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This story was printed from CNET Asia.
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It's no surprise to us that last month's champion--Canon's Digital IXUS 80 IS--is leader again. The last time we checked, a handful of ladies we knew were touting this shooter. From the same company, the IXUS 860 IS has retained its second place. Sony's popular Cyber-shot DSC-T200 has, however, dropped off the charts, replaced by the sleek Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX36 at third.
Other newcomers to the ranks are Fujifilm's F100fd at fourth place and Panasonic's Lumix DMC-TZ15 at seventh. Sony's Cyber-shot DSC-T70 raised positions to fifth position. Nikon appears to be behind, with the Coolpix S210 taking over the Coolpix P5100 for last place.
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.
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.
The good: 10x optical zoom in a compact form; accurate Intelligent Exposure mode; HD video recording; clear 460K-pixel 3-inch LCD screen; captures detailed images with vibrant colors.
The bad: Top dial easily sets to wrong position; no option to switch off Extra Optical Zoom.
The bottom line: With a 10x optical zoom, 28mm-wide lens and HD video recording packed into one compact form, the TZ15 is probably one of the most versatile Lumix compacts we've come across.
The good: Intelligent Auto mode was spot on most of the time; solid build; good overall performance.
The bad: No hotshoe; no flip-out screen.
The bottom line: Its ease of use is of note for a user who isn't prepared to delve into a camera's manual exposure settings, but who wants something better than a point-and-shoot.
Click here for a feature comparison table.
