UKC

Hi all.
Any recommendations for waterproof compact cameras in the £100 - £200 price range?

I'm not looking to take underwater pictures with it but want to be able to kayak with it stored in the front pocket of my buoyancy aid, ready to take a snap. Ease of use when downloading the pictures onto a laptop is also important as I'm a technophobic numpty when it comes to computers.

Cheers,
Pete.

In reply to teflonpete: I've got a Fuji XP something or other - shockproof and waterproof, starts up quickly and takes reasonable snaps over and underwater. Cost about £150.

In reply to teflonpete:
I've one of the Olympus tough cameras and have been pretty happy with it. Definitely waterproof (used it swimming and snorkeling). Easy to either hook up via USB and download images, or to eject SD card and lift directly from there. Some kind of bluetooth/wireless transfer option would be great though! Being impact resistant is a help too - being a clumsy bugger!

Only complaint would be that the power button is small so not the easiest with gloves on.

Cheers,

Stu

In reply to teflonpete: Used a Panasonic Lumix until I lost it. Ok pics, fairly tough, I'd buy again.

I bought the previous year's model on Amazon which saved a bundle. Downloading to a computer involved plugging in a wire and doing the usual cut-and-paste.

In reply to teflonpete:

http://www.whatdigitalcamera.com/equipment/advice/538657/best-underwater-ca...

I bought a Fuji XP60 a few months ago, it was the only one available sub £200 at the time and in the timescale I had to get one. I have used it for river swimming and had no problems with robustness or underwater picture. Transferring photos from camera to computer is super simple.

In reply to The New NickB: That's what I've got. I had (I think) an Olympus one which was just sooooo slow to start up and take pics - Fuji much better. SD card just comes out and plugs into my computer to transfer pics. Has to be plugged in to charge (ie doesn't have a separate charger) but I've just bought a couple of extra charging leads for when i inevitably forget/lose the one that comes with it.

In reply to teflonpete:
I've got a Kodak Easyshare Sport. It's fairly rugged and apparently waterproof (not tested this myself though). It takes AA batteries too, which is handy if you're not going to be in a place with charging points.

In reply to teflonpete:
Oh, it was only about £50 as well,

In reply to teflonpete:

I've got a Panasonic TZ30 with the marine case - got some great shots underwater, but outside your budget and definitely won't fit inside a BA pocket.

My wife has a Sony camera that's waterproof, but she's not been brave enough to get it wet - decided it was a good idea when her last camera died of being dropped in a puddle.

Don't know what sort of kayaking you do, but basic splashproof probably won't cut it if you're into big river running or surfing - the water pressures could still overcome the seals.

In reply to LastBoyScout:

Should have said it's a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX10 (I think) - couple of years old now, so probably superseded, or available cheap.

In reply to teflonpete: I've got a little Pentax Optio WG1 point and shoot.
It's waterproof and shockproof and lives quite happily on my climbing harness. I've dropped it, got hit by a big wave and soaked with it, and it survived 9 nights out on a snowy mountain top until I went back to find it
Tidy little camera and cheap enough too.
Cheers!
Cari

In reply to teflonpete:

I had the Panasonic one. It was excellent but I lost it.
I now have the Sony one. It is lighter, smaller and has a sliding cover for the lens window which helps stop it getting splashed or fugged up (very useful), though it's touch screen is a bit irritating especially with damp fingers(ok if you tend to keep it in idiot mode though).
When I looked into it the Panasonic and Sony came out comfortably best in reviews for picture quality. I have used and would recommend either for kayaking, winter climbing etc.

In reply to eltankos: I've got a kodak easy share too, but would buy a tough next time as mine started fogging up on the lens in cold water which is never a good thing!

In reply to teflonpete: I got to test the Fuji XP200 recently - it was loads of fun, and recently when sea kayaking I really missed it because I had to be so careful with my non waterproof camera.

My review is here http://www.redbull.com/en/adventure/stories/1331609594858/rugged-waterproof...

And my sample shots take with the camera are here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/toby-northern_light/sets/72157635274249964/ Flickr mess up the video it seems - they look much better on my computer so don't worry too much about the weird look of them on flickr! I think it's just in your price range.

There is some group test somewhere which reviewed it and it didn't come out the best waterproof camera for picture quality, but the winner was more expensive as I remember it and the Fuji is rugged, easy to use and takes pretty decent photos.

I mate had one of the cheaper Fujis in the same range and said he wasn't happy with the picture quality. Having seen his shots of our kayak trip I'd agree they weren't great.

In reply to teflonpete:

Canon d10 looks like a toy but takes great shots. Discontinued now I think and the d20 replacement doesn't seem as good.

In reply to LastBoyScout:

I have this and think its excellent. I've been snorkelling with it many times, and always great images. Its also not to 'ruggedised' in looks, but bombproof in function. Mine took a 5 foot drop onto a 2 tonne slate slab and just bounced. Only negative is a fairly rubbish touch screen on the back.

In reply to teflonpete:

Have you thought about something like a go pro? Doesnt have a viewfinder and has fixed lens, but burst shots and continual shooting can get some great stills especially if you want action shots

In reply to kingborris:


That's nothing. Mine survived a 5 foot drop onto a multi trillion tonne planet and still works perfectly.

In reply to teflonpete: get an iphone 5 with new os update

In reply to The New NickB:

It appears that it is the XP61 that I have, I expect that doesn't make too much difference.

In reply to grumpybearpantsclimbinggoat:

Haha

Hahahahahahahahahahahaha! :0)



Thanks all for the advice, looks like there's plenty to choose from and most of the choices that I've seen available do what they say on the tin from your experience.