Gear Guy suggests a few that might survive a mild beating.
My el-cheapo Canon A510 is tougher than I figured it’d be: I dropped it on a rock in a dry riverbed a few weeks back and it’s still shooting fine, though there is a bit of a split were the two halves of the camera body come together. I thought sure it was done for. One thing to be said for killing your digicam: it provides a wonderful excuse for trying out newer, cooler models, which are being introduced every 37 seconds.
Thanks for linking to the camera post. Rather than overtly abuse my cameras, I tend to subject them to a “death by a thousand cuts” end by jamming them up with tiny grains of sand and rocks. Said particles also scratch the screen on the back beyond recognition. But, like you, I enjoy a new shiny camera and do not morn the loss too deeply. As well, ’tis better to have adventured and lost expensive-but-replaceable equipment than never to have adventured at all.
The Gear Guy’s choice of the Olympus 720SW is certainly valid as a rugged, water resistant point and shoot digicam, but his advice of, “remember to use the traditional viewfinder, too
If you’re worried about sand and dirt scratching the screen on your camera, there’s hope! You can buy clear plastic self-stick (no-glue) screen covers that are meant for Palm-pilots. Trim to fit the cover on your camera, stick it on, and it’s now scratchproof! Simply change the cover when its’ too dirty or scuffed.