If you're on a comparatively limited budget but would like to be able to take detailed photos with comparatively minimal effort, then the Acer CE-6430 is worth considering.
In keeping with the current vogue, it's sleek and compact and designed in stylish silver with a front panel grip to help you keep a steady hand with those action shots. It's lightweight at just 130g and easily slips into a purse or pocket; a fetching soft camera case is provided.
The biggest plus point is the 6.36-megapixel CCD sensor which ensures you get the sharpness and quality you're after. The image can be amplified using the 3x optical or 4x digital zoom, and viewed on the 2.36-inch TFT colour LCD screen. For extreme close-ups there's a 5cm macro mode, while video can be captured at 30fps (but at a rather disappointing 320 x 240 resolution).
No memory cards are provided but SD cards up to 1GB can be installed. You're definitely going to need them because the paltry 8MB built-in memory will allow you just four high resolution photos (2,816 x 2,112 pixels) before you run out of space. Using the standard mode dial on the top of the camera you can either opt for automatic settings or specialise for Portrait, Landscape, Sports or Night shots.
In capture mode you can take single shots or bursts of three (the Auto Bracket version of this automatically changes the exposure within a set range between shots). Self-timer, exposure and white balance can also be manually modified, as can the flash, the focus, the image quality and the ISO sensitivity, which ranges from 64 to 200. The on-screen menus and icons are familiar and easy to manoeuvre through, and all in all there's much to recommend here.
However there are a few niggles, as one might expect for a 'budget' camera. The first is a common problem with video playback - you can see the video but not hear the audio unless it's plugged into a PC or TV monitor. Not much use if you've just captured a memorable parade or rollercoaster ride and can't check the sound on location.
Second, the accompanying software includes an old issue of Acrobat (6.0), a USB driver for Windows 98 and Windows 98SE and a Manual, but not the NTI Photo Suite advertised in the Manual - shorely shome mishtake? The added insult is that NTI Photo Suite is not Mac compatible so you'd have to use something like iPhoto instead if you're an Apple user.
