What about one of these?? [url= http://www.amazon.co.uk/Olympus-TOUGH-3000-Digital-Camera-Optical/dp/B00318CUSS/ref=sr_1_1?s=photo&ie=UTF8&qid=1402907321&sr=1-1&keywords=olympus+tough ]Olympus Tough[/url]

I use them for work, dangling about oil rigs and they are pretty indestructible. Not the most amazing pictures but after a bit of playing about with them you realise for the price and bombproof construction they are very very good 🙂

Those cameras you have linked to will be perfectly good.

My nephew has had a cheap Canon (about £50-60) for a year or so now since he was about 7 and it's perfectly fine, so any of those choices would be good. You can see where they've saved the money on his camera (it takes AA batteries and the screen is quite low res), but it's perefctly fine.

I'd work out if you need/want a tough camera or a normal camera and go from there. A lot of that will depend on how careful your kids are and where they are likely to be used.
The quality of a 'tough' camera at a given price point, generally won't be as good as a 'normal' compact as they will have had to budget in for the tougher case, extra seals etc. I've got a Nikon Coolpix compact and a Nikon AW tough camera and performance-wise they are quite different; the tough one is quite a way behind in image quality, adjustability, low light performance and speed of operation.

If you do end up looking at tough cameras, Fuji do one for around £100 that is pretty good. My mate bought one for his homeymoon last year (in the Maldives so wanted something for when he was diving) and got some nice shots.

Thanks both. I know what you mean about the 'Tough' cameras. I an an Optimax or something that wasn't expensive and very robust, but it was very slow and the low light performance was rubbish.

They're obviously a lot better now as teenagers in terms of not knackering everything they touch, but I still don't want to give them anything more fragile than a cheap phone.

Might have to go to an actual shop and have a proper look and feel.

Big fan of IXUSes myself.

I wouldn't get a "tough" camera, I'd teach them the value of looking after things and doing without if it breaks.

IANAparent.

They're obviously a lot better now as teenagers in terms of not knackering everything they touch, but I still don't want to give them anything more fragile than a cheap phone.

My daughters (10 and 14) both have normal point-and-shoots, the pictures are a lot better than a phone, and neither has broken yet - even normal models seem to be reasonably tough, though fortunately neither has suffered a dunking. Yet.

Still, a tough camera would be more fun as you can take pictures underwater.

I have an Olympus TG2, we have the underwater shots covered 🙂

I like the IXUS as well. Was one of my first biking cameras. Last years int he slop and mud before finally dying after being submerged multiple times on some Welsh death march.

Oh and Cougar - yeah tried that. Pay for it yourself/won't be replaced when you break it/take care of expensive things like we did... teenagers are just not wired up for real life. I'm sure there is useful stuff going on in their head but it doesn't include things like 'I must not feed the dog my mobile phone' 😉

I have a LUMIX, good simple camera and even though it is 4 years old pictures are much better than a new smartphone. Quite rugged been dropped a bit etc. See if you can buy one second hand, they are a £100 new and there must be hundreds of unused ones lying around

Note at 13 and 15 they should be cable of being trusted not to drown the camera

FYI I recall camera is sold without memory card, they are cheap now and unless you are taking movies you don't need a huge one.

I like the IXUS as well. Was one of my first biking cameras. Last years int he slop and mud before finally dying after being submerged multiple times on some Welsh death march.

I had an IXUS 40 back in, er, the late Jurassic I think. It still survives but unfortunately it outlived its battery, which now holds about five minutes of charge.

For info, I ended up getting 2xNikon CoolPix S3500s (last years model) for £60 each in different colours. Good reviews, nearly half price, that'll do. Ta for all the suggestions.

Cool. Should do the job!

Bargain!

Good luck with nikon point and shoots, they are notoriously flimsy and this is coming from someone who worked in a camera shop and had to send them off for repair on a regular basis. The bit you have to watch out for is the zoom ring in front of the shutter button, it feels flimsy and it is.

I would have gone for a Fuji XP series, shockproof, waterproof and pretty much childproof. You can pick up an old model for £50

[url= http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/251558576183?limghlpsr=true&hlpv=2&ops=true&viphx=1&hlpht=true&lpid=108&device=c&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=108&ff19=0 ]FujiXP50[/url]

Sorry to cast doubt but those cheap Nikon P&S's are just about the flimsiest cameras i've had my hands on.

bomberman - Member
Good luck with nikon point and shoots, they are notoriously flimsy and this is coming from someone who worked in a camera shop and had to send them off for repair on a regular basis. The bit you have to watch out for is the zoom ring in front of the shutter button, it feels flimsy and it is.

I would have gone for a Fuji XP series, shockproof, waterproof and pretty much childproof. You can pick up an old model for £50

Shame you only decided to chip in once the OP has made the purchase....

And FWIW, my Nikon P300 has a similar zoom ring and is getting on for probably 3 years+ old.
Take it biking, been on numerous holidays with it etc. and not given it any special care. It's fine.
As is my Wife's Coolpix, which must be getting on for 7-8 years old now; just the battery life in that that's rubbish now.

The Fuji XP is a decent 'tough' camera' but doesn't take great pics [b]compared[/b] to a similar priced compact. My mate used to work for Fuji so always used to bring them on biking holidays etc.