Antigone wrote: 
for 60 bucks, its good for having a camera with you at all times. i refer to this as an "alien camera" because you never know when those guys will show up and you dont want to be caught without a camera. it is also good for kayaking. even though its not waterproof, its only 60 bucks.
 
if you are at all serious about improving your photography and taking it to the next level, i'd look for something else. yoou would probably need to spend about $300. 
 
if you are interested, i'll help you look. 

 Antigone wrote: 
For $65 it seems like a great camera to always have along. It takes special batteries tho, so you might look into what a second battery and wall charger would run you. Or just get in the habit of charging it when you charge your phone...

Any thoughts about this Samsung on Woot?

 ptooey wrote: 
Amen.  They all work identically fantastically.  They do NOT all feel the same in the hand.  Far from it.  

 OCDHG wrote: 
You can get an adapter to make the older (FD) mount lenses work with the newer (EF or EF-S mount) bodies.  But, you'll be shooting full manual.  There are no wrong choices now with the DSLRs, but you really need to go to a camera store and try them out.  Maybe even rent a body/lens combo and try it out before you buy it!

Recommendations for a digital SLR for ~ $500-ish.  ???

And are lenses interchangable if you have, for example, an old Cannon zoom lens that originally came with an AE-1?  If so then I guess I'd lean towards a Cannon just because I have that lens.

... considering a Rebel...

Thanks to everyone for the help last evening. Much appreciated.    

 BlueHeronDruid wrote: 
Such things never are. Sigh. 

 Leslie wrote: 
He managed. It wasn't pretty.

 BlueHeronDruid wrote: 
Just pat him on the knee and say, "There you go."

Re: proprietary batteries

hobbitt got his latest camera some time back. Proprietary battery. No worries, right? As he likes to go on extended photo safaris, it seemed natural for him to order a second battery.
 
Except it wasn't available for purchase in US for almost a year after he bought the camera. He doesn't do frustrated very well.

 Leslie wrote: 
interesting

 swell_sailor wrote: 
The Nikon is evil? Did one leave you for another camera owner?

 ScottFromWyoming wrote: 
It's evil. 

 Leslie wrote: 
thread killa!
No, I haven't.

Has anyone checked out the new Nikon J1? I saw a commercial for it last night. It fits in your pocket, but apparently you can change lenses.

 Xeric wrote: 
The Canon G7 I borrowed a few years ago ran—with the screen on most of the time—for 12 hours on a charge. Hundreds of photos, some video, and I almost never turned it off. More judicious use could have taken it a lot further. But we're getting pretty far afield from Steeler's parameters

I just took a quick look at the Canon site. The Elphs look pretty good. If I was buying, I would probably go with the 310HS. I like the 5X zoom. 
 
Which ever camera you buy, GET A SECOND BATTERY. Don't leave home without it. You have been warned. 
 
I would also recommend an 8GB card. You should be able to do your whole vacation and not have to worry about running out of space. Always shoot at the highest quality settings. 

 ScottFromWyoming wrote: 
It's a good thing to consider for sure. I know people who refuse to buy a camera that doesn't use AA batteries. There seem to be advantages and disadvantages to each.  

 ScottFromWyoming wrote: 
This is also—in case anybody's teetering on the edge—a reason to go DSLR over point-and-shoot or super zoom.  That large body means a huge battery: my old (five or six years—ancient) Nikon D70 will take a zillion shots on a charge.  I don't know how many exactly, but I know that pretty intensely photographic road trips of up to a week don't burn through both of my two (proprietary) batteries. . . .