I recently purchased a Canon Powershot ELPH 300 HS digital camera from Amazon.com. Initially, I had purchased a Sony T300 camera. The Sony camera had amazing quality, but the user friendliness of the camera was severely lacking. To me, I was not able to get functions to work properly. Maybe it’s because I am not a guy that likes to read manuals, but I’ve been through a lot of digital cameras in my lifetime and the Sony T300 had poor user friendliness. Ultimately, I ended selling the Sony camera and then began my search for a new digital camera.
As for the Canon Powershot ELPH 300, I didn’t really want this camera at first. I wanted something else: Nikon D3100. Nikon is world known for quality cameras, but so was Canon. So I did what any smart person would do, I went to local stores that had both camera’s available and tested them out.
The Nikon D3100 has amazing picture quality, but what bothered me most was the size of the camera. I came from a thin Sony digi-cam to something that is triple the size? This did not make sense. Back to the overall quality of the camera: it takes amazing pictures, it looked sturdy, but the quality of the flash in dim lighting is a big issue. My Sony T300 took better pictures in dim lighting than the D3100. The D3100 looked more like a semi-professional’s digital camera rather than a camera for an everyday person. It I spent every day taking pictures and purchasing attachments every week, I would get this camera because I feel the only way to get a perfect picture is to get the attachments.
As for the ELPH 300, it is definitely lighter. I actually found it at Bestbuy.com and then went into a local store to check it out. The camera takes amazing picture, better than the T300 but not as good as the D3100. However, still the best of the three in dim lighting. Now on to the important part, the functionality of the camera: this camera is very user friendly. We’ve all seen Ashton Kutcher on commercials selling these cameras and showing off the functions and ease of use. Believe me; he has a right to do so. Even though it’s a 12 megapixel camera, the Canon Powershot takes pictures like a pro, but giving the everyday person the ability to change settings in the blink of an eye.
All in all, all three cameras were great in their own ways. However, I am a firm believer in user friendliness when it comes to a camera for the everyday “Joe”. If you’re planning on becoming an amateur photographer then definitely head for the Nikon 3100. If you’re into reading manuals (most guys are not), then take the path towards the Sony T300. But if for ease of use and the ability to work it right out the box, grab the Canon Powershot ELPH 300.
-Ry
