Cursed with an ambiguous, alphanumeric moniker, the SP-570UZ (that's one hell of a sexy name there, Olympus) is suffering from an identity crisis. It lies in the nether region between point-and-click and DSLR, all the while suffering from a model ...

Stunning macro function makes big shots out of the smallest subjects. Versatile controls soothe the enthusiasts while auto presets comfort the n00bs. Excellent manual. Top mounted hotshoe makes swapping external flash options easy.

Pretend-professional zoom requires two hands. Zoom shots without a tripod can come out blurry. Stubborn clinging to proprietary xD media is irritating: Resistance is futile, Olympus.

Automatically uploads photos to Web and computer via WiFi. Default setting marks photos as private on privacy-enabled services like Flickr and Vox. Surprisingly thrifty (although noticeable) power consumption. Includes USB card reader.

Auto-launching software and uploads to computer are annoying, if killable. Not compatible with several common browsers. No automatic connection to open WiFi networks means you still have to lug your laptop around like some sort of gruesome Neanderthal.

My ever-expanding digital life just got another hot shot of HD with the arrival of the palm-sized V1253. Built around a cinematic 16:9 aspect ratio 3-inch display, this mini-widebody rips off beautiful 720p stereo movies and 1080i stills at 9 ...

Closing the loop between still image and video making and couch-bound enjoyment in front of the big screen. The user interface puts all the right adjustments at your fingertips without having to dig into the menus. And when you must dig a host of ...

Spring loaded battery cover flips open when removing from pocket [there should be a latch]. The 37mm wide lens could be a little wider for 16:9 shooting. Kodak's proprietary mini-USB dongle is too easily lost. No anti-glare coating on the LCD.

The PowerShot TX1 looks like it was assembled by a misanthrope. Its viewfinder juts awkwardly out of the camera's body, twisting to accommodate extreme angles and self-portraits. The counter intuitively placed shutter button demands agile fingers. One ...

Images sport bright colors and sharp details, even in full 10X optical zoom shots. HD video quality matches stand-alone camcorders'.

Low-light shots look noisy and undefined. Tiny, 1.8-inch LCD. Buttons are hard to reach when shooting vertically.

The DSC-H9 is mighty fast, blasting more than 18 JPEGs in 10 seconds, with no shutter delay for single shots - great for sports and outdoor snaps. But this speedy camera also blurs life's details: Object edges glow and colors bleed on nearly every ...

LCD tilts up and down for extreme-angle shots. Face-recognition technology is smart enough to fire fill-flash in harsh sunlight. 15X optical zoom.

Tiny viewfinder nearly useless. No RAW support. Shadow details can be grainy even in daylight. Noise ruins darker shots.

We're no strangers to gadget beat downs - in fact, we think they build character. But Olympus only fed the flame when they shipped us the 790 SW. This update of the ultra-rugged 770 SW we reviewed back in June has a lot in common with its predecessor. ...

Slick design and tight frame. Built to military and industrial spec for dust, and liquid immersion. 5 foot drops onto concrete don't even begin to phase the device. 2.5-inch LCD screen is both resistant to freezing and viewable in sunlight. Reasonably ...

Paltry 3x optical zoom. Picture quality is lacking compared to others in its class. 10 second max of 640 x 480 video is neither long, nor visually compelling. 14.7 MB of internal memory ensures the need for an xD memory card.

Built around a lens forged in the vaunted house of Leica, the FX55 is packed with a laundry list of features: an ultra wide zoom with twin mode optical image stabilization, three aspect ratios, and a three-inch LCD. Sweet specs, right? Yup, they are. ...

Beautiful industrial design with superior Leica optics. Shoots in 3:2, 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratios. Sharp QuickTime videos.

Menus are unnecessarily murky. Key functions like exposure compensation, flash adjustment, and delete require deep menu digging rather than direct access. The function dial makes mode changes slower than a tortoise full of rigor mortis.

Reminiscent of a pro-style compact rangefinder, this metal-cased 12.1-megapixel digi-snapper clearly intends to be much more than a simple point and shoot device. Like its stylistic forefathers there's lots of creative control to be had -- a simple ...

Picture and video quality are outstanding. RAW capture is a boon to the pixel purist. Hot shoe for Canon's 580EX II pro flash increases versatility. Macro function focuses clearly down to 1 centimeter. Panorama mode can stitch together up to 26 frames ...

LCD is so big, so sharp and so easy to see from any angle, it renders the optical viewfinder superfluous. Sheer breadth of modes, features and options is almost too staggering for a normal person to learn in a reasonable amount of time. Short, skinny ...

If you're shopping for a new digital camera you basically have two options: pick up a toy shooter that can't grow with you; or plunk down a grand for a fancy digital SLR and face its huge learning curve. But there's a third way that's better: The ...

Takes awesome pictures. Very easy to use. The 18x zoom doesn't sacrifice detail. Great software package with flawless panoramic stitching.

You can't use the zoom option when playing back video with audio on the LCD screen, which caused us to miss the loud 18X version of a seal chomping on a companion's nose. And the audio coming out of the speaker was a bit tinny.

What does Sony love to deliver most - besides overblown speeches about giant enemy crabs? Products that jam multiple components into delightfully, mysteriously small packages. With the 5.1-ounce W200, Sony manages to fit a 12.1-megapixel-image sensor ...

Optical image stabilization, face detection techniques, and 9-point autofocus system generate handsome snapshots. Buttery smooth 3x (35 to 105-mm film equivalent) optical zoom. Fast shooting: 1.7 seconds from power-on to first shot and 0.6 second ...

Outrageous $400 price tag - we've found 7-megapixel cameras with similar performance and image quality at almost half the price. 2.5-inch LCD has a grainy quality and mediocre detail.