A great mid-range compact camera, the Olympus MJU 1010 should serve most happy snappers well with its combination of style, good image quality and useful features.

A good but not great entry-level ultra-zoom, the Kodak EasyShare Z1012 IS should satisfy users looking to take the next step up from a compact, as long as they can put up with a bit of lag between their shots.

Kodak's EasyShare V1273 is a decent compact camera that is hampered by its poorly implemented touch-screen interface. The shots are fairly good although a tad soft, but the controls will get the best of even the most tolerant user.

A good choice for novice photographers, the Canon PowerShot A1000 offers a mixture of high quality 10-megapixel pictures and a beginner-oriented feature set. It does, however, capture quite noisy shots, making night photography somewhat difficult

Olympus' MJU 1060 is a pretty decent beginner camera with its large screen and bevy of novice modes, but its images have some issues and it can be slow at times.

It won't produce fantastic pictures but if you're after a no-fuss camera for the occasional happy snap then maybe the Nikon CoolPix S560 will fit the bill.

While some competing units may be better for more advanced users, Sony's Alpha A300 is a compelling option for first-time SLR buyers with its combination of image quality, features and an intuitive menu.

Another impressive entry into the mega-zoom market, Canon's PowerShot SX10 IS captures good if not incredible snaps and offers a huge wide-angle zoom lens along with manual features. It's a compelling option for more experienced users.

Nikon's CoolPix S610 would have been quite an impressive unit if it wasn't for its extremely slow shutter speed and shot-to-shot lag. As it stands it still captures fairly good snaps and has some nifty features, but can be irritatingly slow at times.

A fairly good big zoom advanced camera, the Canon PowerShot SX110 IS has a few image quality issues but its 10x zoom lens, 3in screen and manual controls make it an appealing all-purpose unit.

A strong all-purpose compact camera, Canon's IXUS 870 IS will suit users looking for a unit with a wide-angle lens, a big screen and good image quality.