Ricoh's Caplio GX100 is a high end camera for experienced users. While average photographers may not fully appreciate the wide angle shooting and extremely crisp shots it produces, there is no doubt it's a great camera if you can afford it.

Casio's Exilim EX-V7 is a decent, but not outstanding compact camera. It comes with a large 7x optical zoom and manual features, both of which are great inclusions, but its image quality does have some issues.

A competent entry into the 8 megapixel arena.

Nikon's CoolPix P60 is a good all around enthusiast compact which packs in a basic manual shooting mode with good image quality and a fairly petite design.

While the FZ50 is a reasonably strong advanced camera, a combination of its size, price tag and issues at high sensitivities mean it is only suited to certain buyers.

Panasonic's FZ18 is a solid ultra-zoom camera. While the price tag is high, many users would be better served spending that money on an SLR, whereas those after a huge zoom lens and a mass of features along with several beginner-friendly shooting modes may find what they're looking for here.

Kodak's EasyShare Z8612 IS has a few things going for it, including a large zoom that is backed up by optical image stabilisation. However, its images exhibit a fair bit of fringing and it can at times be quite slow.

For those after a small yet powerful camera to capture high-resolution shots, the 12 megapixel Kodak EASYSHARE Z1275 will do the trick. Its pictures aren't the best we've seen, but they should satisfy many users.

For this price, the Kodak C875 is a great bargain. It isn't as good as some of the high end advanced units from Canon or Olympus, but it more than does the job and offers a well rounded package that will satisfy a wide variety of users.

While it isn't the best ultra zoom on the market, Kodak's EasyShare Z812IS is a good all around package combining a ton of features with solid image quality and a big zoom. The high-definition video recording in particular will appeal to some users.

If you can put up with the difficult user interface and the not-so-sleek body, the DSC-H50 from Sony is an extremely competent and feature-packed camera.

Sigma's DP-1 is a very interesting camera. On one hand it captures some of the best shots we've ever seen from a non-SLR camera, making it great for enthusiasts. However it also has slow performance, an annoying interface and lacks a viewfinder. The price will also buy you a good, entry level digital SLR.