I use an Olympus Stylus Tough and it's held up to a couple years of being hauled around on the motorcycle and in the 4x4. I'm sure you can imagine what kind of environments the camera has seen! Matter of fact, it's the camera I had with me on our AF Canyon ride this Fall. It usually rides in a chest pocket, in my riding vest... not the most camera-friendly place, but so far, so good! It's water-proof, shock-proof and freeze-proof!
Likes- It has a 5x optical zoom, without using a lens that mechanically 'zooms' in and out. Less moving parts = less parts to get sand/dirt into and then freeze up. If that makes sense... I'm probably not using the right terminology, but hopefully you get the idea.
Dislikes- It uses an Olympus-specific lithium battery, so no carrying spare AA batteries. You either need to have a way to charge on the go (110v or USB) or carry a 2nd battery. There have been times where the battery has almost died during a trip, where we nearly missed out on some great photo opps.
I'm rough on cameras and have gone thru several in the past 10 years. So far, the Olympus is holding up like a champ compared to any of the others and it takes decent pics.
). I get my money out of extended warranties and insurance.