I second Shiva's suggestion re AA batteries. In fact, I consider battery choice almost as important as resolution and zoom ratio. Batteries are the only recurring expense with digital photography (assuming you view your pictures on the computer instead of printing) and the cost can be significant.

My preference would be a camera that includes cheap AA's and no charger. I can buy a recharger and rechargable batteries cheaper than any camera manufacturer will charge (MicroCenter stores had a charger and 2 AA's for $5.99 last month). Note that some cameras include a battery that looks like 2 AA's welded together. If you read the manual, you will probably find that you can also use 2 AA's.

I want a recharger that is separate from the camera so I can be shooting while a second set of batteries is charging. That rules out docking stations.

I would add Olympus (and Minolta if they get their recent quality problems resolved) to Shiva's list.

If you need a long zoom ratio, check out the HP 850: 4MP, 8x zoom, $500 list, Pentax lens. A couple of magazines rate it as best value currently.