Minolta A2 VS Nikon 8800

[Nikx]

Hello all, i'm seeking some digital camera advise. About a year ago i bought a minolta dimage Z2 and it has serves me well, but i think it's time to step up in thwe world and buy a new, better, digi cam. I was looking at SLR's but decided they were too expensive after buying lenses for it, so i decided to look at high-end "prosumer" cameras. I've whittled it down to 2 choices:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/spec...kon_cp8800.asp
and
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/koni...taa2/page2.asp

I like the first because of the more powerful zoom, and the second because of the faster speed and manual focus rings. With a more powerful zoom the A2 would deffenitly take the cake, but since it only has 7X where the 8800 has a 10X zoom, i'm not so sure. If the 8800 was faster and had a manual focus ring, i would instantly buy that, but i guess you can't have the best of both worlds eh?

Right now i'm leaning towards the A2, mostly because of the manual focus abilites it has dwarf the 8800, but i'd still like you guyses opinions

I'll be using this camera for all my needs, from photographing trips, to family birthdays, to school events. I want something that can adapt to any situation, but it wasn't have to extremely excel in one catigory, i want a camera thats the jack of all trades, master of none, so to say. Although i'd like a "master of all trades) i do have a budget...what these cameras cost is the most i'm willing to spend. The thing that makes me consider the 8800 is cost, after rebate it will cost me about 600 bucks, where as the cheapest i can find an A2 is still over 800. But if the A2 is really a better camera, i'll probably get it.

As you can see a furious battle is raging in my head Help please?

[trog100]

i wouldnt swop either of em for my FZ20 to be honest..

trog100

[SmartWombat]

Can I throw a spanner in the works?

I've owned (and still not re-sold) Minolta A1, A2.
And just upgraded my wife from Z1 to Panasonic FZ20

Why?
Because it's got 12x zoom, not the 8x of the A2.
Because it can go to f2.8 across the whole zoom range.
Becuse it has optical stabilization.

And because my wofe can work it and get racing cars in the frame !
Something she never managed with the Z1.


The Panasonic does not have:
tilting rear screen
tilting electronic viewfinder
high resolution EVF

But it does:
autofocus in bright conditions
allow panning shots for motorsport without freezing the viewfinder


I found the A2 a backward step from the A1 in many respects.
Lock-ups in operation (even with firmware update)
Inability to focus on bright subjects
Buffer size not increased (with 8Mpix images, less in buffer)