Digital Camera Values - Episode 7

2007.12.24

The episode is truly about value. Recall, that value and price are two separate things. Value is what you get for a price. Price is simply what you pay for. Good value happens when you pay less for something that is useful than what you could have paid for something that would not be any more useful.

Digital cameras sell across a wide range of prices. What makes some a good value to the buyer, always depends on the buyer's needs. What happens too often is that people give themselves a budget too low to get something that satisfies their needs. At Neocamera, we frequently get letters from people looking for a digital camera with specific set of features (megapixels, zoom, shutter-lag, etc.) within a specific budget. Well, as we saw with the case of Buying The Right Camera Tripod, buying the wrong camera because of cost is not efficient. What ends up happening is that an unsatisfied buyer then buys something more appropriate (and more expensive) to replace the wrong camera.

To find a good value, you must first understand what you really need. That roughly corresponds to Step 2 of Neocamera's buying guide. Then, look at the cameras that satisfy the needs which you identified. Depending on the particular needs, this may result in numerous digital cameras. No matter what the price range is, there should be one whose price is lower than the others. That digital camera is probably the best value for your needs.

Now, suppose you do not find a suitable camera within a particular budget. Are you being unreasonable? Probably. Can you get around this? Maybe. Obviously, if you have the money, you should raise your budget since that is the easiest way to get a camera that satisfies your needs. If not, one option is to wait. Seriously consider this if you already have a camera that does not satisfy your needs. Otherwise, look at discontinued models. Even though manufacturers stop producing certain models, many of them remain available new from discount retailers and brick-and-mortar stores. The last option is to go with something used or refurbished. Remember, any time you get something that does what you need it to do, you are better off than paying for something that does not!

• Digital Camera