A cheap and cheerful camera, but short on elegance, quality in low light, and ease of use.

A step forward in resolution for pocket video cameras, but it’s far too pricey for the features and quality on offer

Huge storage for the money, but quality can’t match the more expensive models in this group

This Panny 'corder can shoot stills at a resolution of 4-megapixels, which makes it a match for a still camera

3CCD has yet to prove it’s worth the premium. If you want a hard-disker, go for one of the cheaper Everio models

A superzoom without stabiliser is like a car without suspension. Prepare for a rocky ride

Due for replacement or some hefty price cuts. The E-300 takes good shots but its rivals take better

Gotta love that revolving screen – but remind us again what exactly the point of it is

Full marks for effort but the i6 is trying to do too much, without doing anything very well

The Mju has hidden depths with aperture-priority and shutter-priority modes, but alas no fully manual mode

At first sight a pocketable gem, this all too often lives up to its budget price

A great still camera with a decent movie mode. The restrictions on movie length mean it’s only any good for short video ‘snapshots’, though, and not ideal for that holiday of a lifetime

Too many flaws make this merely a sexy-looking underachiever

This well-built compact is a solid point-and-shooter, but it struggles in low light

In too many ways, this IXUS isn’t good enough to justify its high price

The A700 has excellent image quality, but is let down by design quirks and the high price.

Easily one of the cheapest 60GB hard drive cameras, but its image quality is cheap too.

An expensive and unusually poor Sony product.

Take a portable media player, add video and sound recording functionality plus a 3.1MP digital still camera and you've got the Richo Vivitar DVR390H.