Kids Camera?

[NFLD Stephen]

My son turns three next month and we were looking to get him a camera. He shows interest when I'm using mine and often tells me what to take pictures of and then wants to see them. But he is only three, so I didn't want to get him anything too advanced or fragile! Anyone have any recommendations on what to get?

My wife was looking at a kids vtech action cam, which looks well built, but it is oriented towards video: for stills the resolution is only 0.3MP. I don't need 50MP, but 0.3 is ridiculously low... Ideally I'd like to be able to print some of his photos and put in his own album for him. We're thinking this would be a good idea for our upcoming NZ/Australia trip.

So, looking for something that takes reasonably good photos, simple to use (for a child) and well built to survive a toddlers life. Any suggestions?

Stephen

[DavidEccleston]

We got Bella a cheap kids camera once. They pack them with early first gen 640x480 sensors that are garbage. Tons of noise, really really poor metering, and really really poor white balance, and of course, being an early sensor with low ISO capabilities, long shutters, which is horrible for kids as they shoot indoors a fair bit.

In the end it's not fun, they have few usable images, and they'd add it to the list of things they're no good at, which is exactly what you don't want.

Instead, look at a low-end but new, or new-ish, Point & Shoot... though they may be getting hard to find, as the low-end is taken over by camera phones. Perhaps a waterproof one is more likely to survive, and more likely to be available (since the phone can't do that), though that may inflate the price significantly. Don't forget to search the used sections of your local store (Despite our shrinking dollar, it may be worthwhile to check both new and used on Adorama and B&H too), or even Craigslist (but then you have to be extra careful that everything actually works...).

No specific suggestions, except for stay away from "Kids Camera" cameras.

[HDNitehawk]

My 2 1/2 year old grand daughter started using the IPad at just over a year old. She was frustrated for a while but now can open any program, knows how to close all the annoying pop ups on her games. Before she was 2 she knew how to navigate to all her movies. She is adept with the iPad as I am. Occasionally she opens up the camera and video recorder. For the most part we have hundreds of pictures of her eye, the floor, the ceiling, the dogs forehead and various arms and legs.

At that age the camera isn't that interesting to them, other than they look like mom and dad taking pictures. For one they can not see the immediate results and they loose interest quickly. Since DSLR's have been around for years, and point and shoots are on the way out, I would suggest just finding an old version to give him and set it on automatic modes.

I would agree with David's suggestion. I have bought the kids cameras many years ago, they were a waste of money.

[NFLD Stephen]

Thanks for the input. Seems to be what I am discovering about kid cameras as well: they're generally not good.... May look further into getting a cheap p&s or waterproof camera. I recognize that he may not use it much, but he does take our camera every so often so thought maybe he would like his own. In any case, I'll try not to spend too much on it and will not set any unrealistic expectations on his usage.

Stephen

[Sean Setters]

You might consider purchasing a used Nikon COOLPIX AW100 / AW110 / AW120 (depending on budget). The image quality isn't excellent, but will probably be sufficient. Plus they're supposedly quite durable cameras (waterproof, shockproof).

For what it's worth, you can also purchase a Refurb. Nikon COOLPIX AW120 for $149.99.