Pentax Efina J

I bought this camera last week to take to Six Flags. I took about 10 pictures in daylight and 15 pictures in the evening. When I got the film developed, only 2 pictures out of the whole roll came out clear. Even the pictures taken during the day did not come out clear. I am very disappointed with this camera. Unfortunately, I only have 10 days to return or exchange this camera so I can't test another roll. I think I will return it for a 35mm.

small size

weak flash, expensive to get film developed

minolta freedom zoom, canon ae-1

Compact, APS ease of loading/unloading film; sharp, activeIR autofocus; choice of where to print date/time/titles; sufficient documentation; good zoom; and above all low priced. I've put several rolls of film through it, and it's made some very nice photos in tricky lighting situations. Great for snapshots and portraits by the average casual user, plus a few programmed features useful to the more seasoned photographer who doesn't feel like lugging a full sized SLR around. I'm not sure that Pentax is producing these any more, so you will have to search for the ones left over at discount stores. A good deal, if you have the time/interest to test it before purchasing it. Probably not good for purchase through mail order or internet, mainly because of the 1 in 4 chance of getting a flawless specimen, although your mileage may vary.

Small size, reasonably sharp photos (with fine grain film like Fuji Nexia), zoom (viewfinder zooms too!), useful features, price.

Weak flash, as per usual on a tiny camera. Quality is suspect, too. The first one I took home had a defective timer button. When I returned it for exchange, I brought a battery along to test the next one before taking it home. The next one I tried had all functions operating properly, but there was dirt/lint in the viewfinder. I requested another, and it had the same dirt/lint problem, and the unadjustable viewfinder was out of focus enough to make it difficult to frame a shot. The fourth one I tried had a clean, focused viewfinder, and all of the buttons worked, so I took it home. The viewfinder only shows about 90% of actual exposure, but it is pretty well centered.

Kodak APS c300
Pentax IQZoom60
Pentax IQZoom70
Canon SureShot

Haven't used it yet.