+1 for the TZ7, this camera still continues to amaze me with the results I get using it. The TZ6 is cheaper if you can sacrifice the HD video.

That's a very pretty shot Heather. Thanks both of you. That does make sense. I guess I'm starting to fall into the classic trap of "for just a few quid more". Realistically, I don't have a lot of money to spend and that was the reason for my initial question in terms of how much difference does £50/£100 make over the initial £100 investment. It seems that the answer in terms of quality i.e. sensor size/res/optics is hardly any. If £250 up is what you have to spend to get a marked improvement in quality - I simply can't afford that.

The support for the Panas here and elsewhere is encouraging and the fact that they start at 25mm, not 28 is very cool. But I just don't have that much to spend, so I guess I'm stuck with something "cheap". RAW isn't a deal breaker, but I want quality. Any ideas?

Try Warehouse Express's new Camera Selector gadget.

http://www.warehouseexpress.com/compare ... meras.aspx

Out of curiosity for the original questions I had a look to see what the difference will get you from £100 to £150. A quick look on WarehouseExpress turned up these examples:

Coolpix S220 £99.99
10mp
3x Zoom
35-105mm
2.5" Screen
Rechargable Li-ion
JPEG pictures / AVI movie
1/2.3 sensor size
80-2000 ISO
150,000 screen resolution

Lumix DMC-FS15 £136.99
12.1mp
5x Zoom
29-145mm
2.7" Screen
Rechargable Li-ion
JPEG pictutes / 640x480 movie
1/2.33 sensor size
80-6400 ISO
230,000 screen resolution

Optio H90 White £149.99
12.1mp
5x Zoom
28-140mm
JPEG pictures (2.9fps)/ 720p movies
1/2.3 sensor size
80-6400 ISO
230,000 screen resolution

In these examples then you get a bit more zoom with wide angle and few more pixels with a bigger (higher res) LCD screen and higher ISO performance. The jump from the Lumix to the Optio also adds HD movies for not a lot more money.

Bear in mind this is purely looking at specs. Thats not to say the more expensive camera actually performs better in tests.

The jump to £200 could get you one of the 7-10x zoom cameras and other featues for example Fuji's SuperCCD EXR thingy.

Trusted Reviews has a lot of reviews for cheaper compacts which are often not covered by the main photo review sites.

You can set various filters so you don't end up looking at stuff you aren't interested in or was reviewed years ago.

Thanks guys. I'll have another look today. Question though. Do I not want AA batteries rather than Li-ion? Especially if I wanna take the thing abroad?

If you'll be somewhere where there's an electrical outlet then what type of battery the camera has should be irrelevant. Just get an adapter socket suitable to that country.

Mark

Except that Li-ion batteries lose their charge over time, often take ages to charge and with AAs I can simply carry or buy spares anywhere in the world. Does everything run on Li-ion now (even SLRs)?

Looking at Veato's suggestions and reading trusted reviews as well as more elsewhere, it does seem that in terms of absolute quality, relatively little can be done below £200 to improve on a budget camera. It's just extra little features which don't really bother me and maybe better zoom range.

Who told you that?

I have three Li-ion batteries for my Canon cameras, and they all hold a charge for months at a time. They take about two hours to fully recharge. Even out for a long day shooting, I rarely need to change the battery while I'm out.

My old Minolta digital camera used 4xAA batteries. I used to take about 20 batteries with me on a day out, because I'd be lucky to get more than a couple of hours' use from a set.

I didn't mean they lose charge like that. I meant every year, they can lose up to 20% of their maximum charging capacity. But fair enough, if that's the way it is with most cameras, so be it.

The Lion batteries in my old Fuji were fine up to about three years but then after that they never held charge for more than thirty or so shots. However even a brand new battery had the same problem so I suspect it was more of a problem with the camera instead. This laptop has Lion and I haven't noticed a drop in total capacity in thirty months or so.

Personally I would choose Lion over AA, but I think there are some cameras out there that use both.

Clicky

Right, after yet more masses of reading, I'm a little closer to understanding what's out there AND what I want. What is it with everyone and their dog having an SLR?? Does nobody want a quality compact?! Anyway.......

I've decided that pocketability is crucial and I'm not spending more than £200 and a fair bit less if I can help it. That rules out the Nikon L110 (which by all accounts looks pretty good aside from it's size). So I'm left with:
1) Fuji F200EXR
12mp 5x zoom starting at 28mm with a ginormous (by compact standards) sensor and everyone agrees on class leading low-light performance.
Reviews and owner opinions range from amazing to disappointing, but the main issues appear to be battery life, some noise/reduction and poor stabilization. However, lots of places seem to think the world of this compact.

2) Fuji F70EXR
Same sensor tech, but slightly smaller (still bigger than just about every other compact) Only 10mp. 10x zoom from 27mm. Seems to have refined the tech in the above camera and added a zoom that I want. But still a few niggles when you read owner reviews.

3) Pana TZ6
You all know this one. My main problems with it are the reportedly bad low light performance, the relatively small sensor and the fact it uses the "old" stabilisation system. It's also pretty much £200 wherever you look. I love the 25mm wide angle and zoom range. I also love the raving that everybody does about the shots it takes, but that doesn't take away from the aforementioned problems.

4) Pana ZX1
Curveball. Newer than the TZ6, it uses a larger sensor, the newer stabilisation from the TZ7, records HD video (although I don't really care, it would just be "nice") and offers 8x zoom from 25mm. I'm just finding it hard to get reviews and opinions and those I can still moan about low-light. I'm beginning to wonder if low light is just an endemic problem with compacts. Of course, that doesn't help me!

That's kinda my shortlist. 1 and 2 can be had "refurbished" direct from Fuji for just £140! I ordered my last camera from them and several cheapy compacts for friends and family over the years and none of them were a problem. Mine had a tiny cosmetic mark. Even brand new, the F70 is just £175 from Warehouse Express with a free 4gig card. The Panas are more expensive, but are they worth it? Thing is, I'm starting to wonder if the F70 is a stonking bargain purely on the price.

Does anyone have anything else to add? From Canon perhaps? All the Nikon stuff in this price range is widely hated on. Does anyone have experience of the Panas in low-light?

Just bare in mind that 4GB cards can be had for less than £8 these days.

Even if it's not a card you'd want to use.

Well presactly, but are WEX chucking in fancy cards or not? Faster ones can be had for £17.