I am thinking about getting this camera for the wife.

Since her b-day is coming up. Anyone have any pros or cons about it? Amazon has it for 235.00. Any other suggestions in that price range?? For similar performance?
I would love to be able to throw another couple hundred bucks into a DSLR, but can not swing it at this time, and she wants a camera, and I want to be able to take it in the woods too. Also, how does the 15x Optical zoom work? Will the pictures come out clear? What are the limitations?
or how about the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ28S??