Buying

With Christmas just around the corner, many parents (and grandparents) are wondering what to give their loved ones this year. If you’re a photo enthusiast, a camera is often top-of-mind. Most children enjoy digital cameras because they provide instant feedback and heaps of fun for both the photographer and his or her subject.

Anyone looking at the cameras the manufacturers have been offering over the past several years could easily believe that the higher the camera’s megapixel count the better. But, as the old jazz standard says: ‘It ain’t necessarily so!’ The only thing more megapixels will give you is the ability to enlarge and crop pictures without individual pixels becoming visible. Other factors are much more important in determining overall picture quality.

Photo Review has checked out the local online photo equipment resellers and come up with our picks of the best buys in the pre-Christmas market. Our choices are based on value for money, along with the results of our regular camera tests.

A look at the technological reasons that should underlie your choice.

Everyone loves a bargain, and some popular models are available at lower prices from online retailers operating out of Asia and the US. But if it looks too good, it very often is, and there’s a whole range of considerations the canny consumer needs to keep in mind when buying online.

Don’t be seduced by the megapixel counts touted in advertising materials and on camera packaging. It’s no longer true that the higher a camera’s megapixel count the better.