Continuity mistake: When Picard and his team beam down to the planet for the first time to "rescue" starfleet officers you see a couple of kids playing a ballgame. These balls were CG, however, in a next shot when Picard is talking to the Ba'ku people you see the kids still playing the game in the background, but without the CG balls. (00:22:10)
Continuity mistake: When Data is reactivated in Star Trek The Next Generation episodes "DataLore" and "The Measure of a Man", it is shown that Data's power switch is on his back. Here, Geordi activates him at his neck, possibly due to the clamps holding Data. (00:28:00)
Continuity mistake: When Capt. Picard, Data, and Anij are going to the holoship, they start off from the landing dock with (facing them) Data on the left, Capt. Picard on the right and Anij sitting. This is all well and good but after Data opens the door to the holoship, they magically switch places. (00:33:25)
Continuity mistake: Near the end when Picard beams over to the collector, he is transporting from the Son'a ship, but the transporter beam is a blue Federation transporter beam, not a yellow Son'a beam. (01:30:25)
Continuity mistake: When Artim goes back into the cave to get his little pet he picks it up with his right hand, when the camera changes, it is now in his left hand.
Continuity mistake: Picard has a cut on the right side of his head in the scene where he, Worf and Gallatin are on the Son'a bridge. It is most visible when he says to Gallatin "Take us into position". After Picard takes the rifle from Worf and Gallatin says "We're approaching the collector", the cut on Picard's head is gone. After he has beamed over to the collector, the cut is back and is bleeding a lot more than it did before.
Continuity mistake: When Picard beams onto the collector, his phaser rifle is slung across his back with a shoulder strap. When he fires at Ru'afo one handed a moment later, there is no strap on the rifle. In the next shot, it has returned.
Chosen answer: Probably because the best he'd be able to do is damage the collector, not destroy it.
JC Fernandez