The start of 2007 sees the mass arrival of 10 Megapixel cameras.  Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax, Sony ...--all the big names are there, but which is best?  And will 6 and 7 Megapixel digital SLRs be able to keep up with this new generation?  Just like the summer, Christmas is one of the best times of the year to buy a digital camera.  Ready for the big rush, most of the world's major manufacturers have been working hard to get their star products ready for the end of 2006.

The latest stars are 10 Megapixel digital SLRs at what are astonishingly low prices.  Three or four years ago, you'd pay this much for a high-end compact.

It's not just the prices that are changing, though, as we're also witnessing rapid developments in the technology available on the cameras themselves, which now offer much better quality and are all of a more or less professional standard.

Better Image Quality

Until recently, we were somewhat skeptical about the seemingly unstoppable race for digital cameras with more and more pixels.  In a lot of cases, extra Megapixels did not result in better quality photos.  However, that situation is starting to change, and the move from cameras with 6 or 7 Megapixels to those with 10 Megapixels (or even more) has had a noticeable impact on results.  In general, photos on this new generation of cameras are sharper, with more accurate colours and improved noise handling

Hardware Improvements

These cameras haven't just changed on the inside, though: their bodies have developed too.  It's increasingly normal for digital SLRs to have a 2.5'' LCD screen, which is much easier to see.  Others have added features designed to make life simpler for photographers.  Sony and Pentax, for instance, have added mechanical image stabilization to limit blurriness in photos caused by an unsteady hand, improving the quality of photos taken in low light.  Nikon's D40, D40X and D80 now come with much more solid with large viewfinders and multifunction lenses.