Q: With so many digital cameras on the market, how do I decide which one is right for me?

A: When it comes to digital cameras, both size and cost matter.
The most important factor to keep in mind when choosing a camera is the number of pixels, the individual imaging elements in the light sensitive chip that gathers the image. Popular models now feature at least three and as many as 10 megapixels, with the higher the number the better the quality of the picture. Not surprisingly, the higher the number, the more costly the camera, too.
Deciding what you want your camera to do will influence your decision on how many pixels you need to buy. If you just want to send snapshots over the Web, a two or three megapixel camera will be fine. But if you want to make prints larger than two or three inches, or plan on cropping a picture, you'll want to spend a little more for a higher resolution camera. A four or five megapixel camera will give you 8 x 10-inch images you can print on a good quality ink jet printer, which are sometimes impossible to tell from prints made from negatives.

After deciding what your needs are, my next advice is to check out reviews on the Internet. Any camera can be purchased cheaper online than at a retail store, and there are a number of sites that offer in-depth reviews of a particular camera. Probably the smartest move you can make is to stop by your local camera store and check out their selection. Handle the cameras, and see how they feel in your hands, then check whether the controls make sense and if they are easy to use. Then take that research to your computer, check out the reviews online and find your best deal.

Some nice features to look for in a digital camera are batteries that are readily available, such as AAs. Also find how the camera you choose stores pictures. Compact flash cards are widely used now and come in sizes up to two gigabytes. It's best to avoid cameras that use only SmartMedia cards, which top out at 128 MB.