I've got a Kodak DX3500 that I bought a year ago. Although I miss my Canon Sure Shot Zoom (it got stolen at work ) the Kodak is a great little camera for the price. I got the camera and card reader, along with the Kodak programs for downloading and storing in albums for $279 from a place called B&H Photo. I've saved alot of money on batteries by getting rechargeable batteries and a charger too. It takes great pictures and I store them all either on my album program or on ofoto.com

Before I bought my camera, I did TONS of research. Originally I wanted a camera that had a floppy disk. At the time I worked at a newspaper and wrote a column called "Pet of the Week" which included a story and picture of a pet up for adoption. I thought a camera with a floppy disk was the way to go. My friend who is a photojournalist (the photo dept. uses Nikon digitals which are WAYYY expensive!) helped me find what I needed and said that the cameras with the floppys are going out.

I've never had a bit of trouble with my camera and found it very easy to use.

Good luck in your search.