Faster/Cheaper/Better...
This camera is faster than most digital cameras out there; from opening it to it turning on and being ready to shoot it takes about three seconds; from pressing the shutter button down to it taking a picture it takes almost one second (even faster if you've already pressed the shutter down half-way to focus and meter); from it taking a full-size, best-quality 2 mega pixel shot to it being ready to take another it takes about three seconds (even faster with less quality or smaller sized pictures). The camera controls on the back allow you to easily change to close-up mode or change white balance or add exposure compensation or turn off the flash or use the stitch-assist mode or the self-timer with from one button push for close-up mode to around four to six button pushes for the more complicated added features. The lens is the equivalent of a 39mm f2.8 lens on a film-slr camera and it focuses very fast with an auto-focus mechanism that chooses the most likely subject among three focus squares in the middle of the viewfinder/lcd screen to focus on and it has an auto-focus assist beam that aids in focusing; speeding it up especially in scenes with slightly lower light levels.

This camera is cheaper than many cameras out there. It costs around [$$$]right now which is cheaper than most 2 megapixel cameras right now. The material it's made out of is a sticky plastic which feels grimy if you hold it too long while you're out in the sun because the sweat on your hands tends to smear all over it and generally yucks it up (just wipe it off with your shirt; it's no big deal). This camera takes compact flash type 1 cards which are very easy to find and fairly reasonably priced for a good-sized card (if you already have a more expensive Digital camera that uses compact flash cards then obviously; you're in luck!). The batteries that it uses are two double A's; rechargeable or alkalines (very-very easy to find; just go down to your local [store]to find the nickel metal hydride rechargeable kinds). If you don't have a compact flash card reader but you do have a usb port then you can transfer the images right off of the camera and straight into your computer (Mac or PC). If you don't have a computer then you can still use the camera; just buy one of Canon's two available dye-sublimation printers and you can print pictures from 6X4inches to smaller than a postage stamp and almost every size in between to your heart's content.

Is this camera better than most cameras out there? One argument against it is it doesn't have an optical zoom; but truthfully having a zoom lens doesn't necessarily mean your pictures are automatically going to be better; for example instead of zooming in and taking a "stalker" picture of that cutey down the hall why don't you just walk up to that cutey and say smile! and take that cutey's picture from up close and then engage that cutey in an actual conversation; believe me your picture quality will improve dramatically! Another argument against this camera is that it only has two megapixels; but truthfully for snap-shot sized pictures or smaller including pictures that you're going to be using on the web you don't need that extra one or two megapixels over the first two megapixels; it's just pixel overkill for a picture of your uncle holding up that trout he just wrestled into his net or extreme close-ups of your baby doing everything from sleeping peacefully in the crib to crying red-faced while you're giving her another bath or changing her diaper for like the hundreth time. A third argument against it is that compared to a comparable camera such as the[$$$]it is made of cheaper materials and it's much bulkier; but truthfully many people find those smaller elf-like cameras clunkier; they're slower to turn on they're slower to extend their lens; they're heavier; they're more expensive; they're less responsive to the user when their shutter buttons are pushed; they use more expensive proprietary batteries; they give people with bigger hands or arthritis carpal tunnel syndrome and the list goes on...

Is this camera better than any other camera out there I ask again? Well obviously the simple truth answer is no; you can always buy a more expensive camera and get more pixels or longer lenses or interchangeble lenses and flash-shoes and doodads to your heart's content so a more appropriate question to ask would be is this camera better than any other camera out there for the intended task that I seek it to do as a prospective camera buyer on the market? Well; we'll leave that question up to you!

Simply useful and affordable
I have a "grown up digital camera", a Minolta Dimage 7 with all the bells and whistles. It is a camera to use when you are being very serious about the pictures you are taking.

It is big though and I carry a lot of stuff in my bag to support it. I needed something small to take pictures when lugging around a Dimage 7 is sort of a waste of energy.

This is a very good little camera, which takes pictures comparable to my old Nikon CoolPix 800. The Nikon cost a lot more, too.

There is no optical zoom, however and that is what keeps me from giving this camera a 5 star rating. But I can pop it into my pocket and know that it is there when the unexpected photo opportunity comes along.

It has an available underwater housing and I would have no hestitation using it properly fitted (even if they had it for the Minolta I would never risk it). I also think it would be acceptable for use on the slopes.

Canon A200, Best Camera
There is no one best camera but the Canon A200 comes close. This is
my seventh digital camera. ...

Great little camera...
I bought it as a first digital camera, checking out the terrain before making a big investment. My friends are ohing and ahing over the pictures I took in Rio with this thing (of course, you don't need a great camera to get great pictures in Rio!). It travels well, eats batteries more than I expected, is easy to use, takes a little while to warm up when first switched on, and lives up to the positive reviews I've read here and on the web...Buy a 128M memory card and rechargable batteries, and enjoy. There's a waterproof case available, something I'll buy if I can find a discount as I'm an avid SCUBA diver and snow-skier (the kind of skier who would need a waterproof case). I was disappointed with my order - Amazon listed a coupon for a reduced-price memory card but the web site wouldn't let me apply it to my order - but I'm not disappointed with the camera. Enjoy!

Make sure u get the good batteries
THis is a very good camera for its price, however, on lithium batteries it will last only 4-5 exposures. make sure u get a set of good NiMH batteries with charger.. one charge lasts about 300 exposures or more, and u don't have to use expernal power source while camera is connected to PC - those batteries handle 'em all.

Very well pleased with this camera
The A200 by Canon is definately a great camera. Movies - The movies it records are very clear and smooth. I am using a 64mb CompactFlash disk so I can get tons of video on it.

Photos - By using the Medium resolution (1024x768) with medium compression and using a 64mb CompactFlash card I can get 204 photos on it. That's 66 more than I got with the HP. The photos are very clear and crisp with this cam as well. And I love the ability to change the photo type (normal, vivid, sepia, etc...). I use the vivid so it makes the photo more rich and deep.

Definately worth the price.

Can't beat the price but...
I recommend buying the Canon A40 instead. In fact, I just returned my A200 in order to do just that. Here's why:
* The A40 has a more solid feel in your hand. Instead of "perching" in your hand, it "fits" your hand. (Look at the nice curve that fits into your right hand as you hold the camera.)
* The A40 has an optical zoom, as well as the digital zoom that most digital cameras have. The A200 only has a digital zoom; you lose some quality.
* The controls on the A40 are easier to understand and better layed out. The A40 has what you call a thumb wheel. To switch between picture taking modes, or into photo review mode, you just spin the wheel. No pressing the same button over-and-over.
* Finally, it's easier to change the batteries on the A40!! Why did Canon make the battery compartment so hard to open on a piece of equipment that needs its batteries changed daily or weekly??

If you just need a bare-bones camera that takes great pictures, buy the A200. I was very impressed with the quality of the photos.
If you want a more comfortable and intuitive camera, get the A40.

Canon A200
Great value, easy to use, not too small but manageable.
Eats regular AA's but lasts well when you use 1600 or
1800 mAmp/hr NiMH

OK depending on your needs... and patience level
I purchased this camera to replace a Kodak DC200 plus, one of the first 1 megapixel cameras on the market. It's a great camera that has provided 1000s of good looking 4X6 prints over the years. But, it's time to upgrade.

Let me start by saying that I am not an ace photographer or anything. I'm just your basic point and shoot family picture taker kind of guy. So, please interpret my comments about the A200 in light of that fact.

I decided to purchase the A200 based on two factors -- price and reviews. Both were excellent. Out of the box it is eye catching. Much smaller than my old Kodak with an automatic lens cover (nice to have!). Opening the lens cover fires up the camera and it's ready for the first shot within a matter of seconds. OK, here's where the annoyance factor kicks in. This is, by far, the slowest freakin' digital camera I have ever played with. A three hour visit to the camera sections of a few electronics stores this afternoon confirmed my first impression. It really is slow! You absolutely must depress the shutter release button 1/2 way and wait for it to autofocus before taking the shot. One cannot get a shot off quickly with this camera. I have a two year old. He is in another room by the time this camera is ready to take a picture of him. OK, so you've taken a picture, now the waiting continues. It takes roughly 12-17 seconds (depending on the charge in the battery) to recharge the flash and prepare for another shot!!! Yep, 12-17 seconds! My old Kodak is faster. In all fairness, when the flash is not used, the A200 is lightening quick at refreshing for the next shot. However, because of what I use it for, most of my shots are indoors and require the flash.

What about picture quality? Not bad. Not great. Three out of the four professional reviews that I read about this camera state that the picture quality is excellent. The fourth review seems to concur with my opinion. The quality is OK. Red eye is an enormous problem, even with red eye reduction on. Again, hate to sound like a broken record, but my old Kodak...

Professional reviewers seem to like this camera because of the manual controls. These are not important to me, as I just want to turn the thing on and take pictures. If you're just looking for a simple point and shoot camera, I wouldn't worry too much about manual options.

One last complaint before I tell you what I exchanged the thing for... The controls on the back of the camera are completely unintuitive. No little jog-dial like you find on several other cameras, including the Canon A40 (an excellent, though clunkier, alternative complete with 3X optical zoom).

So, after some serious thinking, reading, and playing, I decided to go with the Sony DSC-P31, also an autofocus, no optical zoom, 2.0 megapixel camera. About 20 beans more but it comes with two high capacity rechargeablee NiMH batteries. It has essentially every feature that the Canon A200 has and more. It even has an option to take pictures in 3:2 format, which is the perfect format for 4X6 prints I guess. No cropping needed. The big plus for me is that the thing is very very fast. Fast enough to take pictures of spazzy kids. Not only does it take pictures quickly but it is ready for the next shot in about 3 seconds even when the flash is used. It also has video out so that pictures can be viewed on your TV set or even recorded to VHS if you so desire. A nice feature.

About Amazon, absolutely, hands down, the best place to buy things online in my opinion. They frequently offer free shipping deals and, of course, no tax. Customer service is incredible and it is very very easy to return products. They even pay return shipping. Also, you can keep track of the location of your package from the moment you place the order to the moment it arrives on your porch. Items always come sooner than they estimate. You can even cancel your order up to the moment that the product is prepared for shipping. Nice option in case your spouse doesn't agree with your decision to buy that $5000 plasma HD television set!

Happy shopping!

Update 12/29/02.... I've had my new Sony DSC-P31 for about a week now and took gobs of pictures with it during the Holidays. I highly recommend this camera over the Canon A200. Much easier to use, much faster, and more conistent picture quality with the Auto Focus on. One cool thing about the camera that I didn't mention before is that, in addition to Auto Focus, you can set the focus to a range of different distances, like 3 meters, 9 meters, 30 meters... infinity. I decided to disable autofocus and set the focus distance to 9 meters (I think, as I don't have the camera with me). This makes the camera even faster than before and seems to provide better pictures than with the autofocus on! I've had minor problems with red eye, as I gather is common with most cameras especially when shooting pictures of kids. Luckily, this is easily fixable with the software that comes with the camera. Best wishes, Joe.

Take the picture--- Please
I've used a previous generation of the powershot and really liked it so we picked the A200 for an upgrade. What a waste. The interface is confusing, but worse of all is getting it to actually take a picture. Push down the button and it'll make a noise like its working on the picture-- but watch out cause it didn't do it. What its doing, I have no idea. Autofocus? Anyway it only took a real picture one in five times of trying. Sometimes I had to hold down the button for 4-5 seconds to get it to shoot. Extremely disappointing for Canon, I expected the 'next generation' and got something worse than our 1999 Canon camera.

camera that's worth your money
I love this camera! It's easy to use and compact. Just one thing, you have to press the button for a couple of seconds to take the picture so make sure you keep your pose ;) I think most cameras are like this anyway.

I also recommend a compact flash card reader (around [$$$], it's fast!!! and it's like having a removable drive) instead of installing a huge software you're hardly gonna use anyway.

Excellent Camera but...
I bought this camera to take some pictures of my baby girl and I discovered that it?s very very easy to use. Multilanguage menus (configurables), Excellent options such as a great zoom, Auto Focus (with Artificial Intelligence), etc.
Such as this kind of electronic equipements this camera eats batteries... with a pair of AA Alkalines you can use it by 2 1/2 or 3 hour... No more... Without using the display...!
Excellent for beginners...! I recommend you to buy the charger to this specific model... it longs the life of your batteries and can be rechargables...!

Wrong advertisement?
When I ordered this camera for my son it was advertised that we would receive a 34 megabit memory card along with the 4 megabit that it came with. What happened?

Works well, for the most part
Hi All,

This camera has a number of nice features and takes nice photos. Many cameras in this price range don't do nearly as well in terms of low light performance, color fidelity in incandescent lighting, or macro ability, plus having all those buttons on the back of the case is actually a lot easier than having to go through a bunch of on-screen menus.

My two main misgivings about the camera are that I've gotten some aliasing of diagonal lines a few times (though they don't seem to be all that noticeable in the prints) and the focus assist beam never seems to help. I guess I can live with the latter for the most part as I've figured out what focusing range the camera defaults to when it can't lock focus, about 8ft to infinity in normal mode and 4.25* inches in macro mode(*which is about the width of the camera, 4.3"). The infinity mode also doesn't appear to have any effect from what I can tell. How have other people's experiences run with the focus assist beam, infinity mode and aliasing?

Lastly Canon's tech support hasn't been very good, I don't need someone to read out of the user guide to me, but that's as much as they seem to do. If I could get past that first level of tech support, things would probably be different.

But really, I like the camera! Oh yeah, the small size and light weight mean I can comfortably carry it in a shirt pocket. Battery life with 1700mah Nimh is fine, though I rarely use the flash or the LCD. I guess it would be nice to have an output for display on a TV and the little rubber flap that covers the ports could be more secure.

Will

Great overall product...
This is my first digital camera and I am very impressed. The camera itself is simple to use and takes great pictures. With the 3 different resolution settings, it makes it very easy to take pictures in accordance to how big you would like to print the pictures once you're done. The 1600x1200 size with minimal compression produces great looking 8x10 prints, and the 1024x768 has resulted in several pics that I have used as wallpaper in Windows. Nothing brightens up your day like turning on your monitor, and seeing a hi-res image taken at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia! I fully recommend this product for the beginner or the experienced!

Great camera for the price, however it does have limitations
Alright, let me first start off by saying that I got an awesome deal on this camera. The price is incredible for what you are getting, plus its cheap enough for a starter to get into digital photography without making a dent in the pocket book.

Let me just summarize my pros and cons for this camera:

Pros:
- awesome price (I think this is a HUGE factor)
- takes compact flash (these are typically cheaper than other types of memory)
- takes 2 AA batteries (don't need special batteries)
- 2 megapixels offers good quality photos
- USB connection (you don't need a CF reader/writer)
- lightweight
- awesome effects such as b/w, moasic, vivid, movie mode

Overall, its a great **starter** camera. However, once you get comfortable you will probably want a better camera due to the limitations I will discuss now.

Cons:
- only digital zoom (the quality of the zoom is so terrible that its not worth using, specially indoors since the flash isn't strong enough to get you a picture)
- battery door is flimsy (the battery door is very flimsy and it broke when I dropped the camera once)
- exteremely vulnerable to impact (dropped the camera a total of about 2 ft and it stopped focusing properly... be very careful NOT to drop the camera)
- automatic settings not good enough (I had to use the manual settings to get better quality pictures when indoors)
- takes a while to encode image (specially when you have the file size set smaller.. it takes between 5 - 10 seconds to encode the image. I'm thinking it compresses the image on the fly and that slows it down)

Well, thats about it honestly. One addition... invest in rechargable batteries and a charger, a pair of batteries lasts only a few hours specially when used indoors with the flash.

Like I said, its a great starter camera but you will grow past it within 6 months.

Hope this helps... please vote YES if it did I appreciate it.

Khosrof

Nice Family Camera
It's a nice camera for family pictures. We just open, press and download. You can also send them right to your photo store to be printed and... you will not be disappointed by the quality of the result. You can also take short films (less than 15 sec.) well worth it if you want to send them over the Internet.
Three tips: 1) Buy a larger Memory Card than the one that comes with the camera. I bought a 64MB and have space for more than 100 pictures at a time. 2) Buy rechargable batteries. You can get broke if you use standard batteries. 3) If you are indoors do not close the cover between photos. The light-sensor will act much quicker and take photos faster if it has already make the auto-sensing.

Beware of the flash
I find that this is a great camera for taking pictures outside. However, while inside, the camera is pretty useless unless you're a foot away from your subject. In fact, the camera tends to work better in full darkness rather than in partial light. Often I find myself having to carry a disposable camera with me which I use for inside or nighttime pictures. Also, the flash cannot be turned off...I've tried. If you do manage to turn it off, the camera refuses to focus and your pictures come out blurry. In conclusion, spend the few extra dollars to buy a camera with a better flash...you'll appreciate it in the long run

Recycle time stinks! Choose something else...
Overall, the A200 takes decent pictures. I've used the included software to send pictures via email, and I use an HP Photo printer when I want to print out pictures. Unfortunately, I have finally gotten tired of the S-L-O-W recycle time - that is, it takes forever for the flash to recharge and the lens to refocus after taking a previous photo. Groups posing for pictures have literally gotten up and said, "Forget it!" while waiting for my camera to finally take another picture. It is very frustrating!

Terrible Camera
I got this camera for my birthday, and boy was I dissappointed with it. Every time I turned it on it said change the batteries. I changed the batteries and nothing happened. So I returned it and got the same one(I though mine was defective.) It had the same problem! So I returned it again and got the same one. The same problem!!!! But this time I got it to work for a minute. I took 2 or 3 pictures. The Digital zoom on it is terrible. I would advise you not to buy this camera. Dont waste your money. Buy the A40 instead.

Please Dont buy this!!!!
My dad got this camera free about a year ago. I finally learned how to step the camera up. I had to read the whole manual to do so. So far this camera has been horrible. It takes forever to focus, and the batteries run out after one day. If you have pets or small children this camera is not for you, because it takes to long to take pictures. ALso this camera comes with 2 MP. SO you can only hold up to 8-10 pictures at once.
SO if this is your first time buying a camera make surw you dont buy this one, because even though it takes good pictres its just way to slow.