So we were in the market for a camera, because my sister feels she's a goddamn NatGeo photographer and she's too good for her 4S and its image quality. So I did a good bit of research and ask a few shutterbug friends of mine for the best point and shoot camera and decided on the Canon S100. Several sites called it the outright best point and shoot for the price and said it took DSLR-esque images for a fraction of the price.
Found this on Amazon for $249, down from $429 and $329 at Fry's and Best Buy. Told my sister, showed her pics and reviews confirming it was a solid purchase and then just waited for my dad to bring in the card and we'd pay.
Enter my dad, who says he would rather go and see the cameras in person and then make a decision. Fine. Keep in mind, no one in my family could tell you what an aperture was, a single photo editing program name, or what megapixel their phone cameras were. So looking at the fucking camera wasn't going to make much of a difference, if you couldn't take pictures to see how it turned out.
At Fry's, I was pissed. I had done the work and had several second opinions and my sister and dad were for sure going to fuck around the camera aisle for 20 minutes, a Fry's guy was going to come, sell them the most expensive camera in that range, and walk away. And that's exactly what happened. I tried telling my dad before he reached for his wallet that it was a rip off and that I had the damn camera in a cart on Amazon, waiting to be bought. Nope. $460 for a Sony HV30X, Class 10 SDHC and a case.
I'm no expert, the Sony may be a great camera, but for $150 less, I think the Canon would've shot something similar. $150. I know my parents buy me nice things, but I still know the value of a dollar and trying to save as much as I can. Doing the work and actually finding a solid product at a fantastic price only to still have my dad get shafted at a store is just frustrating beyond belief. He did offer to buy me my separate camera, to which I almost lost it and just simply said "no."
Maybe my ego was hurt. Whatever. I've used the camera, and it's really nice. I just can't help but wonder if it was $150- extra nice.
Here's some links
Recommended camera:
http://www.amazon.com/Canon-PowerSh...TF8&qid=1362955411&sr=8-1&keywords=canon+s100
One review of recommended camera:
http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/canon-s100/
Another review:
http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/recommended-cameras.htm#pocket
Sony camera that was bought instead:
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-Cyber-sh...TF8&qid=1362955514&sr=1-1&keywords=sony+hx30v
Fry's had it for $399. Even Amazon has it for $299. Even if my sister bought this from Amazon, it would've been straight. I showed this to her and she thought I was just upset she didn't listen to me. Maybe. I guess leaving $150 on the table is ok to her.