New A650 IS - what's next?

[geraldp]

Hey I just took delivery of a new Canon A650 IS. It had been on back order due to a Canon recall, but apparently the defect has been fixed.

Looking on Ikelite's page I see they are releasing this month an A650 housing (6140.65) for $450. I can get the Canon housing (WP-DC18) for $170 + S&H through BHPhoto.

I'm kind of a noob to underwater digital photography. Is the Ikelite really worth $280 more?? Can't I still add aftermarket lenses and external strobes to the Canon housing? If the camera has macro capability & 6X zoom how important is add-on lenses/filters? After reading comments on this board I would guess that a strobe would be the first purchase after the housing?

Thanks,

Jerry

 

[Nismo]

If you only plan to do recreational level diving, the Canon brand housing should be fine. The Ikelite is rated deeper usually. There shouldn't be any problem about getting a strobe. Lenses may be difficult to come by but if the model becomes popular enough for divers, there will be products for it. For the lenses it will come down to the popularity of the camera, where there are already plenty of universal strobe kits.