[RickM]

I purchased what I think is a high quality "all around" digital camera for my wife last Christmas.

What was important to me were the following:

Standard batteries (as opposed to a proprietary format....Expensive!):
The camera I purchased uses AA. Can't get more standard than that. That coupled with and inexpensive 1-hour Ni-MH charger worked out great.

Standard, well accepted Memory format: SD ($64 for 256M @Costco) This format is slated to get much cheaper as they are soon releasing 1 and 2 gig versions.

Highest optical zoom for the money

Highest pixel count: IMO, more is better. You can reduce to whatever size without loss. But it doesn't work the other way around.

Fast refresh/recovery: How quickly can you snap multiple shots? My wifes camera could be better. Variables that influence this include Red eye (three flashes), use of flash in the first place, Cameras ability to store images to memory quickly. I believe most cameras will post this in specs. A SDRAM buffer is the typical approach to shortening this time (The newer version uses this technology). This aspect of the cameras performance is extremely important when taking action/moving shots.

Price: under $500

Epinions.com is a great place to read owner reviews. It influenced my purchase immensly.

BTW, the camera is a Minolta Dimage ($450 last Dec). I can't recall the model but it is the predecessor of the now highly rated S414 (approx $250).