Need Help Quick

[Kitts21]

I am in the market for a new camera and camcorder. My old camcorder died this weekend, and I need to replace it by Sat. for my daughters gymnastics meet. My question is should I go with the new Nikon P100, that has 1080 HD video,plus it has the abilty to take 10 mp still shots. Or should I just buy a new camcorder and keep the two seperate? My budget is $100-$350. I would like the combo, but my wife doesn't like the larger camera. Should I just go for to middle of the roadand get two new cameras? I wouldn't mind replacing my old p/s since it is about 7 yrs. Any advice or thoughts would be great. Also if you own a p100 let me know what you think of the video quality. It would mostly be used for gymnastic meets(video), so the lighting is sometime not the best. Again thanks for the help.

 

[Gianna'sPapa]

I don't have a lot of experience with the super zoom cameras nor video cameras. Saying that, I have attached a review from dpreview.com for the super zoom cameras. The P100 is ranked in the middle but is awarded a silver for the middle group. The Canon and Panasonic are rated higher. It does warn that because of the small sensors, low light is not the strength of the super zoom camera.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/Q110superzoomgroup/

 

[ThurlFan]

My personal preference has always been to use separate devices for stills and video. For a gymnastics meet (or other sporting event), I'd definitely prefer a dedicated video camera.