I would recommend anything by panasonic with a leica lens.
are those the "lumix"?
my kodak died the other day and i am looking for one to get by val day
the canon 850 has great reviews though and for $309 you get a case and extra battery
seems like most of the middle of the road price wise don't have great reviews, the $250+ ones get much better reviews then the 150-250 range
Yes, they are the Lumix series. I don't think you can go wrong but go to your camera store and play with them. don't listen to the sales people because they are not going to be taking your pictures.