We love running around during the summer - the beach, ball games, family gatherings, eating out - the usual stuff. In the heat, however, it's no fun lugging around...

Ultra portable ; 3-inch touchscreen LCD ; quality 12-megapixel images ; decent 720P video

Small size could be a detriment ; no aperture or shutter speed adjustments ; optional cable required for HD video ; relatively expensive

Consider it mega-zoom madness, or more like a super-zoom summer fever. Fresh on the heels of the somewhat challenged 20x zoom Canon PowerShot SX1 IS and the Editors' Choice 20x...

24x zoom (26-624mm) ; 3-inch vari-angle LCD ; accurate colors ; extensive feature set

Relatively slow ; no RAW capture ; manually operated flash ; poor VGA videos

Hybrids aren't just on the highway - they're moving to the camera aisle in a big way. One of the newest is Canon's PowerShot SX1 IS, an expensive 10-megapixel...

20x wide-angle zoom ; good 1080P video at 30 fps ; fine photos with enough available light ; very effective OIS

DSLR price, no DSLR response ; steep learning curve vis-a-vis other point-and-shoots ; high noise at ISO 800 ; no auto pop-up flash ; disappointing LCD screen ; no Smart Auto

You've read our squawks about the endless search for the perfect two-in-one imaging device (good pictures and videos in a single package). For the most part we've concentrated...

Good, accurate stills ; excellent 720P videos ; quality Leica wide-angle 12x zoom ; very good 3-inch LCD ; easy to use menu system ; optical zoom with movies

Stills/videos not super-sharp ; color doesn't have "pop ; no manual adjustments ; relatively slow

The Canon PowerShot SD970 IS has powerful features and provides a fun new way to operate the camera. It features a 12.1 megapixel sensor, 5x optical zoom, and the ability to create...

Rich, saturated colors ; solid 5x image stabilized zoom ; superior 3-inch LCD screen (461K pixels) ; drop-dead easy to use

Expensive ; pokey 1 fps capture ; no f/stop, shutter speed adjustments ; only digital zoom with HD video

A unique feature allows the HX1 to take seamless panoramas with one click and no stitching.

Sweep panorama, 10 fps, 20x zoom

No RAW option

Panasonic's Lumix DMC-FS15 is a very good mid-priced point-and-shoot camera that's particularly strong at taking close-ups. The unit's small, relatively thin, and...

12-megapixel image sensor ; wide-angle lens ; easy-to-read LCD ; great picture quality

Limited manual adjustments ; no HD video ; objectionable noise at ISO 1600 and higher

So you want to be a super model? Eat only lettuce, workout daily, and visit the plastic surgeon regularly. If your goal is to be a super model digicam, slim yourself down to practically...

Stylish12MP digicam ; 4x zoom ; 3.5-inch touchscreen ; HD video

Might be too small for some ; high noise ; short battery life

There's an old saying in photography-the best camera is the one you have with you. Meaning something is always better than nothing for capturing snapshots. That said, while...

Extremely compact ; good photo quality ; 12x wide-angle zoom ; attractive screen

Few manual adjustments ; proprietary connections ; no HD video ; forget ISO 1600 and high sensitivity setting

When it comes to industrial design, most mobile handsets fall into the candy bar or flip phone categories, but people interested in both could grab the LG Versa. It has an attachable...

Attachable keyboard ; good voice recognition ; solid camera

Clunky stylus ; lack of included peripherals