Express Action Sports

I need a good camera for my kid’s sports games. Just a small point and shoot. But it needs to be great at action shots, to capture that right moment. I know most point and shoots take a few seconds after you press, to actually capture the image.
Any brand works.
I really just need a good zoom, and good for indoor/outdoor action shots.

Got any ideas/have any preferences? Thanks!

And please, not a dslr! I used to have one, and it was big, clunky, very complicated, and I spent a fortune on lenses, filters, and cards!

This tip is going to sound stupid up front but nearly ALL point and shoot cameras can take decent action shots if you compose your shot.

1) Set whatever you’ve got in whatever it has in way of sports mode (for exposure reasons, has nothing to do with how long it takes to take the picture).
2) Press the shutter down halfway until focus locks in. The camera might beep to tell you it has locked in. LEAVE THE BUTTON PRESSED HALFWAY.
3) Watch your action through your viewfinder or on the screen.
4) When you’re ready to shoot, depress the shutter the rest of the way.

You’re going to be surprised. Yes, it took 10 seconds, but you did 9.8 of that before you wanted to take the picture.

If you don’t have a point and shoot at all, get whatever is on sale that you have memory cards for. Get one that looks pretty. Costco and Sam’s usually have decent prices.

There are so many reviews at all the different web sites that sell cameras. Some people love the camera’s they bought while the person reviewing right after them will absolutely hate it. I’m on a budget up to $500. This camera will be for sports shots of my kids participating in soccer, hockey, and baseball. PLEASE HELP Thanks!!

At that budget, you may be looking at purchasing a used DSLR with something like a 55-200mm or 70-300mm lens.

A DSLR because they are the only cameras that have a small enough shutter lag to "catch" the action when you press the shutter release.

A long lens to be able to get good tight shots of the players.

You can buy a new DSLR for under $500, but it will not have THE lens you really need.

http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodid=11208748&whse=BC&topnav=&browse=&lang=en-US&s=1