If you’re in the market for a compact digital camera take a close look at the Casio EX-Z77. For many people Casio isn’t the first name they think of when it comes to digital cameras. Many people don’t realize that many cameras in this price range share the same sensor made by Sony. For the most part differences in picture quality are negligible.

What sets the Casio apart from other cameras in this price range is the amazing 2.6 inch LCD screen. Casio makes some of the best screens in the business. The screen is easy to see even in bright outdoor sunlight.

Another feature that sets this camera aaprt for it’s competitors is the quality of the movies it takes. The movies are encoded in the H.264 format as opposed to motion Jpeg that is found on other cameras. What this means is that the Casio can create much better quality movies in a smaller files size. The built in microphone does pick up wind noise outdoors.

Everyone that sees this camera loves it. It is small and light weight. It can easily fit into pockets on jeans and if you place it in a shirt pocket you barely know it is there. It’s as easy to carry as a small clamshell style cell phone.

This is a perfect camera for teenagers. It comes in cool colors, is rugged and is priced well below $200 at many online retailers.

Awesome.

Casio is rolling out two new cameras that are YouTube ready. The Exilim EX-S880 and EX-Z77. From the specs it seems like these cameras are very similar to existing models in the Exilim line. Specifically the Exilim EX-Z75.

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You then slip the camera into a dock, which comes with the device and plugs into your PC. This automatically starts a video management application on the computer and grabs the movie files. The application can be set up with a YouTube account, default title name, and other settings, so getting the video online involves simply clicking the upload button. Alternatively, you can enter information specific to the clips, then upload them.

Obviously this is all an exercise in marketing and branding. I fail to see how this is any easier than plugging your memory card into your PC an uploading your video to Youtube the normal way.

I’ll be posting a bit more about the Casio Exilim line. They are an excellent line of digital cameras.

I was checking out the Canon PowerShot SD1000 and I can’t figure out why anyone would buy the SD800 instead. The SD1000 is $218 and the SD800 is $308.

Feature wise the SD800 has a 3.8x zoom compared to the SD1000’s 3.0x zoom, and that’s about the bigest difference I can see. Are people really willing to spend $80 for the extra zoom in a camera that’s bigger and heavier than the Canon SD1000 ?

I have been in the market for a compact digital camera. I currently have a Kodak Z series digicam. It looks like a digital SLR but technically isn’t. Ireally like it since it allows me take pictures in manual mode just like an SLR. The problem is that I want a simple point and shoot that can easily slip into my pocket without dragging my shirt down to my knees.

I was in my local Best Buy and checked out the Kodak C763. This camera is tiny and light weight. The price was about $179. It almost seemed perfect until I saw the video specifications. The C763 shoots Motion-JPEG at 15 fps. Uh oh…dealbreaker. I want to be able to shoot 30fps at 640 × 480.

The reason I’m a little picky is that I have a friend with a Pentax camera. His video footage isn’t as good as a regular camcorder but it does a great job at Youtube quality footage.

More on other cameras I have looked at later. However if video is not a priority for you the I recommend you take a close look at the C763.