ISO digital camera - small and inexpensive - recs?

[Mamma2004]

With all the horrible reviews of childrens' cameras, DH thinks we should get 5.5 y.o. DS a real camera. He has used ours and is both gentle and responsible so we are not worried about how he will treat the camera.

We don't want to waste $$$ on a piece of junk - he will surely want to get some of his photos developed. Is a $100 camera worthwhile?

Any thoughts?! I have been looking online at Costco, Amazon, Ritz, etc.

TIA for your suggestions as time is running out!

[egoldber]

We got Sarah a Nikon Coolpix L20. It's prefect for her. It might be a little complicated for a 5 year old.

Kodak makes very, very simple cameras.

[Mamma2004]

We got Sarah a Nikon Coolpix L20. It's prefect for her. It might be a little complicated for a 5 year old.

Kodak makes very, very simple cameras.

Beth, that's the exact camera that Amazon has for $89.95 and free shipping. I'm glad to hear you and Sarah are happy with it. Frankly, I am thinking it could be "the" camera when I don't lug around our DSLR. Hmmm.

Thank you for your input!

[Tondi G]

If you want to spend a little bit more and get a great little compact digital the Canon Powershot SD1200 is now $149 in a bunch of places (costco, best buy etc). My DS got this camera for his 8th birthday and it is great. Takes little movies too (we haven't used our video camera in a while since DS's has this option). Shoots pretty fast and is little so it takes up very little space in a purse/bag!

[jgenie]

If you want to spend a little bit more and get a great little compact digital the Canon Powershot SD1200 is now $149 in a bunch of places (costco, best buy etc). My DS got this camera for his 8th birthday and it is great. Takes little movies too (we haven't used our video camera in a while since DS's has this option). Shoots pretty fast and is little so it takes up very little space in a purse/bag!

Anyone know if this is the same price in the store at Costco?

[Mamma2004]

I am hoping the B&M price is lower, but I haven't made it over to Costco yet.

Anyone?

***ETA: I have read mixed reviews about the Canon. While I am sure there are unhappy Nikon customers, too, I would rather be somewhat displeased with a $90 puchase than with a $150 one. KWIM?

I would love to hear from anyone else with experience in this price range. I have researched these cameras for only a week so I am open to advice!

[kali]

DS is also 5.5 and I was in the same situation. But I refused to spend more than $50-$60 on a a delicate piece of electronics for a kindergartener. After a bunch of research I settled on the Argus Bean 5 MP camera.

First the disclaimer: we haven't used it yet, so I can't personally vouch for whether it takes good pictures, is easy to use, sturdy, etc. But, it gets very good reviews (from grownup users, no less). You can check out the reviews here (http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&q=argus+bean&sourceid=navclient-ff&rlz=1B3GGGL_enUS309US310&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=9069787681733714577&ei=MqgmS9LZE5C7lAfjspD6CQ&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CCQQ8wIwAg&os=reviews#).

It actually kind of looks like a toy and comes in fun colors (purple, yellow, red, blue...) and from the reviews it takes decent pictures. It is small and the LCD is small, but it is designed to be clipped to a backpack or belt to take on outdoor adventures, so should be pretty sturdy. It has a zoom and an SD card slot, but a very simple interface. Best part: it retails around $55, though you can find it for less. (I paid about $45.)

Hope this helps!