While it has its share of flaws, the combination of rugged, waterproof design with GPS capabilities and an 8 megapixel sensor makes the Ricoh Caplio 500SE an attractive proposition for outdoors photographers.

If you're after a hybrid HD video and still camera, then the PowerShot TX1 is a fairly decent choice, but a few image quality issues and an irritating control layout stop it from reaching its full potential.

A solid compact camera that combines speedy operation with above average image quality. If you're making enlargements the over sharpening may become an issue, but otherwise this is a good choice if you're after an all purpose model.

The Ricoh Caplio R6 is a solid compact camera that captures above average pictures and manages to cram a big, wide angled zoom lens into a relatively compact package.

The Z5fd is a good balance of size, style and function and its video capture is very impressive for a compact digital camera.

The MJU 760 is a strong compact camera with particular appeal for beginner photographers thanks to Olympus' guide system and its intuitive interface. Combine these with good picture quality and a classy design, and have you a great product.

A brilliantly designed unit, the MJU 780 will please a variety of consumers with its optical image stabilisation, 5x optical zoom and high ISO sensitivities. Its pictures aren't the best on the market but they are more than adequate for most uses.

Designed specifically for a niche market, the Tough 770SW is an ideal camera for those into the rougher side of life. Its pictures aren't the best we've seen, but for some that isn't the primary concern when buying a camera, and for those people this model may be a good choice.

A solid all around compact camera, Sony's Cyber-Shot DSC-W55 will appeal to users looking for a no-fuss entry into the digital photography market.

Another strong ultra-zoom digital camera from Canon, the PowerShot S5 IS is no longer the dominating choice in this market as its predecessor was, but it still offers a good overall package if you can look past some minor flaws.

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.

While the big zoom and advanced feature set will appeal to some users and the price certainly is low, the sluggish operation and underexposed over-sharpened pictures produced by this model may be an issue.