Now that our compacts come with wide angle, stabilization and a large screen, have they attained perfection? Of course not! The challenges to come centre on screen resolution, sensitivity in low lighting and of course the autofocus, still trailing the levels of performance given by digital SLRs.

Now that today's digital SLRs can shoot video, the distinction between them and compacts is smaller than ever. Those pushing Micro Four Thirds (µ4/3) as an alternative to both have understand the changing nature of the digital camera market. Change is definitely on its way …

The ideal camera has a wide angle, little noise in high sensitivities, a big screen, and is stabilized and fast. These little gems do exist and you will find good compacts at low prices.

Between compacts and reflex digital cameras, there is an intermediate category, the bridge. Bodies are larger than compacts, but we find all the manual functions, better quality and brighter lenses. And now, there is more often a big zoom.