Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought this camera because I am planning to take a backpacking trip to New Zealand in a couple of months, and wanted something that could take a bit of a beating while I'm out there. When I am kayaking, I want to be able to take a camera out with me. I am also about to go parasailing, so I got the camera now so that I could test it out on the water. I had originally planned on taking a very expensive DSLR to NZ, but was convinced otherwise because it is extremely heavy for a backpacker, and I would also probably eventually end up breaking it. Instead of breaking a very expensive camera, I bought this camera, for $100, at this link: http://www.amazon.com/Coleman-Waterproof-Digital-Floating-Accessory/dp/B004WSLZ5U/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1342658199&sr=8-5&keywords=coleman+digital+camera Even though I bought the camera in a kit instead of from this page, I thought I should write the review here because the camera seems to be taking quite a beating from reviews of people who probably didn't understand the camera. First of all, this camera is NOT a camera for people who are serious photographers looking for high quality shots. You don't buy a camera for $100 and expect it to take professional photos. It's pretty simple. If you are looking for something like that, you might want to up your budget for a camera by about $1,000.00. I knew that when I bought it. That said, there are a few things you need to expect if you buy this. First of all, there IS a delay between the time you press the button for a photo, and the time it takes the photo. This isn't a particularly big issue for me. Also, the image quality isn't the best, but it does the job I wanted it to do. Another note is that photo quality is generally better outdoors than indoors. However, I was able to get decent shots. When I turned on the camera, I was surprised to realize that it actually has a menu that lets you change the ISO, exposure,IMAGE QUALITY, white balance, and it also has several types of flash that you can use, which greatly change the quality of the photo. Many people have complained about poor photo quality, but if they would just take the time to change some settings, they would get a much better photo. I saw one complaint on the reviews about how hard it was to shut the door to the battery pack. It isn't difficult. If you try to just shut the door, it will not do it easily. However, there is a lever on the door- all you have to do is hold it back, and the door shuts easily. It might be a little tricky the first time to break it in, but I didn't have any issues. I might also add, I am a girl who is not very strong.Personally, I would rather have a sturdy door than one that opens easily and exposes the battery and memory card to water. Another complaint was that the microphone flooded. Here's a trick- use the plug. Problem solved. I used this camera in water and it was fine. If you are expecting excellent photos in the water, DON'T USE IT IN MURKY WATER. If you get icky photos because of it, it's not the camera's fault. It's your own dang fault because you took a photo of murky water. If you want crystal clear photos, get a water purifier. One reviewer commented that you couldn't get sound unless you plugged in a microphone. Not true. YOU DO NOT NEED TO PLUG IN A MICROPHONE. If you take the plug off the microphone, you WILL record sound. You will not hear it though until you load the video onto your computer. Why? Because its STUPID to put a speaker on a camera that is supposed to go underwater. One other complaint from a reviewer was this: "The "extra" battery that came with the kit doesn't fit the camera properly. It is a generic battery that pops out every time you try to charge the thing." -Jessica How about turning the battery, Jessica? If you put the battery in the wrong way, it WILL pop out. It's to let you know that the battery is in wrong. I put it in wrong at first, but then I turned it around and guess what? It stayed in. EPIPHANY. All in all, this camera does what I want it to. I didn't expect professional photographs- it's a cheap camera. I will certainly miss my DSLR while I am in NZ, but it wouldn't stand a chance. This Coleman camera IS rugged. I also liked the blue color that I got. It was pretty. Except for the one, maybe two, reviews I saw about the camera having a defect, most of the reviews I saw were simple things that people could have figured out, had they simply taken the time to learn about the camera.