Camera Shopping

So, I'm a bit OCD and when I set my mind on something, I usually don't let go until I make a decision. I've been researching digital camera's all afternoon, evening & night...to the exclusion of everything else.

I can manipulate my old camera to take photos, but it reverts back to movie mode after each shot. I'm hoping that eventually the dirt & dust will dislodge. Wish I knew how to take it apart safely and just clean it out myself!

If I get a new camera, I've determined that I want a point and shoot, not just a sub-compact with auto everything. I guess I'm too much of a control freak to let the camera decide what shutter speed, aperture, etc. I want to shoot at. I also want to be able to shoot video clips so that, at least for this camera, leaves out the nice SLR's. (I will eventually get one of those too, with lenses & filters to play with.) I've narrowed my choices down to three: Canon Powershot G9, Canon Powershot S5 IS and Canon Powershot A650 IS. They are all rated highly by Consumer Reports and are all within the $300 - $400 price range. I'm really leaning towards the S5 IS because of it's optical zoom, 60fps QVGA video capability, vari-angle LCD display, ability to shoot still photos while shooting video, multiple shooting modes & features and price. If it had the ability to capture photos in RAW format, it would be a no-brainer.

Still playing with the old camera...
Here's picture proof of some of my online research ------------>