First, virtually, if not, all cameras can be used for diving. Housings are commercially available for most major-brands & plans are available for most others. The real issue when talking cameras & housings is whether the camera you are considering is worth buying a housing for. As housings tend to cost about what cameras do, investing in a housing for an older camera, or a camera that is less than the best you can afford rarely makes economic sense.
Second, I have played with a lot of cameras. Many mid-priced digitals will handle both stills & video clips, but I have yet to see one that does both stills & video well. If you only want video clips to attach to emails or to post on U-Tube, many cameras will do. If you want quality stills & quality video, I think you are out of luck at least in the price range you are talking about.
When considering cameras, be sure you are pricing both cameras & their respective housings when you compare prices. Companies like Fantasea (
Fantasea Line housings, accessories and water sports cameras) which offers the most reasonably priced housings only carries housings for Nikon, Canon & Olympus. Buying an inexpensive camera might mean spending extra to get a housing to fit. (If you are interested, I am a Fantasea dealer.)
I wish you luck & would be very interested if you find a camera in that price range that does stills & video well. Keep us informed if you find what yo are looking for.
Ron
