Digital cameras have come a long way. The first digital cameras lacked in depth and quality. Today’s digital cameras include excellent imagery and many appealing options. For less than $300, you can purchase a digital camera that does it all. While not great choices for professional photographers, budget digital cameras will suit the average user well.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W350 $150 to $205

The Sony Cyber-shot is the perfect camera for casual photographers. This compact camera includes 14-megapixels, an optical zoom lens with stabilization, wide angle lens capabilities, and a 2.7 inch LCD screen. As compared to other cameras in this price range, the Cyber-shot is easy to use and easy to control.

While primarily a camera for those who like to take snapshots, the Cyber-shot also has a panorama option. The Cyber-shot also has a 720P HD movie camera that creates decent videos and allows for lens zoom while the camera is in use. Photos taken by the Cyber-shot are somewhat fuzzy when photographed at full size. Still, the Cyber-shot W350 is a great camera with a small price tag.

Canon PowerShot SD1200 IS -- $184 to $190

Those searching for a compact camera that can take decent snapshots will enjoy what the Canon PowerShot SD1200 IS has to offer. This camera includes 10-megapixels, a 3X zoom lens, an optical zoom viewfinder, and a 2.5 inch LCD screen. Canon also took style into consideration when creating the PowerShot. The PowerShot comes in six colors including green, orange, dark grey, silver, pink, and blue. It’s also possible to capture movies with PowerShots’ 640X480 video camera. While a great compact camera, the PowerShot SD1200 IS has limited battery life. Some users have also found that this camera breaks easily when dropped.

Nikon Coolpix S570 -- $125 to $180

The Coolpix lens just slightly above the rest of the cameras in the under $300 category. Coolpix has been rated highly across the board due to its lens. An F2728 millimetre wide-angle lens (with 5X zoon) makes shooting good quality photos easy. The Nikon Coolpix S570 is available in an array of colors including pink, black, blue, and red. Even though the Coolpix has a great lens, this camera can be a bit slow to react. Ideal for shooting still photographs and poised portraits, the Coolpix is worth a look.

Fujifilm FinePix JZ300 -- $150 to $200

Fujifilm created a good budget camera when the FinePix JZ300 was fashioned. A 20 millimetre lens, 10X zoom, and a 2.7 inch LCD screen are all part of the FinePix. This 12 mega-pixel camera will produce quality photographs most of the time. Since this camera is particularly user-friendly, it is a great camera for new or amateur photographers. Those who want to record movies as well as snap photographs will enjoy the 720P HD movie camera that is part of the FinePix (zoom can be used while recording a movie). The main drawback of the FinePix JX300 is that photographs could be a bit sharper. FujiFilm doesn’t add a lot of extras to this camera, which may, or may not, be a drawback for some users.