Quote Originally Posted by HamburgO View Post
I kind of agree with BobH above, but I also think the Panasonic Lumix DMC- line offers one of the best price/performance ratios on the market today. For example, apart from the body and the software, the DMC-LX5 has the identical Leica lens and internals as the Leica D-Lux 5, but the Lumix retails for $300 - $400, while the Leica is still going for $650 - $800.

With your budget today, I might look at the DMC-ZS8...
I used a first generation Sony Mavica floppy disc camera for a decade. Recently went for the DMC-LX5 and it is simply great. Takes wonderful videos too.