Can a digital camera be cute and sophisticated at the same time? The Pentax Optio M40 certainly feels that way. Thin and sleek, with only a few controls, the Optio M40 isn't much larger than a Blackberry. It's the perfect companion for busy consumers ...

Tiny size, very pocketable ; Large selection of preset shooting modes ; Good overall color ; Large 2.5-inch LCD monitor ; Face Recognition AF mode useful ; Digital Shake Reduction mode helps reduce blur in low lighting ; Excellent prefocus shutter lag ...

High chromatic aberration lens distortion in the corners ; Strong blurring in the corners from lens ; Higher than average image noise, even at the lower ISO settings ; Anti-noise processing trades away subtle subject detail at all ISO levels ; ...

Exposure remains under automatic control, though there are still a fair amount of creative options available to the user, such as white balance, ISO, exposure compensation, etc. Though the camera offers the standard 3x optical zoom, Pentax extended ...

The Canon PowerShot A720 IS is based around the previous PowerShot A710 IS model, and a 6x optical zoom lens -- an equivalent of 35 to 210mm, making the A720 excellent for all-purpose photography. It also includes a high resolution eight-megapixel ...

Optical image stabilizer ; Accepts conversion lenses ; AA batteries for power ; Face detection sets focus, exposure and flash power ; Flash power is variable so you shoot fill flash ; Great macro performance ; Above average scores on almost all ...

Low resolution LCD ; A bit bulky ; Optical viewfinder shows only about 80 percent of the captured scene ; Record/Playback switch should be on the Mode dial ; A tendency to lose highlights and raise ISO ; High contrast in outdoor shots ; Uneven flash ...

The Canon A720 sports a large 2.5-inch rear-panel LCD in addition to its real-image optical viewfinder. In addition to fully automatic shooting the Canon A720 IS features aperture-priority and shutter-priority exposure modes, and even full manual ...

The Sony DSC-H3 is the latest addition to the company's Cyber-shot H-series, forming a new entry point to the line beneath the existing DSC-H7 and DSC-H9 models

10x zoom in a compact package at an affordable price ; Advanced Sports mode combines faster shutter speed with continuous and predictive autofocus ; Bionz processor holds details in shadows and highlights ; SteadyShot optical image stabilization ; ...

No Aperture or Shutter Priority modes ; No HD output cable included ; Slow flash recycle time ; Lack of detail in high ISO images ; Menu system is confusing ; Slow AF at telephoto ; Focus seeks a lot in low light ; Chromatic aberration is strong at ...

The Sony H3 combines eight megapixel resolution with a 2.5-inch LCD display and a powerful Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar branded 10x optical zoom lens, offering a range from a rather tight 38mm wide-angle to a very useful 380mm telephoto. As with previous H ...

The Canon SD870 IS Digital ELPH features a compact, stylish case with rounded horizontal edges, and a retracting lens to make it pocket-friendly. With an an 8-megapixel 1/2.5" imager and 3.8x optical zoom lens, the Canon SD870 covers a range of 28 ...

Optical Image Stabilization ; 28mm equivalent wide angle lens ; Decent digital zoom that holds detail better than most ; Auto ISO shifting ; Large and lovely three-inch LCD ; Face-detection, up to nine forward-looking faces ; Photo categorization ; ...

No optical viewfinder ; High chromatic aberration at 28mm ; Above average barrel distortion at wide angle ; Heavy coma distortion in extreme corners ; Fine details lost at ISO 800 ; Slightly warm skin tones ; Clunky slideshow transition options ; ...

The Canon ELPH SD870 has a rather wide ISO sensitivity range, from 80 to 1,600, for better performance in dim lighting. Canon also manufactures a line of photo printers, and prides themselves on the level of integration between their cameras and ...

The 7.2 megapixel Sony DSC-W55 features a 3x optical zoom lens with Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar branding, 2.5" 115,000 pixel LCD display, optical viewfinder, and a maximum sensitivity of ISO 1,000 equivalent. Auto and Programmed Auto exposure modes are ...

Fast, very good shutter response, good shot to shot speed ; Fairly fast startup/shutdown time ; Good color accuracy ; High-ISO image quality is much improved over the earlier W50 ; Very capable movie mode ; Very fast multi-burst (reduced resolution) ...

Macro mode shows severe curvature of field/blurry corners ; So-so handling of household incandescent lighting ; No custom/manual white balance option ; Somewhat limited low-light capability ; High noise at high sensitivity settings ; Rather contrasty ...

Like other Sony models, the W55 uses Memory Stick Duo memory cards and comes with a fairly generous 56MB of internal memory available for image storage. Sony DSC-W55 interfaces include USB 2.0 (high-speed), A/V (NTSC or PAL), and DC input via a dummy ...

The 10-megapixel Kodak EasyShare V1003 features a Kodak Retinar-branded 3x optical zoom lens, 2.5-inch 150,000 pixel LCD display, a high ISO mode that offers a maximum sensitivity of ISO 1,600 equivalent, and a whopping 22 Scene modes (Portrait, Sport ...

Attractive design, well balanced in the hand ; Available in multiple colors with matching accessories ; Good resolution at low ISO ; Easy to learn controls ; EasyShare system from camera to dock to Gallery ; Joystick makes menu navigation second ...

Oversaturated images, even for a Kodak ; No Playback mode button ; Slow startup and shutdown ; Long shutter lag ; Joystick makes changing EV a little too easy ; Slow auto focus ; Underexposed Macro shots ; Very soft in the upper right corner

The Kodak V1003 includes user-friendly functions such as in-camera digital red-eye removal, a blurry picture warning, and a new "Maintain Settings" menu that lets the user store their preferred settings such as flash, white balance, ISO, and ...

The Samsung L700 couples a 7.2-megapixel CCD image sensor to a Samsung NV-branded 3x optical zoom lens that offers a fairly standard 35 to 105mm equivalent focal range. The Samsung L700 forgoes any form of optical viewfinder, with shots instead framed ...

Affordable pricing ; Reasonable image quality for snapshot shooting ; Minimal lens distortion and good sharpness ; Compact and relatively lightweight ; Sturdy body that has a quality feel ; Auto exposure bracketing nice to have ; Manners Mode is a ...

Too much chromatic aberration, which extends too far into the center of images ; Lens flare can be a problem ; Autofocus isn't reliable enough, particularly in low light ; LCD can be difficult to see in direct sunlight ; No manual focus / exposure ...

A dedicated button on the Samsung L700's rear provides access to several common visual effects such as "Sepia" or "Negative," as well as an unusual "Focus Frame" function which is rather curiously implemented; more on that later. In movie mode, this ...

Loaded with advanced, easy-to-use features ; Efficient control layout ; Easy access to settings ; 12x image stabilized optical zoom lens ; Hot shoe for external flash ; Extensive fine-tuning options, including skin tones and individual Red, Green, ...

Image noise visible at ISO 200 and above ; Noise suppression in shadows softens details ; Chromatic aberration ; No RAW mode

The latest model in Canon's popular line of image-stabilized superzoom cameras, the 8-megapixel Canon PowerShot S5 IS is similar to its predecessor, the 6-megapixel PowerShot S3 IS (Canon skipped a number so there's no S4). Both have an image ...

The 7.2 megapixel Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S700 features a 3x optical zoom lens with Sony branding, 2.4 inches 112,000 pixel LCD display, optical viewfinder, and a maximum sensitivity of ISO 1,000 equivalent. The Sony S700 has Auto and Programmed Auto ...

Metal body ; Good heft ; 7.2 megapixel sensor ; High ISO sensitivity to 1,000 ; Up to 460 shots on two AA NiMH batteries ; Maximum aperture of f/2.8

Lack of detail in most shots, regardless of ISO ; Memory Stick Duo (not included) requires an adapter for many card readers ; Batteries not latched in compartment, easily fall out when removing card ; High chromatic aberration

Like other recent Sony models, the S700 uses Memory Stick Duo memory cards and comes with 24MB of internal memory. The Sony DSC-S700's interfaces include USB 2.0 (Hi-speed), A/V (NTSC or PAL), and DC input with multi-jack. Power is provided to the ...

The Kodak EasyShare Z885 features eight megapixels of resolution coupled to a generous 36 to 180mm equivalent Kodak-branded 5x optical zoom lens. The Kodak Z885 also includes a 2.5 inch, 115,000 pixel LCD display, 24MB of built-in memory, SD/MMC card ...

Comfortable size ; Great image quality from the Kodak Color Science chip ; AA batteries with good power management ; Large sensor at 8.1 megapixels ; 5x optical zoom with 5x digital zoom ; EasyShare software, gallery ; In-camera editing with Perfect ...

Very slow write times ; Slow startup ; Slow autofocus ; Can't see the LCD with polarized sunglasses ; High ISO is very noisy and only available at image sizes under 2.2-Mp ; No focus assist lamp

EasyShare Z885 shooting modes include smart scene, high ISO, video capture, SCN, P/M, and digital image stabilization. Kodak notes that the Z885 offers a maximum ISO sensitivity of 8,000 at reduced resolution. Z885 scene modes include Portrait, Sports ...