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#1
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Is there any camera on earth meeting 4 simple requirements (AA,CF,7x)
MY QUESTION:
Can there not be a camera on earth that meets these 4 simple goals? - AA batteries - Good photo quality - 7x to 10x optical zoom - CF media I ask for your help in that I've only found ONE camera which comes close to meeting these 4 simple (and, I'd bet, pretty univerally held) requirements: - AA batteries (never again will I buy electronics with battery packs!) - Excellent picture quality (I trust in Consumer Reports measurements) - 7x - 10x optical zoom (equivalent to about 200 mm or more) - Compact Flash media (I already have many CF cards & PCMCIA readers) Searching endlessly, I can only find one camera coming close: - Canon Powershot S1 IS (3.2 MP) But I'd like a 5 megapixel or larger (for enlargements if needed). Also this digital camera doesn't have a macro capability. (Ad copy says it can focus at 4 inches so that seems like a built-in macro non-macro to me ... what do you think)? Is there any AA,CF,7x, camera with good photo quality on earth? Susan Henderson |
#2
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Its terminally stupid to be limiting your choices with
that silly requirement that it must use AA batterys. "Susan (Graphic Artist)" wrote in message oups.com... MY QUESTION: Can there not be a camera on earth that meets these 4 simple goals? - AA batteries - Good photo quality - 7x to 10x optical zoom - CF media I ask for your help in that I've only found ONE camera which comes close to meeting these 4 simple (and, I'd bet, pretty univerally held) requirements: - AA batteries (never again will I buy electronics with battery packs!) More fool you. - Excellent picture quality (I trust in Consumer Reports measurements) - 7x - 10x optical zoom (equivalent to about 200 mm or more) - Compact Flash media (I already have many CF cards & PCMCIA readers) Searching endlessly, I can only find one camera coming close: - Canon Powershot S1 IS (3.2 MP) But I'd like a 5 megapixel or larger (for enlargements if needed). Also this digital camera doesn't have a macro capability. (Ad copy says it can focus at 4 inches so that seems like a built-in macro non-macro to me ... what do you think)? Is there any AA,CF,7x, camera with good photo quality on earth? Susan Henderson |
#3
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Rod Speed wrote:
Its terminally stupid to be limiting your choices with that silly requirement that it must use AA batterys. I think I understand your point about AA batteries. One the one hand, the battery has nothing to do with the pictures. So, you are correct. I am an idiot for making AA a requirement. On the other hand, when I vacation, I carry with me: - a Nikon CoolPix 5700 (which needs at least 2 proprietary batteries) - a JVC video camera (which needs at least 2 proprietary batteries) - a Garmin GPS unit (which takes AA batteries) - a Maglight flashlight (which takes AA batteries) etc. That means I have to carry additional batteries (one or two are never enough as you well know) and of course I need to carry separate additional battery chargers and I can't substitute one for the other and (much worse) I can't stop at the local A&P to pick up an emergency battery if I need to. Add the fact that battery packs (by their electrical nature of positive-minus butt-to-nose abutment) ALWAYS go bad (one cell reverse polarizes) and, therefore, need to be constantly replaced at an exhorbitant cost (NiMH cost about two bucks ... try to get a battery pack for a camera for two bucks). Add to that the waste to the earth's resources (personally I think the government should mandate single-cell batteries in all electronics in a save-the-landfill effort like they mandate the 5 cents per soda waste-return program). And the horrid cost! Recently I paid over $75 dollars retail for the JVC replacement battery (the only one in the store was the Everready Energizer ERC620 camcorder battery). Now for paying $75 for a stinkin' battery, you _can_ call me a terminally stupid idiot! I could have purchased a fifty pound car battery for that much. End result: I am never again buying any electronics that does not take single-cell rechargable batteries! I'm sure I'm not the only one so please come to my defence if you agree, so we can get back to the photographic equipment question at hand. Are these really the only three digital cameras on earth that take single-cell batteries and have decent picture quality, zoom, and compact flash cards? - $350, 3MP, 10x zoom, Canon PowerShot S1IS I takes AA batteries native - $550, 5MP, 8x zoom, Nikon CoolPix 5700 is $150 more for AA batteries - $800, 8MP, 7x zoom, DiMAGE Minolta A2 is maybe $100 more for AA? Susan Henderson |
#4
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Susan (Graphic Artist) wrote:
Rod Speed wrote: Its terminally stupid to be limiting your choices with that silly requirement that it must use AA batterys. I think I understand your point about AA batteries. One the one hand, the battery has nothing to do with the pictures. So, you are correct. I am an idiot for making AA a requirement. On the other hand, when I vacation, I carry with me: - a Nikon CoolPix 5700 (which needs at least 2 proprietary batteries) - a JVC video camera (which needs at least 2 proprietary batteries) - a Garmin GPS unit (which takes AA batteries) - a Maglight flashlight (which takes AA batteries) etc. That means I have to carry additional batteries (one or two are never enough as you well know) and of course I need to carry separate additional battery chargers and I can't substitute one for the other and (much worse) I can't stop at the local A&P to pick up an emergency battery if I need to. Add the fact that battery packs (by their electrical nature of positive-minus butt-to-nose abutment) ALWAYS go bad (one cell reverse polarizes) and, therefore, need to be constantly replaced at an exhorbitant cost (NiMH cost about two bucks ... try to get a battery pack for a camera for two bucks). Add to that the waste to the earth's resources (personally I think the government should mandate single-cell batteries in all electronics in a save-the-landfill effort like they mandate the 5 cents per soda waste-return program). And the horrid cost! Recently I paid over $75 dollars retail for the JVC replacement battery (the only one in the store was the Everready Energizer ERC620 camcorder battery). Now for paying $75 for a stinkin' battery, you _can_ call me a terminally stupid idiot! I could have purchased a fifty pound car battery for that much. End result: I am never again buying any electronics that does not take single-cell rechargable batteries! I'm sure I'm not the only one so please come to my defence if you agree, so we can get back to the photographic equipment question at hand. Are these really the only three digital cameras on earth that take single-cell batteries and have decent picture quality, zoom, and compact flash cards? - $350, 3MP, 10x zoom, Canon PowerShot S1IS I takes AA batteries native - $550, 5MP, 8x zoom, Nikon CoolPix 5700 is $150 more for AA batteries - $800, 8MP, 7x zoom, DiMAGE Minolta A2 is maybe $100 more for AA? Susan Henderson It would seem that way. Camera manufacturers are much more concerned with profits than user convenience. They see the lithium ion batteries as a profit opportunity, and a design convenience. CF cards aren't all that big, so I see little advantage to the other types of cards unless the camera is REALLY small, but the smaller components are another design convenience, and smaller usually means cheaper. It seems you will be forced to compromise, as I did, and buy something with AA batteries and SD cards... Lots of options when you make the CF/SD card compromise. -- Ron Hunter |
#5
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"Susan (Graphic Artist)" wrote:
On the other hand, when I vacation, I carry with me: - a Nikon CoolPix 5700 (which needs at least 2 proprietary batteries) - a JVC video camera (which needs at least 2 proprietary batteries) - a Garmin GPS unit (which takes AA batteries) - a Maglight flashlight (which takes AA batteries) You can save more space than the extra batteries if you leave the video camera at home, and replace the GPS unit with a map, a compass, and a willingness to ask locals for directions. As far as your 4 requirements for a camera, you can go even simpler by selecting a camera that does not use batteries, and uses the most common type of media there is: film. Going to this lower common denominator means that you can buy lenses with excellent optics, fulfilling your the other two requirements easily and at a lower cost. |
#6
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Susan (Graphic Artist) wrote in message oups.com... Rod Speed wrote Its terminally stupid to be limiting your choices with that silly requirement that it must use AA batterys. I think I understand your point about AA batteries. One the one hand, the battery has nothing to do with the pictures. So, you are correct. I am an idiot for making AA a requirement. Basically because it limits your choice of camera so drastically. On the other hand, when I vacation, I carry with me: - a Nikon CoolPix 5700 (which needs at least 2 proprietary batteries) - a JVC video camera (which needs at least 2 proprietary batteries) - a Garmin GPS unit (which takes AA batteries) - a Maglight flashlight (which takes AA batteries) etc. That means I have to carry additional batteries (one or two are never enough as you well know) and of course I need to carry separate additional battery chargers and I can't substitute one for the other and (much worse) I can't stop at the local A&P to pick up an emergency battery if I need to. Add the fact that battery packs (by their electrical nature of positive-minus butt-to-nose abutment) ALWAYS go bad (one cell reverse polarizes) and, therefore, need to be constantly replaced at an exhorbitant cost (NiMH cost about two bucks ... try to get a battery pack for a camera for two bucks). Sure, its certainly desirable to use standard batterys, AA or AAA, and I do that when I can, but not when it limits your choice of model so drastically. Add to that the waste to the earth's resources (personally I think the government should mandate single-cell batteries in all electronics in a save-the-landfill effort like they mandate the 5 cents per soda waste-return program). That approach has its own environmental downsides. And the horrid cost! Recently I paid over $75 dollars retail for the JVC replacement battery (the only one in the store was the Everready Energizer ERC620 camcorder battery). Now for paying $75 for a stinkin' battery, you _can_ call me a terminally stupid idiot! You're likely to be paying at least that much extra when you demand a camera that takes take single-cell rechargable standard format batteries. I could have purchased a fifty pound car battery for that much. Irrelevant. End result: I am never again buying any electronics that does not take single-cell rechargable batteries! Then you will drastically limit the your choice with some items like cameras. I'm sure I'm not the only one so please come to my defence if you agree, I dont. so we can get back to the photographic equipment question at hand. It makes a lot more sense to just accept that there are few cameras available that take single-cell rechargable standard format batteries Are these really the only three digital cameras on earth that take single-cell batteries and have decent picture quality, zoom, and compact flash cards? Who knows ? Who cares ? - $350, 3MP, 10x zoom, Canon PowerShot S1IS I takes AA batteries native - $550, 5MP, 8x zoom, Nikon CoolPix 5700 is $150 more for AA batteries - $800, 8MP, 7x zoom, DiMAGE Minolta A2 is maybe $100 more for AA? Surely even you can see that demanding AA batterys would be costing you more than a spare battery pack with the last two ? |
#7
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Rod Speed wrote:
Its terminally stupid to be limiting your choices with that silly requirement that it must use AA batterys. "Susan (Graphic Artist)" wrote in message oups.com... MY QUESTION: Can there not be a camera on earth that meets these 4 simple goals? - AA batteries - Good photo quality - 7x to 10x optical zoom - CF media I ask for your help in that I've only found ONE camera which comes close to meeting these 4 simple (and, I'd bet, pretty univerally held) requirements: - AA batteries (never again will I buy electronics with battery packs!) More fool you. Actually extremely sensible. There is a lot to be said for standard form factor equipment. If the camera uses a standard form factor battery such as AA you can use NiMh rechargeables and if you should get in a situation where you deplete the rechargeables and charging is not available you can easily pop in a set of akaline batterys which even if you weren't carrying them as a spare can be purchased most anywhere. - Excellent picture quality (I trust in Consumer Reports measurements) - 7x - 10x optical zoom (equivalent to about 200 mm or more) - Compact Flash media (I already have many CF cards & PCMCIA readers) Searching endlessly, I can only find one camera coming close: - Canon Powershot S1 IS (3.2 MP) But I'd like a 5 megapixel or larger (for enlargements if needed). Also this digital camera doesn't have a macro capability. (Ad copy says it can focus at 4 inches so that seems like a built-in macro non-macro to me ... what do you think)? Is there any AA,CF,7x, camera with good photo quality on earth? Susan Henderson |
#8
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"George" wrote in message ... Rod Speed wrote: Its terminally stupid to be limiting your choices with that silly requirement that it must use AA batterys. "Susan (Graphic Artist)" wrote in message oups.com... MY QUESTION: Can there not be a camera on earth that meets these 4 simple goals? - AA batteries - Good photo quality - 7x to 10x optical zoom - CF media I ask for your help in that I've only found ONE camera which comes close to meeting these 4 simple (and, I'd bet, pretty univerally held) requirements: - AA batteries (never again will I buy electronics with battery packs!) More fool you. Actually extremely sensible. There is a lot to be said for standard form factor equipment. If the camera uses a standard form factor battery such as AA you can use NiMh rechargeables and if you should get in a situation where you deplete the rechargeables and charging is not available you can easily pop in a set of akaline batterys which even if you weren't carrying them as a spare can be purchased most anywhere. I wouldn't pop in alkalines, camera would kill them in short order. I'd at least try to find one time use lithium batteries. |
#9
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Bill 2 wrote:
"George" wrote: Actually extremely sensible. There is a lot to be said for standard form factor equipment. If the camera uses a standard form factor battery such as AA you can use NiMh rechargeables and if you should get in a situation where you deplete the rechargeables and charging is not available you can easily pop in a set of akaline batterys which even if you weren't carrying them as a spare can be purchased most anywhere. I wouldn't pop in alkalines, camera would kill them in short order. I'd at least try to find one time use lithium batteries. They're not dead, just no longer useful for high-drain applications. They'll do fine in radios etc. Useful URLs that nobody has mentioned so far: http://www.steves-digicams.com/hardware_reviews.html http://www.dpreview.com/ http://www.thomas-distributing.com http://www.thomas-distributing.com/m...-batteries.htm -- Cheers, Bev --------------------------------------------- "The primary purpose of any government entity is to employ the unemployable." |
#10
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George wrote in message ... Rod Speed wrote Its terminally stupid to be limiting your choices with that silly requirement that it must use AA batterys. Susan (Graphic Artist) wrote MY QUESTION: Can there not be a camera on earth that meets these 4 simple goals? - AA batteries - Good photo quality - 7x to 10x optical zoom - CF media I ask for your help in that I've only found ONE camera which comes close to meeting these 4 simple (and, I'd bet, pretty univerally held) requirements: - AA batteries (never again will I buy electronics with battery packs!) More fool you. Actually extremely sensible. Nope, not when it limits the choice of camera to just one camera it isnt. There is a lot to be said for standard form factor equipment. If the camera uses a standard form factor battery such as AA you can use NiMh rechargeables and if you should get in a situation where you deplete the rechargeables and charging is not available you can easily pop in a set of akaline batterys which even if you weren't carrying them as a spare can be purchased most anywhere. Pity about the dismal choice of camera if you require it uses AA batterys and that particular media card. - Excellent picture quality (I trust in Consumer Reports measurements) - 7x - 10x optical zoom (equivalent to about 200 mm or more) - Compact Flash media (I already have many CF cards & PCMCIA readers) Searching endlessly, I can only find one camera coming close: - Canon Powershot S1 IS (3.2 MP) But I'd like a 5 megapixel or larger (for enlargements if needed). Also this digital camera doesn't have a macro capability. (Ad copy says it can focus at 4 inches so that seems like a built-in macro non-macro to me ... what do you think)? Is there any AA,CF,7x, camera with good photo quality on earth? |
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