more about features including a lens with twice the zoom factor, try the less-expensive ($200) Editor's Choice Kodak EasyShare M580.

Earlier model Kodaks were not good, but the M580 certainly is. Given the features found at the price, I would recommend it any day (the M575 is just an M580 with less zoom). The fact is that all vendors have to adapt to survive in the market. Samsung has no background in optics, yet it sells a very large number of cameras. This is simply because of efforts being put by everyone - that includes Kodak.

The fact is that every vendor has a good model and a bad model out right now. The notion of a camera being good because it's a Canon or bad because it's a Samsung simply has to be thrown out the window. At any price point, one needs to look for the better model. I just found these two Kodaks to offer maximum features and good image quality at this price range.

BTW: Lens does matter. Schneider-Kreuznach, Carl Zeiss and Leica DC are all ancient and well-known names in optics. Most cameras using these lenses are above average at the very least. A lot of Sonys use the Carl Zeiss lens. Ever compared a Carl Zeiss Sony camera with a non-Carl Zeiss Sony camera? It's quite the difference, but only if you look carefully.

To be fair, most Canon, Olympus and Nikkor (Nikon) lenses are also pretty excellent. But, if you have a choice - go for a premium lens, but also look at other features as image processors and the camera specifications also matter just as much in deciding the final image quality.

As for why I said it "kicks" the Sony and Samsung cameras: You will see that the above reviews say that the Kodak has reasonably low noise levels upto ISO 400. This is not the case for most Sony and Samsung cameras in this price range: noise levels remain statistically low only upto ISO 240 or so. This may not be such a big deal but in a cloudy day, one may just notice a big difference in the images produced.

 

[Sounava]

@bharat: Ok then...


@accelerator: Thanks for the links and stuff. Will surely go through them tomorrow and report back.

Although I will say reviews of about.com don't have any credibility. Will surely check the reviews of the other sites.

Samsung has no background in optics, yet it sells a very large number of cameras.

Dude, Samsung has no background in optics because it is a relatively new company.
But Samsung, Panasonic and Olympus are jointly developing and pushing forward the micro-fourthirds with their bevy of cameras and MFT lenses. And they are really good. They are putting huge amount of money in research.

The notion of a camera being good because it's a Canon or bad because it's a Samsung simply has to be thrown out the window. At any price point, one needs to look for the better model.

Of course. Who contradicted.

BTW: Lens does matter. Schneider-Kreuznach, Carl Zeiss and Leica DC are all ancient and well-known names in optics. Most cameras using these lenses are above average at the very least. A lot of Sonys use the Carl Zeiss lens. Ever compared a Carl Zeiss Sony camera with a non-Carl Zeiss Sony camera? It's quite the difference, but only if you look carefully.

Lens DOES matter, but not that much in case of point and shoots. They surely matter in case of DSLRs.
And Samsung also used Schneider lenses in their point and shoots. Don't know what they use now.
Sony used Carl Zeiss lenses previously, but now they have expanded their lens manufacturing from only SLR lenses to compact lenses too, and are making their own compact lenses, termed as Sony G Lens, and they are in no way inferior to other lenses.
Leica is the Holy Grail of lenses and Panasonic uses them.
But like I said, in point and shoots, difference in image quality does not happen due to lenses that much. Maybe some CA can appear in some lenses in high contrast situation or something like that, but image sharpness does not matter for point and shoots w.r.t. lenses.

To be fair, most Canon, Olympus and Nikkor (Nikon) lenses are also pretty excellent. But, if you have a choice - go for a premium lens, but also look at other features as image processors and the camera specifications also matter just as much in deciding the final image quality.

The main thing in point and shoots is the Noise performance. Other things will match up, no problem in them.

As for why I said it "kicks" the Sony and Samsung cameras: You will see that the above reviews say that the Kodak has reasonably low noise levels upto ISO 400. This is not the case for most Sony and Samsung cameras in this price range: noise levels remain statistically low only upto ISO 240 or so. This may not be such a big deal but in a cloudy day, one may just notice a big difference in the images produced.

Will see and then comment. Like I previously said, I never said Kodak is bad. I just need proofs to accept the facts.

The reason I recommend Samsung is because they now produce extremely good cameras. Their WB600 or some similar model won the best travelzoom in dpreview.
Sony HX9V recently is getting nice reviews.
I generally don't trust Nikon in point and shoots, but lately they are churning out some nice models like the S9100 and the P300.

HX9V and P300 both take good images till ISO 1600, really a feat for point and shoots. So yeah, will check the links and then I will comment again.

 

[AcceleratorX]

The reason I recommend Samsung is because they now produce extremely good cameras. Their WB600 or some similar model won the best travelzoom in dpreview.

WB series uses Schneider lenses. ST series use a better image processing algorithm. Cameras from these ranges produce much better images than the PL series or the ES series. I have a PL150 right here and I can tell you that it's image quality cannot touch the WB600 (too much noise). That is why I have reservations about getting a Samsung camera in this price range. At the 11K+ range, I'd probably recommend a Samsung over anything else.

You can read the reviews - it is at least clear that the Kodaks are competitive, if not better.

Sony used Carl Zeiss lenses previously, but now they have expanded their lens manufacturing from only SLR lenses to compact lenses too, and are making their own compact lenses, termed as Sony G Lens, and they are in no way inferior to other lenses.

Sony now makes three different types of lenses: Sony lens, Sony G and Carl Zeiss (yes, the CZ is made by Sony). The plain "Sony lens" is their low-grade lens while the Carl Zeiss and Sony G are high quality lenses comparable to each other.

The lens does matter even in a point and shoot because it determines the levels and thresholds of purple fringing, barrel distortion, centre and corner sharpness, etc. (but as you said the sharpness may not be a huge issue for a P&S).

The plain "Sony lens" as well as the "Lumix Vario" lens (instead of Leica DC) used in certain Sony and Panasonic cameras exhibit large amounts of barrel distortion, which, in some cases, can be easily seen in the final image (in a lot of cases, the camera will cover this up by doing some processing - I think some Samsung cameras are doing this, but am not sure).

 

[bharat_14101991]

hey guyz i searched the market here... they said the company have changed the policies and they cant sell without bill now... so i'm stuck with the original m.r.ps (subtract 500 to mrp).
my question here is, is w530 much better than w510?
cause now only w510 is in my range (6600), if theres a much significant difference i will have to increase my budget somehow.

also what about w520? is has 25mm at the wide end (w530 has 26mm) and better features than w510

 

[krishnandu.sarkar]

I've Sony W530, and yes it costs 8800/- nothing more nothing less.

And I'm quite happy with the product, picture quality is nice in that price range.

 

[bharat_14101991]

but sir my budget is 7000.. last year i bought a camera for dad in 16000 without bill, itz mrp was more than 22k. but now they are saying that they cant sell without bill.

do you know any online site to get camera?

 

[Sounava]

The W520 is also out of your budget @ 7.8k with warranty. So I guess W510 will be your only option.

If you want to buy online you can check flipkart or letsbuy.

 

[Scientia Wiz]

Check t out on Naaptol.com

 

[bharat_14101991]

i'm getting w520 in 7.4k... i can raise 400 rs... but is it worth? n better than 510?

EDIT:
SONY CYBERSHOT DSC-W530 DIGICAM + WARRANTY | eBay
w530 in 7200... yippy...

but one more confusion, w530 has 26mm wide end(CZ lens) optical zoom of 4x but w520 has 25mm wide end (with sony lens) n optical zoom of 5x... which one is better?