Best camera for a four year old?

[gingajewel]

My four year old wants a camera for Christmas, can anyone recommend a cheap but good camera for that age? She has a kiddizoom but I don’t think they are that great!

I got mine cheap digital cameras at that age, they then moved on to old phones that we had in the house with no SIM.

When ds1 was that age he wanted a camera and had the forerunner of the Nikon w150 which was great - waterproof, fairly rugged, some fun functions and filters for kids, even animation (shot by shot!), a simple operation mode ( most used by dh; ds progressed off it, dh didn’t ), proper decent lens and results. I used to borrow it if going where I knew I would be encountering wet or messy conditions to save my dslr).

There’s also a fujipix 130 (something like that!) that’s simularly waterproof and rugged and simple that’s supposed to be good too.

They are a handy camera to have in a family to take if you’re going to the beach or in the rain etc

If budget is more checkbout other rugged or tough models. Or something like a go pro.

If less, see the earlier models of these ones - for a 4 yr old they’ll still work ŵell and having the latest features isn’t such a big deal, it can be a good compromise between features and cost - but double check as sometimes the older ones can suddenly go up in price too!

Oh and avoid some of the really cheap brands like vivitar as they are t very strong and don’t take great pictures - keep an eye out around Black Friday etc for good deals (and there are some good price checkers to monitor models you’re interested in).

Also avoid Polaroid type models - lots of fun to get the pic there and then but if you have a snap happy kid it could rapidly become super expensive so stick to a digital camera! And use a site like free prints if they want prints to get them cheaply.

I got both of mine second hand kiddizoom on ebay, excellent condition about £8 incl postage. It eats batteries and I had to get a decent sized memory card as I got sick of having to repeatedly delete photos as they'd just take a gazillion of the floor then moan it was full. BUT it's the best I found that's robust, cheap and does the job.

I'm bouncing between the Kiddizoom and the Nikon S150.

DS1 has an earlier version of the Nikon and its great he got his a 5. I cant decide if 4 is too young for it or if i should just go for it.

@gingajewel

My four year old wants a camera for Christmas, can anyone recommend a cheap but good camera for that age? She has a kiddizoom but I don’t think they are that great!

I've just reread your first post. Are you thinking the Kidizoom is a waste of money outgrown at 4?

I really can't decide do I go straight for the Nikon or get a Kidizoom and upgrade in a couple of years? He'll be just turning 4 at Christmas.

I’d go straight for the Nikon - one of the reasons we gave one to ds at 4 was because he had always loved taking pictures - days before smartphones with good cameras I always had a small compact in my bag plus a dslr when we went out and he had been using both for as long as I can remember. We went to a wedding and one of the things that kept him happy and entertained was taking pictures - which meant I didn’t have my little compact to hand much as he had it. He took some great shots - interspersed with loads of the carpet and random patches of wallpaper. I missed my camera though so it was as much to reclaim my camera as for him to have one! But I knew he could use and be trusted with it early on.

If they want to do things with the pics, if they have access to a tablet that you can put the pics on to (having backed them up safely elsewhere first!) put a few apps like Snapseed and other fun manipulation apps or ones that turn them into comics and let them edit them out of the camera - they’ll still have lots of fun, you’ll end up with great pics and they’ll have denveloped skills without noticing!

to the random carpet shots, I know the feeling.

Nicking my camera is the reason I want him to have one of his own. Every time I pull my camera out he is off with it.

Thanks all! Tbh the kidizoom is a bit basic and picture quality is rubbish. Dd2 has dd1 old one and I just think it’s a bit babyish for her!
I think I’m going to go straight for a digital camera, thankyou! Now to find a cheap and cheerful one as I don’t want to spend a fortune on one!

The kiddizoom duo is the new upgraded version and has a load of games and features built in, just bought two for my nephews (3) and I definitely don’t see them being outgrown in a year as there’s so much that they do