(MONEY Magazine) – Buying an easy-to-use camera ought to be a snap. But walk into a photo shop and you'll see that it just isn't so: There are more than 250 point-and-shoot models available, ranging in price from less than $100 to nearly $2,000. What's more, two newer camera technologies--one called Advanced Photo System (APS), the other a filmless digital variety--are making things more complex. With so many options, it's easy for even the most determined consumer to lose focus.

That's why MONEY recently set out to make sense of the difficult world of easy cameras, consulting with a range of photo-equipment experts.

Our criteria? Well, we naturally wanted quality models that were simple to use and built to last; our experts offered guidance on mechanical issues such as lens quality and durability. They offered price advice too. Point-and-shoots for $100 or less are often equipped with inferior lenses and tend not to last as long. Okay, then how about the other end of the spectrum--the stratospheric $1,895 for a Contax T VS, the Range Rover of point- and-shoots? Ignore it, says Dan Richards, a senior editor at Popular Photography magazine. If you're that serious about photography, you ought to direct your money toward a single-lens reflex (SLR) camera. (Anyone else who shells out this much for a point-and-shoot simply has "way too much money," Richards adds.)

Finally, we wanted a camera that's truly compact and portable--something that could be tossed into a pocket without testing the tensile strength of the cloth. Here we relied on an exclusive MONEY test: We put each camera into a flannel-shirt pocket, then into a blazer pocket, to judge bulge and weight.

In the end we found five cameras well worth their price. For many people, a traditional point-and-shoot may still be the best bet, but a couple of the new-technology models offer genuine improvements that certain users crave. To make your decision, figure out which of our criteria is most important to you.

SIMPLE PLEASURES

There are plenty of idiotproof cameras out there--no zooms, no extras, just press a button. These are called fixed-lens cameras, for the sensible reason that the 35mm lens doesn't move, as it does on a zoom-equipped point-and-shoot; to take a closeup you have to move closer to the subject. So one of the most important things in this category is picking a camera whose lens will reproduce in sharp focus the image you see through the viewfinder.

It's the lens, in fact, that makes the Yashica T4 Super (street price: $150) a favorite of our experts. The T4 has a 35mm f/3.5 Carl Zeiss Tessar lens that produces very sharp photos. Sharpness is especially important if you want to print slides or have enlargements made. The weatherproof T4 also has all-automatic modes, as well as a self-timer. Richards notes that many professional photographers tote a T4 in addition to their SLR equipment. At 6.7 ounces, it passed our pocket test with flying colors.

Another choice: the Olympus Infinity Stylus Epic ($140). This versatile point-and-shoot offers a bit more flexibility in taking snaps in a variety of speeds and in a wide range of light situations. The 4.7-ounce camera is also weatherproof and a bit lighter in the pocket than the Yashica.

SOMETHING EXTRA

Not enough camera for you? The next level up is the zoom category. These cameras have a lens that moves in (shrinking to 28mm) for wide-angle shots, or out (up to 105mm) for closeups. The smoothness of that motion is one of this category's most important benchmarks. But remember: This lens isn't the same as a big telephoto, so you won't get your Little Leaguer's grimace as she rounds second base. What you should get are nice wide-angle shots at the holiday table, as well as good closeup portraits.

The favorite here: the Pentax IQZoom 928 ($225), with a focal range from 28mm to 90mm. The 928 has controls for various flash modes, focusing modes (including infinity, which produces long depth of field and will capture, in focus, things both near and far) and drive modes, such as self-timer and multiexposure, in which the film does not advance and you can take another picture on the same frame. At 10.8 ounces, the 928 strains a shirt pocket but fits comfortably in a blazer.

SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL

A new klutzproof technology, APS appeared in 1996 and, to us, some of its selling points seem like little more than hype. Yes, the film is easy to load--but loading a traditional point-and-shoot doesn't exactly require an engineering degree. True, an APS camera can enscript your photos with phrases like Happy Birthday--but so what? You can use a pen to write whatever you want on the back of a picture.

Some of the drawbacks, meanwhile, are more tangible. APS film is limited to three speeds, 100, 200 and 400. And development costs can be much higher: York Photo, the national mail-order developer, charges $3 to develop 24 single prints from a roll of 35mm film and $6.50 for 25 single prints from APS film.

Still, there are features that make the APS attractive. The film relies on an optical encoding procedure that can deliver better pictures, and after processing comes back to you with an index sheet that's useful for reproductions and archiving. And many more developers handle APS film now than did a year ago.

For our money, though, the most tempting APS models are the ones that make a big deal out of smallness. While many were indistinguishable from our cheaper point-and-shoot options when subjected to the pocket test, the Canon Elph ($275) stood out; in fact, it's the one camera that all our experts recommended. This stainless-steel model has a 24mm-to-48mm zoom lens and picture quality is on a par with other APS offerings. It weighs in at seven ounces (with battery) but is the size of a deck of cards. This is the camera that's never a hassle to bring along.

THE DIGITAL PICTURE

Recently, APS has been overshadowed by an even newer development in the easy-to-use camera market--digital cameras. They sure sound great. There's no film. With your home PC, you can play both photographer and developer. You can see your picture instantly and simply erase it if you're not happy. And as digital boosters never tire of pointing out, you can e-mail your pics to Grandma.

The complete picture is a little more complicated. Not only are quality digital cameras much more expensive, but you need a printer and special photo paper if you're less interested in e-mailing your snapshots than you are in, say, handing them around at a party. Even then, the resolution tends to be lower than that of a traditional picture--anything printed larger than five-by-seven begins to look like a Chuck Close portrait. And, as with any bleeding-edge technology, improvements are happening fast, so what is great today may be ho-hum tomorrow.

Still, we asked the experts if they had a favorite among current offerings for the tech-focused among us who find digital's unique features irresistible (and whose grandmothers are in fact Net-savvy). Our gurus steered us to the Sony Digital MVC FD7 ($670). It stores images on standard computer disks instead of the special memory cards others use (at a cost of $30-plus per card). It has a powerful zoom and a macro setting that allows you to focus within one centimeter of an object. For creative types, it offers optical modes like sepia, black-and-white, pastel and "negative art" (which makes a photo look like a negative).

Lately, digital cameras have been popular among parents as gifts for their techy teens. But Phil Mistry, a professional photographer who teaches digital imaging at the International Center of Photography in New York City, has a different suggestion: Buy a flat-bed scanner such as the Microtek E6 Pro ($500), packaged with Adobe Photoshop (which, bought separately, sells for $600).

Mistry says a scanner is still the best way to get fine-resolution prints into your computer without spending more than $5,000 for professional digital equipment. Your teens can scan real photo prints into the computer and achieve all sorts of digital effects. Just keep an eye on what they're doing to those family portraits before they e-mail them.