Top 10 cameras of August

The top three positions in our Top 10 charts have remained unchanged for August with two new entries to the list. Panasonic's Lumix DMC-LX3 and Fujifilm's FinePix are making their debut in the rankings, while Olympus' shooters have slipped off the top 10 positions. Among the 10 shooters, Sony's Cyber-Shot DSC-T300 is the only touchscreen model. Are consumers still more comfortable with physical buttons, or are they waiting for the new touchscreen units announced recently? We foresee new entries in the charts when the latest shooters start to go on sale. For now, here are the winners for August.

Note: Results are based on readership and polls conducted with selected retailers (Alan Photo Trading, Cathay Photo Store and MS Color Service) in Singapore.

	1.	Fujifilm FinePix F100fd   CNET Asia rating: 8 out of 10 The good: Ultra-high ISO sensitivity of 12,800; wide dynamic range; intuitive face detection; short shutter lag; 5x optical zoom with 28mm wide-angle lens; good image quality. The bad: Relatively heavy; awkward positioning of flash, easily covered by fingers; lacks full manual control. The bottom line: Despite an awkwardly positioned flash unit, the F100fd didn't disappoint with its enhanced feature set and excellent image quality. Review | See full specs | Rate this
	2.	Canon Digital IXUS 860 IS       CNET Asia rating: 8 out of 10 The good: Impressive performance and image quality; optical image stabilization; face detection. The bad: No manual exposure controls; no optical viewfinder. The bottom line: While the Canon Digital IXUS 860 IS doesn't have an optical viewfinder or manual exposure controls, it captures beautiful images with its wide, 3.8x optical zoom lens and ranks among the top compact cameras we've seen. Review | See full specs | Rate this
	3.	Canon Digital IXUS 80 IS   CNET Asia rating: 7.6 out of 10 The good: Great image quality; minimal shutter lag; speedy performance; optical image stabilization; face detection; optical viewfinder The bad: No manual exposure controls; slow flash recycle time The bottom line: Canon's IXUS 80 IS adds optical image stabilization to last year's hit IXUS 70, while delivering just as impressive image quality. Review | See full specs | Rate this
	4.	Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3       CNET Asia rating: 8 out of 10 The good: High-resolution multi aspect ratio image capture; F2.0 optics; highly customizable modes which can be saved; large sensor delivers impressive image quality. The bad: Unable to capture full-resolution images in 16:9 format; use of lens cap may be an issue to some; bundled RAW image-processing software not up to the job. The bottom line: The LX3 is a good camera with an excellent feature set that positions it way beyond any conventional point-and-shoot on the retail shelves today. Review | See full specs | Rate this
	5.	Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T300   CNET Asia rating: 7.6 out of 10 The good: Fast performance; tons of handy image editing and playback features; zoom rocker is in a much more comfortable position. The bad: Soft, noisy photos. The bottom line: A great design, fast shooting, and lots of features can't overcome the fact that the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T300 simply doesn't take very good pictures. Review | See full specs | Rate this