If you don't need to swap lenses, precisely focus manually or shoot more than three frames at a time, the DSCR1 is a better bet than a budget digital SLR.

A great advanced camera that offers almost all the features you'd expect in a sturdy and stylish case.

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.

The PowerShot A640 is an excellent all round advanced camera. While its features aren't quite as robust as some more expensive models, for this price tag, it's a good buy.

If you subscribe to the theory that more megapixels is better, then Casio's Exilim EX-Z1200 will be right up your alley. Sporting a 12.1 megapixel sensor, it captures extremely crisp pictures and offers a range of manual shooting options combined with a sturdy design, making it a strong all around choice.

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.

If you're after an enthusiast camera but don't yet want to venture into the land of SLRs, or just need a backup for your main camera, Canon's PowerShot G9 is a great choice. While there are a few minor issues for the most part, it captures brilliant shots and the feature set and build quality are sure to keep all but the most demanding professional satisfied.

Due to the high price tag, Ricoh's GR Digital II will not be for everyone, but if you're an enthusiast after a backup camera for your SLR this model makes a stylish choice.

Nikon's P5100 is a solid advanced camera and while it has a few issues, most notable is the difficulty in high contrast shooting scenarios and a very slow burst mode, it provides an adequate option for users after manual functionality in a sturdy and slim body.

It may be big, but if you're looking for a high-end advanced camera with all the bells and whistles that captures brilliant pictures the Canon PowerShot A650 IS is a great choice.

The P80 from Nikon is an advanced camera with a very capable zoom lens. It’s not as fast as the majority of other advanced cameras we’ve looked at, but the images it captures are rich and sharp.

FujiFilm's FinePix S100fs is a great pseudo-SLR camera. Its 11.1 megapixel sensor and large 28-400mm lens capture great snaps and the manual shooting modes combined with speedy operation make it flexible and powerful.