It may be lovely, but Sony’s under-powered P-series costs too much and features features poor battery life.

The HP Pavilion s5180a punches above its weight and provides a welcoming entry point for a starter or low-end upgrade system.

The Canon EOS 500D is capable of great results, but a wallet-draining way of getting HD video on a DSLR.

Oodles of storage and middling performance, but found lacking

The Sony HDR-XR200VE mini cam uses gyros to provide image stabilisation, and has an inbuilt GPS receiver

An impressive touchscreen all-in-one PC for an equally impressive price, but the single-core Atom holds it back

A real do-it-all device, but Nokia needs to do better to compete with the iPhone.

A capable enough performer, but it doesn’t offer enough for the money to come out on top.

If you need professional-class ruggedness on a budget, this is a real option.

Impressive optical quality and storage space, though a touch expensive

If you don't care about recording to disc, you'd be better off with a TiVo. If you're looking for an all-rounder to tide you over until Blu-ray prices fall, Panasonic's DMR-XW300 has a lot to offer.

Cheaper than the HF10, although you need to factor in the cost of storage cards

A capable cam that'll take the knocks and matches it rival, the Panasonic HDC-SD1. It can’t quite better Canon’s HV20 on sheer performance though

Great video, tons of features, easy to use... if only there was a PAL-friendly version

Not much to tempt you over last year's HV20 but Canon still rules the roost when it comes to raw picture quality

The E-510 has a barrowful of features and is a joy to use but we miss the size and convenience of the cheaper E-410

Olympus’ Four Thirds imaging system comes of age in a classy compact SLR that makes the rest look ordinary

Canon’s first hard disk-based AVCHD camcorder gets it mostly right, with a good level of features and the best image quality we’ve yet seen from the format.

Attractively small and aggressively priced, the Ultra Slim is an interesting proposition for businesses

Good value thanks to a decent 18-70mm kit lens and camera-based anti-shake