Camera help...

[bryce]

Wifey wants a new camera for Christmas, but I know next to nothing about current specs and whatnot. Her phone takes great pics, but it's too clunky to transfer to a computer.

From what she has told me, these are her main prerequisites:
1) compact size
2) ease of transfer to computer
3) good picture quality

I plan on browsing around cnet, but I usually see good advice here, so I thought I'd seek any recommendations.

Thanks in advance.

[Comey]

Budget?

[johnnyshaka]

This is what I'd like to buy for my wife for Xmas:

Canon® PowerShot® Elph 320 HS 16.1 MP Digital Camera Bundle (http://www.costco.ca/Canon%C2%AE-PowerShot%C2%AE-Elph-320-HS-16.1-MP-Digital-Camera-Bundle.product.100003233.html?catalogId=11201&keyword=772320&langId=-24&storeId=10302&cm_mmc=Canon-_-EN-_-1-_-Canon%20PowerShot&om_rid=NpSH6p&om_mid=_BQeEzsB8uZoFDi&om_lid=amex5)

[Castlerock]

Sony RX100 looks great but is very expensive.

I bought my dad a Canon S95 (the S90/S95/S100/S110 are all very similar) and I LOVE that thing. I can often take better indoor shots with that than I can with my SLR because I only have one lens that can open wider than F2.0.

The Canon was widely regarded as the best compact camera around but may have been surpassed by the Sony if you can afford it.

[Comey]

I wholeheartedly second the RX100. If you can't get that, the Sony HX200v is also quite sweet (as is the HX20v).

[bryce]

Thanks for the replies so far. No idea what a reasonable budget is for a camera, honestly. Castlerock, how expensive is 'very expensive?' The link above for the Canon $190 is totally reasonable. Anything under $300 I'm comfy with... More than that might give me pause but I still wouldn't totally rule it out...

thx again.

[gstelmack]

Note that his link is Canada, but if you're budget is $300, you're golden, you can get a sweet camera. The Amazon link is Amazon.com: Canon PowerShot ELPH 320 HS 16.1 MP Wi-Fi Enabled CMOS Digital Camera with 5x Zoom 24mm Wide-Angle Lens with 1080p Full HD Video and 3.2-Inch Touch Panel LCD (Black): Camera & Photo (http://www.amazon.com/Canon-PowerShot-Enabled-Wide-Angle-3-2-Inch/dp/B0075SUJQK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352379476&sr=8-1&keywords=canon+powershot+elph+320), but yes that would be a great camera fitting all your wife's needs. The Powershot line takes great pictures.