Camera suggestions for RR pics

Try Radio Shack for the batteries - I can still get them for my 101 there (which I don't use much anymore as I've gone digital with a Canon EOS SLR).

On 11/22/2007 7:08 AM Jack spake thus:

Better yet, try a *real* camera store. No, I'm not talking about Ritz, or Wolf, or any of those type places; I mean a real photo shop, one that still carries film (remember that stuff).

Did some Googling and saw a couple of places where the A100 body was under $400. What did surprise me was the battery for the camera was $140. Is this normal for modern digital cameras of the A100 type?

These Lithium-ion batteries are pretty pricey, agreed - but this goes with the dSLR game (a few, like the Pentax K100, if I remember correctly, work with rechargeable AA batteries).

Normally, you get one such power pack inside the package, and one charge typically is enough for 600-800 shots (depending on flash, shot duration, chimping on the back LCD, etc.). And these batteries recharge rather quickly (around 2-3 hours, typically).

But remember, when you buy a dSLR, you at the same time 'marry' a whole system (lenses, flashes, etc.). So, it would be a good idea to think ahead, not only on focus speed items, but probable upgrades with bigger/faster lenses etc. (and their cost - for example, the professional 'L' lenses by Canon often are real cheaper in price, compared to similar Nikon and Minolta lenses, more than balancing the somewhat pricier camera body)

Hope this helps, N.F.

IOW, consider cost of ownership, not only cost of acquisition.

Personally, I don't want any camera that uses a proprietary, non-standard battery format. I've had enough of that with the Nikon film camera I own, thank you very much. NB that Li-Ion batteries are available in AA and AAA formats. A camera that uses AA or AAA batteries can be powered by disposables if necessary.

Anecdote: my sister-in-law and her husband bought a cheap point'n'shoot camera at WallyMart recently. It has a little Lego-=brick type battery, which gave out. They could not get another one - not even at WallyMart....

Apparently this battery problem goes with the territory in cell phones. My daughter tells me one of the main reasons you get a new phone when the contract is up is the battery in the old one is shot. With the A100's battery being over 1/3 the cost of the body it would make sense to get new bodies every 2 or 3 years. Either the same (which will have dropped a bunch in price) or the latest design which, in 3 years electronically, is very different.

BTW Sony now has an updated replacement for the Minolta Z1, Z2 series cameras. It's the 8.1 MP, 15X optical zoom DSCH-9, looks almost identical.