For point-and-shoot cameras, size can mean almost everything. If a camera is just half an ounce too heavy or half an inch too thick, it'll be too uncomfortable to carry around. Smaller doesn't automatically mean better, however. The 7-megapixel Nikon ...

Super-slim design ; face-detecting autofocus a nice touch

Disappointing lens ; noisy, soft pictures

The Nikon Coolpix S200 digital camera looks pretty and will fit almost anywhere, but it just doesn't take very good photos.

Kodak leaves style by the wayside and attempts to find a suitable balance between features and price in its EasyShare Z885. This 8-megapixel camera can be found for around $200, and while it's not the prettiest Kodak on the market, it offers some ...

While it suffers at higher ISO sensitivity settings, the Kodak EasyShare Z885 is a surprisingly flexible, affordable camera.

Some model names make no sense, but others, such as Kodak's EasyShare Z712 IS reflect specific details of the product. This Kodak is part of the company's line of superzoom cameras, hence the big Z. It includes a 7.1-megapixel sensor, so the model ...

Has 12x optical zoom ; optical image stabilization ; manual exposure controls

Noticeable fringing and artifacts in images ; noisy images at ISO 800 and ISO 1,600

Kodak's EasyShare Z712 IS is a nice superzoom, especially for the price, though its image quality does falter at higher ISOs.

Size matters in electronics, and smaller often tends to be better. Thick, heavy gadgets fit poorly into pockets, feel uncomfortable to carry around, and simply aren't sexy. In the last year, I can count on one hand the number of snapshot cameras I've ...

Despite its low price, give this clunky, uncomfortable camera a pass.

With one of the smallest price tags of all the major digital camera models, the HP Photosmart M437 looks like an appealing little camera. Its 5-megapixel sensor and 2-inch LCD won't turn many heads, but its just-slightly-more-than-$100 MSRP looks ...

For the HP Photosmart M437, "inexpensive" means the same thing as "cheap."

Quick Take: As the flagship of Samsung's newly created NV series of cameras, it makes sense that the NV7 OPS is the company's first camera to include CCD-shift optical image stabilization--Samsung calls it Optical Picture Stabilization--which should ...

The Samsung NV7 OPS' novel, engaging interface can't compensate for merely adequate performance and so-so photo quality.

With its attractive price--less than $250 for 7 megapixels, 38mm-380mm-equivalent 10x zoom lens, and a full set of manual and semimanual controls--the Fujifilm FinePix S700 (aka the FinePix S5700) seems quite a compelling buy for the budget-strapped ...

Canon PowerShot S5 ISThere was a lot to like about the Canon PowerShot S3 IS, and much of it remains in this year's PowerShot S5 IS, including Canon's veteran optical image-stabilization technology, excellent metering and focusing systems, the ...

Tons of manual and automatic features ; well-laid-out controls ; solid body ; nice LCD display

Lens aberrations and vignetting ; some processing artifacts ; lacks raw file support ; redesigned lens cap still pops off too easily

Though it remains a good megazoom, thanks to continued image and lens artifacts, the Canon PowerShot S5 IS is slowly losing ground to competitors.

Fujifilm was among the first camera makers to push up to ISO 1,600 and beyond in compact cameras, thanks to its effective noise-reduction algorithms. That resulted in a parade of double-digit F-series cameras that employ Fuji's Real Photo Technology- ...

Nikon really shows off its style with its Coolpix S500, a sleek, compact camera that feels every bit as good as it looks. This little shooter has some of the nicest design points we've seen in a small shooter, plus a few handy features normally seen ...

The Nikon Coolpix S500 may look and feel pretty, but its slow performance and noisy high-ISO images hold it back.