I purchased this camera new some 12 months ago (Dec 05) and fell in love with it at once. It was my first digital camera so I didn't know what to expect. I admit that I still don't know «how to work it» but my son is able to assist when I really need to change something in the menu. Otherwise, it is a true point and shoot, highly suitable for a person like me who is not too demanding, but who enjoys taking and looking at lots of pictures in a year. The pictures, when viewed on my computer screen, are GOOOOOD! Yet the thing I like about it best is the size: it fits snugly in a pocket of my jeans or coat. You really would not know it is there.

However, I am not writing to say how much I like it, although that is important. I'm writing to say that within 6 months, the camera developed a major fault. It happened while we were on holiday overseas and was to some extent a real nuisance. We still managed to take photos, but for most of the time, the LCD screen was blank and the menu kept on rearranging itself merrily, so that at one point I was suddenly taking very high resolution pics and thus ran out of memory. Most inconvenient. When we returned from the trip, I took the camera in for repair under warranty and was thus without it for some three weeks (I use it ALL the time). More inconvenience.

Anyway, life isn't perfect, but I feel people should be warned that this marvellous technology is not without its faults. I might have considered buying a second one of these on eBay for my daughter but I have decided not to, since it may well happen that problems arise with the camera which I would have to pay quite a lot to fix (without warranty). I have taken out a 3-year warranty on this camera but I am now thinking - what happens after that? I had my old camera for over 30 years. Is this really a throwaway item now?