Looking to buy a sealife camera w/ Strobe

[ArcoIris74]

I'm a novice diver looking to get into taking photos. Of course I only have so much saved up to buy a camera, but I would like to spend wisely. Appreciate any tips you guys may have. I'm looking at either a DC800 w/ strobe for about $700 or a DC1000 for $900, which seems to be the going rate. First, anyone thinf those prices are reasonable or will drop down in the near future. Is there a big difference betwen the two cameras side one being 8 MP and the other 10 mP? I almost bought a 6 MP Intova with strobe at the local dive shop for $300, figuring at least I could get started, but had second thoughts. I haven't seen any used DC800 or DC1000 cameras for sale on the net, which leads me to believe they are well liked. I'm hesitant t spend over$500 period, but I want to make sure I don't regret what I buy....Any tips are appreciated !
Glenn

 

[deeper thoughts]

I owned both cameras and really love the dc1000

 

[divengolf]

I've got a Sealife DC500 with strobe and WA lens plus many extras. I'll sell for $250. I took about 5,000 pics with it as a starter camera, then moved on up to something with total manual control. The DC500 is the first of Sealife's small digitals, 5 MB sensor.

Here's some info on it.

SeaLife Cameras - Underwater Digital Camera - DC500 5mp Camera

Sealife Reefmaster DC500 Review :: Wetpixel.com

PM me if interested.

PS: If you're thinking of spending $800-1000; I'd look at the Canon G10 or the Nikon P6000. With Ikelite housing should come in under $1000. Or you may be able to get a Canon G9 or Nikon P5100 (earlier versions of the above) with housing on Ebay cheaper. Got to wetpizel.com and read up on these.