Christmas 2009 Buying Guide: top 10 premium compact cameras

Fujifilm FinePix S200EXR

Guide price: £320 • 12.0 megapixels • 30.5-436mm zoom

If you want SLR-style features and design without the price tag, get the S200EXR. Its 14.3x zoom is versatile and the EXR sensor is impressive

Fujifilm bills the S200EXR as a smaller, lighter and cheaper alternative to a digital SLR, but while it is cheaper, the size claims seem distinctly optimistic, since this is a big brute of a camera, especially compared to other superzooms. Many people will prefer the extra bulk, though, and the S200EXR is certainly easier to handle than its rivals. It uses the 12-megapixel EXR sensor first introduced with the F200EXR, but matches it up with a big 14.3x optical zoom and SLR-style controls. You also get interesting Pro Focus and Pro Low Light modes which use high-speed shooting and in-camera merging technology to enhance your pictures, plus the option of shooting RAW files for maximum image quality.

Get it because... It’s excellent value for money and has great controls and handling
But bear in mind... It can’t quite match a D-SLR for picture quality
Buy the Fujifilm FinePix S200EXR digital camera here: Jessops | Amazon UK | Simply Electronics

Panasonic Lumix LX3

Guide price: £320 • 10.1 megapixels • 24-60mm zoom

The LX3’s 2.5x zoom range may limit its appeal for some users, but it’s small, beautifully-made and takes excellent pictures

If you’re looking for a single camera which can do any job, this isn’t it. But if you’re looking for a high-quality compact to carry around with you when your D-SLR’s just not convenient, the Panasonic Lumix LX3 could be perfect. Its lens has just a 2.5x zoom range, but this covers the perfect focal lengths for candid and ‘street’ photography as well as general travel shots. It has an unusually high maximum aperture of f2.0-2.8, and it can shoot RAW files and standard HD movies too. Perhaps the LX3’s biggest strengths, though, are its compact size, uncluttered controls and excellent build quality. The joystick controller on the back is a little small for comfort, but the LX3’s excellent aspect ratio and focus mode switches on the lens barrel make up for it.

Get it because... It has compact dimensions and excellent design and build
But bear in mind... There’s a limited optical zoom range
Buy the Panasonic Lumix LX3 digital camera here: Jessops | Amazon UK | Play

Sony Cyber-Shot HX1

Guide price: £320 • 9.1 megapixels • 28-560mm zoom

Sony’s long-range superzoom shuns megapixels in favour of smart sensor tech, including amazing 10fps continuous shooting and sweep panoramas

On paper, Sony’s HX1 superzoom isn’t that impressive, with just 9 million pixels, and a middle-of-the-road 20x zoom range. And while it does offer program AE, aperture-priority, shutter-priority and manual modes, it doesn’t offer RAW files. Dig a little deeper, though, and you discover the HX1 has other, potentially more important qualities. Like its ability to shoot continuously at 10 frames per second, for example, and the rather uncanny Sweep Panorama mode, which captures a series of shots automatically as you pan the camera horizontally, then stitches them automatically into a single panoramic image when you release the shutter button. There are lots of good superzooms out there, but for high-tech, high-speed shooting, the HX1 has the edge.

Get it because... It packs 10fps continuous shooting
But bear in mind... There’s no RAW mode
Buy the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-HX1 digital camera here: Jessops | Amazon UK | Simply Electronics

Ricoh GX200

Guide price: £350 • 12.1 megapixels • 24-72mm zoom

The GX200 is cheaper than the GR Digital III and comes with a 3x zoom. It’s a really good high-end compact that shouldn’t be overlooked

If you like the look of the Ricoh GR Digital III but feel that a fixed focal length lens is just a little too austere, then take a look at the GX200 instead. It’s significantly cheaper, but there’s little difference in its size or layout or the quality of its controls, and you get a more versatile 3x wideangle zoom. The control dial on the front and the multi-function Adj lever on the back are clever bits of design that provide easy hands-on control despite the small size of the body, and if you don’t like composing shots on the LCD, there’s an optional clip-on viewfinder you can use. Ricoh’s not one of the big names any more, but the GX200 and GRD III demonstrate that it still knows how to make top-quality cameras.

Get it because... It’s small, versatile and very well designed
But bear in mind... There's very coarse noise at high ISOs
Buy the Ricoh GX200 digital camera here: Amazon UK | Simply Electronics

Canon PowerShot S90

Guide price: £380 • 10.0 megapixels • 28-105mm zoom

The S90 marks the return of Canon’s compact S-series cameras, and boasts a 4x wideangle zoom, full manual controls and RAW files

In one sense the PowerShot S90 plays second fiddle to Canon’s PowerShot G11, yet in another it does rather pull the rug out from under its bigger brother. The S90 is a whole lot smaller than the G11, but matches up to it in so many ways that it’s a close call. The S90 offers the program AE, aperture-priority, shutter-priority and manual modes which keen photographers will be looking for, and can shoot RAW files for maximum image quality too. Yet despite the breadth of its features, it’s remarkably compact and has a surprisingly uncluttered exterior, thanks in part to the excellent control ring around the lens, which can be set to control one of a number of different functions. The S90 is beautifully made and satisfying to use, too.

Get it because... It offers high-end controls in a sub-compact body
But bear in mind... The rear control dial can be frustrating
Buy the Canon PowerShot S90 digital camera here: Jessops | Amazon UK | Play