Electronics

The top selling digital cameras are almost in-arguably the Canon Powershot cameras. More specifically, the Canon Powershots A80, S410, and A75 show incredible consumer interest. These cameras are in the mid-range, point-and-shoot, consumer market. Their compact sizes, ease of use, and relatively low price points attract many buyers.

The bulk of digital camera buyers is definitely in the middle. Low-end, entry-level camera sales and high-end, professional camera sales pale in comparison. Most consumers want more features than the low end can offer and do not have the skill to get the most out of the high end (and therefore see little reason to spend that kind of money).

The top selling digital cameras in the prosumer market are the Canon EOS Rebel digital cameras. Canon seems to dominate the digital camera world but that is not the case. Nikon Coolpix cameras and Sony Cybershot cameras are right behind Canon and round out the top three camera manufacturers.

The Top Selling Digital Cameras Change All the Time
The top selling digital cameras of this month may not be the top sellers of next month. The fact is, digital technology advances so quickly that companies must keep upgrading their current models and coming out with new models to stay competitive. Casio digital cameras are doing things many people would not have deemed possible a few years ago.

Picking the top digital cameras requires some qualifications and categorizations. You simply cannot compare high-end professional cameras with the pocket-camera set and expect to have a realistic basis for comparison. The pocket cameras are better because they are so much more stylish. The Pro cameras are better because they have so many more capabilities.

The best digital cameras on the high-end are probably the Nikon D70 digital cameras, the Canon EOS 1Ds cameras, and (for sheer sex appeal) the Casio Exilim P600 cameras. Many great cameras were excluded for either price, sensor size, or simple ignorance. Trying to come up with a best-of list in such a quickly changing market is an exercise in futility.

The top digital cameras are the cameras that give you the most functionality, user-friendliness, power, and image quality. They will be different depending on each individuals photographic requirements. You must first figure out what features are most important to you and how much you are willing to spend.

Picking Your Own Top Digital Cameras
You can easily search for your own top digital cameras by features and categories. Digital camera review web sites allow you to search by megapixel rating, skill level, or characteristics (i.e., ultra compact, point and shoot, SLR). Let your own needs drive your decision and you will be much happier with your purchase, no matter what it is.

New Sony digital cameras are all given the brand name Cybershot. Sony makes cameras for all levels of the consumer digital camera market. The professional line may not satisfy professional photographers who have demanding photographic requirements. They use a smaller sensor than other professional-grade cameras.

Sony also designates their cameras with a DSC followed by their model letter and number. So, the Sony Cybershot DSC T1 digital cameras are model 1 in the T line of Sony Cybershot cameras. The T cameras are Sonys contribution to the ultra-compact, pocket-sized, card-style digital cameras.

Sony digital cameras come in three other basic lines. There is the U line of stylish ultra compact cameras; the P line of personal-use, point-and-shoot cameras; and the more full-featured F line for the prosumer and professional markets. They all use the Sony Memory Stick for image storage, except the DSC F828 which can also use CF cards.

The Other Sony Digital Cameras
Some Sony digital cameras are not mass produced for sale outside of Japan. There are lines other than the Cybershot lines that are simply not as popular. The Sony Mavicas use CD-R/RWs for image storage, if that is something you prefer. There are also the Sony Qualia cameras that look like spy technology and have military-sized price tags.

Nikon digital cameras are some of the best made and popular cameras on the market. Next to Canon, they probably do more business in the consumer digital camera markets than any other company. Nikon had been proving themselves for decades before digital cameras were any more than a pipe dream.

Nikon is especially known for the quality of their lenses, which many people forget to consider when comparing megapixel ratings and price tags. Without a quality lens, you have little hope of taking pictures with any real detail. The lens is the first link in the chain, followed by the sensor, and the individual pixels.

Nikon digital cameras start at the low end with cameras like the Coolpix 2100 for $150. As you add features and imaging power the price rises to $300 for the Coolpix 4300, and $875 for the 8Mp Coolpix 8700. Arguably their best cameras for the money are the Nikon D70 digital SLR cameras at $1,200. The 6Mp D70 uses a much larger sensor than the 8700 and at extra large print sizes yields much better quality.

Buying Nikon Digital Cameras Confidently
Nikon digital cameras are great cameras, both from a quality perspective and a support perspective. Nikon has been making cameras for a long time and they will not be going away any time soon–so they will be there to help. With great achievements like the D70, they are about as good as it gets in the prosumer market.

Fuji digital cameras are quite popular with people who want a camera they can trust to work, and trust they will be able to work, without spending too much. Fuji is not as well represented across the digital camera spectrum. Other companies offer more entry-level models and professional models but Fuji does well in the mid-range and prosumer market.

Prosumers are those people who have more skill and demands than the average consumer but not the need to spend thousands of dollars. Cameras such as the SLR-like Finepix S5000 Z, S7000 Z, and S20 Pro offer plenty of imaging power for well under $1000. For the more demanding professional, they have the Fuji Finepix S3 Pro for $3000.

It seems that Fuji digital cameras only come in two sizes, 3Mp and 6Mp. They offer a wealth of 3Mp models from the modest point-and-shoots, through the flashier ultra compacts, to more fully featured prosumer models. Always look for the effective pixel counts of digital cameras rather than just pixel counts.

Fuji Digital Cameras Can Have Misleading Pixel Counts
Fuji digital cameras are not alone in padding their pixel counts. (Once one company does it, they all have to.) Sensors have different arrays and techniques for detecting light and color. Grey areas in pixel-counting allow some companies to claim up to double their cameras effective pixels. Some cameras that claim a 12Mp rating really only deserve a 6Mp rating.