So a couple of weeks ago, I decided to buy the Sony Cybershot DSC-N1. It’s a feature rich camera with a 8.1 megapixel sensor, Carl Zeiss lens (as most Sony digital cameras use), video recording functionality, and 3.0″ inch screen. One of the best features, however, is that the screen is touch screen! Sony has eliminated many of the buttons on the back so that the screen can fit and be used as a touch panel at the same time. In addition to that, Sony has designed this camera to be more of a digital photo album on the road. They realized that most people show off their pictures from their digicams with other people, so why not make the camera more presentable? They included slideshow functionality, along with music and some basic paintbrush features - available all from the touch panel.

I was looking for a Christmas gift for my Mom a couple of years ago and she was in need of a new camera. She had a basic film camera from the 80s, so this thing was huge and didn’t necessarily take the best pictures in the world. I figured I would upgrade her to a digital camera and shopped around for quite a while. She just needed a basic point-and-shoot camera to take everyday pictures. I had had great luck with my Canon cameras. They were easy to use and they take great pictures, which would be an easy transition for my mother. Her old camera was a Canon so I figured it would probably be easier than taking on a completely new gadget. I visited Circuit City and Best Buy to see what I could get for the holiday season. I was able to pick up the Canon A400 bundled with a Canon printer for around $200. It seemed like a steal. My Mom would have a camera and something to print her pictures out on.

Digital cameras have been great gadgets for me. I really appreciate instant review and being able to transfer the images to a computer. Previously, using film cameras it was a pain to develop the images which were expensive and at times I would end up developing images I wouldn’t even use. On top of that I do a lot of web work and in order to get the images onto my computer I would have to spend my time scanning them individually. Each scan never really turned out how I wanted it and I would always have to modify the images in Photoshop to get them right. Now my task of taking pictures is much easier as technology has evolved. I started out with a Canon A40 and it was a great camera. It was a little large and it didn’t have rechargeable batteries but it did take good pictures. I then moved on to a Nikon Coolpix 2500. I thought the Canon took better pictures, but this camera had rechargeable batteries and I got a really good deal on it. After that I was looking for a model I could carry in my pocket, one that takes great pictures, and has rechargeable batteries. I went with the Canon SD200 and I was able to pick it up online last year for about $200 which I think now can be purchased for as little as $150.