[Excaliber]

5 mega pixel may be over rated depending on your expected use. For e-mailing pics, 3 or even 2 is OK because you have to reduce the size of the file (the pic) so much you LOOSE a ton of resolution anyway. If your going to print on nice paper etc then 5 is good. Desktop wall papers, slide shows etc. back to 3.

But hey, you can't go wrong with more, I'm just saying you may not need that much and may want to spend the money on OTHER features.

I went for the Cannon Rebel EOS (6.3 meg-a-pixel) but NOT for the high res pics. It was the "cheapest" digital I could find at the time that would allow interchangable lens'. VERY important to me as I take race track pics one day (300 mm lens) and then "home" pics the next (28 mm lens).

Getting a good lens is one the most important things to look for. Forget about "digital zoom", it's worthless, look for "optical zoom" which uses' the lens (like a REAL camera does).

Stick with some GOOD reasonable priced memory "sticks or chips". DON'T use those "floppy disc" memory stuff, to SLOW!
Lots of good choices out there now and prices and features are growing like mad. Get to some of the digital cam web sites and let the research begin!

Olympus is getting some GREAT reviews, one of the best. But the competition is keen, Kodak (Kodak???) yup Kodak is coming on strong. But beware of their bundled software (Kodak), it's a nightmare that will take over your computer!!! Hard to beat Canon too. HP? I hate them, their software is worst than Kodak. Remember, it's not JUST about the camera, it's also about the SOFTWARE that links the camera to the computer at the end of the day. Olympus and Canon, thumbs up on the software!

ANY brand will have it's "loosers" and it's "winners", shop carefully.