My trusty 4yr old Canon IXUS IIs has finally died on me… so its time for a replacement… and after weeks searching the net, reading reviews & going into camera shops, I’ve narrowed the shortlist down to 3… and that’s hopefully where you guys come in

The reasons I liked my old camera are – well built & sturdy, took excellent crisp, clear photos (in my non-expert opinion), good array of features & options, excellent video with sound, extremely easy to use, & very compact.

So I’ve listed my 3 options below including potential positives and negatives of each.

1. Canon IXUS 80is
+ves – well built & sturdy, similar options & features & same ease of use as my old camera (& good video), & very compact, think I can trust it through experience.
-ves – 3x zoom is no increase on my old camera, and there are few other improvements over my old camera and this is 4yrs later!!!

2. Ricoh R7
+ves – huge zoom & wide angle lens for small camera, 3” lcd screen, options on paper appear great value for money.
-ves – some reports over photo quality indoors and/or with flash, and some reports of poor lcd screen quality. No reviews on video with sound quality.

3. Panasonic DMC FX55
+ves – Wide angle lens, slightly better zoom than old camera, 3” lcd screen.
-ves – No reviews on video with sound quality, made of plastic, most expensive out of the 3

I’d be very interested in your views & experiences of any/all.

Thanks for your time & help….