Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Photography knowledge exchange.

Moderator: Scott Waters

Post Reply
User avatar
jonathan
Posts: 3689
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 8:39 am
Contact:

Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by jonathan »

My camera is getting old and needs to be replaced. For several years now I've been satisfied with the Canon SX110 and SX120. The 10x zoom seemed great to me, but now I notice that a lot more zoom is available in my price range.

I've been looking at the reviews here for point-and-shoots that pack a lot of zoom, but most of them are a little higher-end than I can afford. Out here in India, I don't have every camera available locally, and my budget limitations keep me in the $150-250 range.

The biggest factor is probably the photo quality, especially for low-light, macro, or action shots. But I'm also interested in the tradeoff between the huge zooms available now, versus size and compactness. Is getting a 30x camera worth lugging around that big thing (sometimes I'm in situations where I would prefer a little discreetness)? Right now I'm leaning towards something smaller (perhaps the Canon SX160) unless someone convinces me that something else takes better photos.

I know to some degree those are personal questions, but I wanted to at least narrow down my options so I really can compare the pros and cons and make a good decision here. What would you guys recommend regarding the following cameras:

high-zoom (10x to 16x)

Canon Powershot SX 160 IS
Canon IXUS 25
Canon IXUS 510
Nikon Coolpix S 800C
Nikon Coolpix S 6500


ultra-zoom (26x to 35x)

Canon Powershot SX500IS
Nikon Coolpix L820
Sony DSC H300
Sony DSC H200
Fuji S4500


If there's a good camera I didn't mention here, which fits into my price range and is better than all this stuff, I'd love to hear about it too but I'm not sure I'll be able to find it locally. Thank you much!
User avatar
justinm
Posts: 3423
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 5:26 am
Location: Illinois
Contact:

Re: Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by justinm »

I would add the panasonic Lumix line to what you're looking at. I've been really impressed by the Lumix line.
rtdunham
Posts: 219
Joined: January 11th, 2011, 2:43 pm

Re: Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by rtdunham »

justinm wrote:I would add the panasonic Lumix line to what you're looking at. I've been really impressed by the Lumix line.
I second that.
User avatar
soulsurvivor
Posts: 530
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 9:09 am
Location: NE Florida
Contact:

Re: Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by soulsurvivor »

I think the Lumix is out of his price range. I recently looked at them and they were about $350. I ended up buying a Fujifilm S8200 on sale for under $250. I'm happy with it so far. Awesome zoom and clarity.
User avatar
chrish
Posts: 3295
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 11:14 pm
Location: San Antonio, TX
Contact:

Re: Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by chrish »

Have you used the compare feature on dpreview? It allows you to compare the features of camera side by side.

Go to dpreview, choose buying guide, then choose "Camera side-by-side compare" and you can compare up to 20 cameras at once.

If I was interested in these things I would make a list of what priorities I had (image quality, high ISO image quality, macro capability, flash capability, zoom range) and then see which of those camera have that capacity in my price range.

Maybe not a very helpful answer, but remember you aren't likely to find anyone who has used more than one or two of these cameras themselves. That's why I like the comparison sites.
User avatar
jonathan
Posts: 3689
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 8:39 am
Contact:

Re: Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by jonathan »

No chrish, that was a really helpful answer. I've used dpreview before but wasn't aware of that feature.

What I was mostly looking for was something like, "Camera X takes far better photos than camera Y", or "Both suck in low light, but Y is significantly better", for anyone who had used any two cameras on the list. Or just a great recommendation for one of them.

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS25 might be cheap enough for me to consider. I'll have to go looking for it to see if it is available here. One other camera I'm adding to the list is the Canon IXUS 255.
User avatar
jonathan
Posts: 3689
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 8:39 am
Contact:

Re: Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by jonathan »

Okay, a few questions now that I've started on the dpreview comparisons:

1) I've always sworn by AA batteries, mostly because I'm afraid that if I ran into a problem with my batteries, I could always find more AA somewhere, while I couldn't necessarily find a LI replacement. However, that actual scenario (needed to buy batteries in a crunch) has only happened once, and that was 10 years ago. Are there any other reasons to prefer one battery type over the other?

2) There are a number of complaints about the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ40 in low light...I'm not sure if the same complaints would just apply to all the other cheaper cameras I'm looking at though.



Nikon L820, Canon Powershot SX500, or one of the Panasonics (TZ20, 25, or 30) might be leading the race so far...though I still might just go with one of the smaller 10x cameras...
User avatar
Roki
Posts: 199
Joined: January 23rd, 2012, 10:08 am
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah

Re: Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by Roki »

Hi Jonathan,
I was in a similar boat and really still am sort of. I needed/need a camera that is small enough to carry in a large pocket, has macro, and has a good telephoto. My older 10x zoom cameras just were not cutting it anymore. Over the last 3 years I have used the Canon SX500 and was happy enough with it more or less. I loved that it had a great zoom on such a small (easy to fit in cargo style pockets) frame. I felt it did well in desert and tropical conditions (it has dealt with dust and rain). Check out my posting for Costa Rica in January 2013 and other ones from 2012 and 2013. Compare those with my newer Canon SX40 in the postings from Costa Rica in December 2013. I honestly felt the picture quality was a little better with the 40 over the 500 (the 500's are what I would consider decent for what it is), but the 500 AF was much quicker and thus was able to get more pictures and was far more portable (fitting in pockets is nice in countries where you don't want to flash crowds with expensive gear). The AF on the 40 is annoying fidgety, but when it does get locked on it takes good shots (at least for my uses). I have also played around with the Nikon L820 a bit and came close to buying it instead. I liked the control step up on the canons a bit better for selecting different functions and settings. However, it is likely just because I am used to canon cameras. As far as Macro, the 40 and 500 did what I felt was well and they handled low light decently well. Like I have said, feel free to check out any of my posts and you can compare the two. I will say though that I am very much leaning towards selling my 40 and getting the Sony HX300 or 200 and keeping the Canon 500 for my quick/small/backup camera. The sonys just seem quicker on the AF which was my biggest hurdle on my last trip to CR. I missed many a great shot due to that. Currently I am still using my SX40 and it is doing fine, but eventually I foresee moving on to a Sony or even moving to a DSLR. I hope this helps a little. I sympathize with your struggle. Keep in mind too that many of the models you are interested in are available on websites such as newspaper sites, ebay, etc and you can save alot. I found the SX40 for under $200. Good luck.
Roki
User avatar
jonathan
Posts: 3689
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 8:39 am
Contact:

Re: Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by jonathan »

Thanks Roki!

The problem with website buying is that I live in India. :( So I'm limited mostly to what I can find in town. In fact, after a failed search yesterday I'm under the impression that Panasonic cameras aren't available in my entire city, so those might be out.

Thanks for what you have to say about the Cannon SX500. After reading a lot of reviews and doing comparisons and seeing what's available, those might be at the top of my list. It's a little bigger and costlier than I want, but I might have to make the leap, because none of the reviews for any of the smaller, cheaper ultrazooms are very impressive at all.

I really like the looks of that SX40, reviews are fantastic...but I don't think I could get it here for anything like the price you found. Pretty much everything I can find here is very close to the MRP.

I love the fact that the Panasonic ZS30 has the GPS function...if I could only find one around here and its cost was manageable.
User avatar
jonathan
Posts: 3689
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 8:39 am
Contact:

Re: Choosing between low-end ultrazoom cameras

Post by jonathan »

After a lot of deliberation and some time when I wanted to go big (was really thinking about a Panasonic or the Canon SX500), I finally decided to keep it simple.

I'm going with the Canon Powershot SX160, partly because I already like Canon and have been happy with my SX120, partly because I'd prefer the versatility of AA batteries, partly because the reviews are decent, and partly because the others are just too bulky to use in some public places and too expensive for me.

I'm keeping it slightly open that I might get the Canon SX260 instead (GPS, a little faster and better image quality), if I can find it at a good price.

So that's what I'll buy as soon as possible, unless someone convinces me otherwise. :thumb:
Post Reply