"The little dwarf" is a reasonable purchase. It has no extremely bad features, and offers some exceptionally sharp pictures in the right setting.

Extensive in-camera coaching and some convenient extra features make the easy-to-use HP Photosmart R717 a great choice for an ambitious beginner.

Its uncommon antishake mechanism, large LCD panel, and well-arranged controls make the Dynax 5D a good choice for someone seeking a consumer-friendly SLR.

A decent advanced camera that really only has its 10X zoom as a point of differentiation.

The Nikon D40 is a great entry level SLR, and a good competitor to Canon's EOS 400D. It captures high quality pictures, has speedy operation and great low light performance, making it a wonderful choice for the budding enthusiast.

The Minolta 7D offers a profusion of manual controls and an innovative anti-shake feature, but its image quality was sub-par.

Overall, the FinePix S2 Pro is a good camera, but slow autofocus and inadequate continuous shooting modes limit its appeal.

What makes this camera shine - its 10x zoom, ease of use and sleek design - may be enough to compensate for its shortcomings.

The *ist DS is certainly a great camera, combining 6.1 megapixel resolution, decent build quality and great controls for beginners.

This camera caters to both amateur and more experienced photographers, but has some minor problems.

The Nikon D70 is feature-packed and takes superb photos. If you already have Nikon-compatible lenses the D70 is a great way to get into high-end digital.