i've been looking for a smaller camera that i can take with me whenever i go to shows, parties, etc. i can't choose between the three of these, so i'm hoping you guys can help me out:

canon powershot sd600

fuji finepix Z3

nikon coolpix S9

i personally like the nikon S9 the most, but i'd be interested in your opinions. thanks!

i picked up an SD600 a few weeks ago -- i absolutely love it.

i am partial to Canon's and think they are best overall. But you certainly won't go wrong with the Nikon. I can't comment on current Fuji cameras, don't know anything about them.

My advice: Go to a camera shop and play with them all. It really comes down to how intuitive the controls and menus are for you. Pick the one that "speaks" to you and feels right when you hold it. They'll all take great photos.

here's a side-by-side comparison of the three.

my take on the important differences:

1) The Canon lens is the fastest at F2.8 - the others are F3.5. So the Canon is best for low-light shooting.
2) The Canon long shutter stays open 15 secs. Nikon: 2 secs, Fuji: 1/4 sec. So if you like taking long exposures of night scenes, you'll need the Canon.
3) The Canon has an optical viewfinder, so you can shoot with the LCD screen off, thus greatly extending battery life. The other two do not, so your only choice is to use the LCD screen.
4) Canon & Nikon use SD cards, the Fuji uses xD cards. (Only a factor if you already have cards of one of those types.)

On every other feature, they are pretty well the same.

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3) The Canon has an optical viewfinder, so you can shoot with the LCD screen off, thus greatly extending battery life. The other two do not, so your only choice is to use the LCD screen.

This is a big issue when shooting in bright sunlight. I have a Pentax with no optical viewfinder, and I thought that wasn't an issue when I bought it, having not used that feature on my older Canon much. But when I got it under the Egyptian sun, I realised you can, at best, only guess what your picture is going to look like.

thanks you two. well, i've managed to cross out the fuji one. so, i barely know anything about cameras-- steve, what do you mean by the faster lens being better for lower lighting? if canon's lens is considerably better than the other two, i might just have to settle for that.. although i really do like the fuji one. i've been using canon for the past.. however long.. and kind of want to try out other brands.

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steve, what do you mean by the faster lens being better for lower lighting?

a "faster" lens is one that lets more light in. the difference between 2.8 and 3.5 lens is 2/3 of an f-stop. so in a certain low light scenario, a 2.8 lens needs, say, a 1/60 shutter speed. in the same scenario with a 3.5 lens, you would need a slower shutter speed of 1/40 -- so with the slower shutter speed, there is more chance of a blurry foto - but at 1/60 or 1/40 you'd need a tripod for a sharp foto. the theoretical slowest shutter speed for a sharp hand-held foto is 1/125 - as you get below that, things get blurry fast.

I'm also partial to Canon, it's always between them and Nikon for the best glass. I have the SD500 and if I'm not using my Canon 20D, I go for that.

My vote is Canon.

thanks steve, and ivybell. arrrghhh this is so hard for me to decide! i have to sleep on it.. decisions decisions. thanks everyone, for your inputs.

ok, so i ended up going with the nikon S7c. the speed/lens thing bugged me about the canon vs nikon issue, since i love how the nikon looks.. so i thought fuggit i'll just get the coolpix a step up from the S9.