Sony Cybershot DSC-W50 Digital Camera

We have had a Nikon Coolpix digital camera for years but started using it a lot more since we started this blog a few months ago. We have always loved our Coolpix (it is the retired model which has a swiveling lens that can be rotated 360 degrees on a horizontal axis) but quickly discovered some limitations as we started demanding more of it. We decided we needed a new digital camera that met the following criteria:

• Short lag time. Most of the pictures we take with our digital camera are of our kid. She moves fast. Anything under one second would be passable, but we were looking for an even shorter lag time.
  
• Decent image depth. Anything beyond 5 megapixels is probably overkill for regular users. See David Pogue's piece on this, but keep in mind that his critique completely disregards the value of higher pixel counts for photos you wish to crop heavily and still have look good.
  
• A good lens. Many cameras keep prices down by skimping on the lens, which consumers don't pay as much attention to as numbers.
• Under $300.

Here are the specs we cared about that led us to this camera:

• Price: $250.
• Lag time: An astonishing .3 seconds.
• Megapixels: 6.0.
• Lens: Carl Zeiss. Jenni swears by Carl Zeiss. Even our 35mm point-and-shoot (a Yashica) has a Carl Zeiss lens.

The Sony Cybershot DSC-W50 is a Consumer Reports Best Buy, too. We rarely make major purchasing decisions without Consumer Reports. (For baby items, this book is even better.)