Engadget's back to school guide: Digital cameras

Welcome to Engadget's Back to School guide! We know that this time of year can be pretty annoying and stressful for everyone, so we're here to help out with the heartbreaking process of gadget buying for the school-aged crowd. Today, we've got our optical viewfinders set firmly on digital cameras -- and you can head to the Back to School hub to see the rest of the product guides as they're added throughout the month. Be sure to keep checking back -- at the end of the month we'll be giving away a ton of the gear featured in our guides -- and hit up the hub page right here!

Time for us to open up chapter two of this year's Back to School advice compendium. Up for discussion today are digital cameras, which have been in the gym all year working on their processing prowess and return today with 720p HD video as an almost standard feature. We've got a good cross-section of young pretenders and finely aged veterans for your perusal, so why not give your mouse a little exercise as well and click past the break?

On the cheap

Samsung TL210

It may seem like a tacked-on gimmick at first, but the DualView feature on the TL210 is a real boon during self-portrait compositions -- which, let's face it, are a critical part of college life in this Facebook-dominated age. A 3-inch screen on the back gives you access to a veritable litany of smart modes and auto-detects, which together with the built-in optical image stabilization should make this an uncomplicated point-and-shooter to use. Should you want it even cheaper, you can step down to the TL205, but beware the significant feature loss that will entail.

Key specs: 12 megapixel CCD sensor, 5x optical zoom, 720p / 30fps HD video.

Price: Starts at $140 online

Mid-range

Canon PowerShot SD4000 IS (aka IXUS 300 HS)

Great ease of use, up to par feature list, and terrific image quality for its class. Canon's latest mid-ranger might not stand out in any specific way, but its resounding all-around competency has earned it plenty of plaudits and our admiration to boot. Throw in the fact that its price has finally dipped to relatively sane levels, and we consider the SD4000 IS an easy recommendation to make.

Key specs: 10 megapixel back-illuminated CMOS sensor, 3.8x optical zoom, 720p / 30fps HD video.

Price: $314 from B&H

Money's no object

Nikon D5000 body + Nikkor 18-200MM F3.5-5.6 VR II zoom lens

We reckon it's about time we did more than just pay lip service to the old dictum that the lens is the most important part of a camera. Save some cash by going for the D5000 from Nikon -- which packs the same magnificent 12 megapixel sensor and HD video mode of the D90 inside a smaller body -- before splashing out on the excellent 18-200mm own-brand lens. Sure, it's not the fastest there is, but its versatility is almost unequaled and you'll have a photography kit good enough to go to war (or CES) with.

Key specs: 12 megapixel CMOS sensor, 720p / 24fps video, 11x optically stabilized zoom

Price: D5000 body is $630 from AmazonNikkor lens is $765, also from Amazon