Snap into summer with a camera

Getting into digital photography has never been easier. The cameras are cheaper than ever, and you don't need a photo printer because many chemists print digital snaps from a memory card. Some even have self-service machines where you can print your own. So is it time to go digital? We gathered five guinea pigs and gave them six of the latest mainstream digicams (you can pay a lot more for professional models).

Cheap and cheerful: SiPix Blink (£40)

Barely bigger than a matchbox, the SiPix produces photos that are too low quality to print, but are good for e-mailing or putting on the web. And there's no built-in screen, so you can't see the pictures until you plug it into a PC. Our testers liked its one-button simplicity. "This is the kind of cheap digicam I'd buy," said Claire Hartnell, 31, a management consultant.
"It's really fun, a spy camera," said Derek D'Urso, 36, IT analyst. "I wouldn't use it, but I'd buy one as a present for kids."

Economy: HP Photosmart 120 (£99)

The Photosmart takes pictures at one megapixel (a pixel is a dot of colour; mega, a million) - that is fairly low-quality, which will be just about OK to print, but not to enlarge. The testers liked the price and found the HP easy to use, but loathed its cheap, plastic feel. The screen was far too dark and it suffered from a time delay: "It takes the picture three seconds after you press the button. It's difficult to see what you're taking a picture of," said Nick Kenyon-Muir, 33, a sales manager. "It's cheap, but it's not worth the money." Jackie Hutchinson, 32, was impressed that a cheap camera could record movie clips: "I thought it was good until I saw the others."

Mid price: Toshiba PDR-T10 (£249)

The PDR-T10 is the first digital camera to be controlled with a touch-sensitive screen. It's small and stylish, with interchangeable front covers. Its two megapixel resolution is good enough for printing and enlarging. Derek found the touch-screen made it easy to set up shots: "I'd consider buying this. It's good quality for the price. I just wish it had a viewfinder - you look stupid holding it out in mid-air."

Star performer: Kodak LS420 (£250)

This two megapixel, limited-edition Kodak (below) was the biggest hit. It's a slim, silver Mars Bar of a camera and comes with a docking station - you press a button to upload pictures to a PC. Its controls were a big hit, including the tiny joystick for menus and zooming.
"It's a neat size and very easy to use," said Lee Sims, 49, a social worker. "The picture quality is excellent. I'd definitely use it." So said everyone - and they were keen on everything bar the price. "I'd like it for Christmas, please," said Jackie.

Tough: Casio GV-10 (£300)

This is bulkier, but for good reason. It's rugged and splash-proof. The results were good and testers liked the "best shot" mode - you pick from 18 preset picture types, such as a pet or a sunset, and the camera does all the settings. But they felt it was too big to pocket and thought the resolution of 1.3 megapixels wasn't much for £300. "This is the Pepsi Max of digital equipment," said Nick. "It's aimed at the weekend-away set who need a waterproof, eye-catching camera."

Semi-professional: Sony DSC-P71 (£350)

The 3.2 megapixel Sony (below) is the most expensive camera here and the only one with optical zoom, which lets you magnify the picture without losing quality. The pictures were the best, with beautiful quality and excellent colour reproduction. "I'd buy this," said Lee. "I like the controls and it feels like a proper camera. But I'm not sure it would fit in my pocket." Derek added: "It's the best but a bit too professional for me. It's a camera for photo buffs."

VERDICT:

Our testers were bowled over by how easily a beginner could get started. Even installing software on to a computer was fairly stress-free. The only problem is price: most testers expected to pay around £100 for a compact camera, but they demanded better features than the £99 HP. But each time you use a digital camera you save around £10 on film and processing, so it's easy to see how a dearer camera can pay for itself. After the test, Lee, Jackie and Derek were ready to say goodbye to film for ever. Nick and Claire were less convinced. "I'd buy a cheap digicam," said Claire. "But I'd always want film in my main camera."