Our first Best Buy goes to Kodak's DC280 Zoom, which offers superb focusing and exceptional image quality.
The DC280 may not be the best-looking device here but its simple design and easy-to-use LCD menu and functions puts this camera on our Christmas wish-list.
The DC280 offers a 2 megapixel CCD and can produce photo image sizes at 8x10-inch without comprising quality and detail.
Two unmatched and highly desirable offerings come with the Kodak. The first is a USB interface in addition to a serial interface, which greatly reduces the time taken to download pictures.
Kodak also generously bundles a 20 megabyte CompactFlash card that stores up to 30 high-resolution images (1760x1168 pixels). That means that you do not have to pay extra to expand memory storage - an inevitable path if your chosen camera offers a meagre 4MB storage.
Unfortunately, the Kodak does not support continuous shooting, so if you are looking for a camera to catch action, we either suggest our second Best Buy, the Olympus Camedia C-2000 Zoom, or our runner-up, the Nikon Coolpix 800.