Posted 5 December 2023

No decent compact cameras circa £200 any more?

I've usually had panasonic lumix TZ series cameras for £170ish, but latest (3rd one) a TZ70 has now also gone kaput.
I can't find anything similar in the £150-£200 price range. They have el cheapo ones the(circa £60) then prices seem to jump to almost £400 and above.
Has this ,market been phased out cos mobile phone cameras are a lot better now, or is there some sort of component shortage? Thanks in advance.
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  1. MonkeyMan90's avatar
    I would hazard a guess it's to do with mobile phones. A flagship phone now is just as good as the vast majority of compact cameras. Imo the only step up from a mobile phone is a D-SLR camera, with a load of different lenses. Which for obvious reasons isn't ideal unless you're pro/semi pro or serious hobbyist (edited)
    beeryben's avatar
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    Hmmm yeah seems that way. My phone takes pretty good photos but not the same quality as the compact cameras. I don't want to pay a fortune for a phone with a better camera, which might only last 2-3 years. Thanks for replying.
  2. C0mm0d0re_K1d's avatar
    Yes it's mostly to do with camera phones being so good now. The latest iPhone has a hidden internal periscope zoom lens system now. Even my budget realme smart phone has a 64mp main camera sensor in a phone that cost less than £200.

    Most camera manufacturers have pulled out of the compact market and only make mirrorless or DSLR cameras now. The only cheap compact cameras are crap from Kodak or similar cheap Chinese brands.

    Panasonic seem to only do the Lumix G and S models now - panasonic.com/uk/…tml

    Maybe have a look at Canon, Fuji, Sony.

    Have you checked Jessops photographic - jessops.com/cam…ras
    Rugrats's avatar
    "The only cheap compact cameras are crap from Kodak or similar cheap Chinese brands."


    Comment of the week
  3. GoodAsGold's avatar
    It might be better to buy a used one. Cheap cameras now are often worse than what you could get 5 years ago
  4. Bigfootpete's avatar
    51678224-SPDYm.jpg
    51678224-MCgm3.jpgI concur with Commodore_kid, I used my Oneplus 10T on my trip to NZ, cracking shots, apart from zooming in closer, there's not that much benefit from buying a compact camera over a smartphone these days.
    51678224-fEJhy.jpg
  5. Pricklerickle's avatar
    Wha about fz45, how is that, seen it today
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