George Cole

Group TestSo how did they do? At £120, the Nikon Coolpix S4000 offers great value for money and is a great way into the world of touchscreen cameras. But serious snappers will lament the lack of an optical image stabilisation system, no HDMI port, and disappointing picture quality. Group Test Touchscreen Compact Cameras The Fujifilm …

ReviewThe tiny power button on this Sony Cyber-shot seems rather superfluous, as sliding the lens cover switches the DSC-TX7 on or off rather neatly. The touchscreen is large, clear, bright and responsive. The on-screen icons are arranged vertically on both sides of the screen, and a nice touch is that you can customise the icon …

ReviewWhen it comes to technology, Samsung steers its own course. First off, the ST5500 uses a 3.7in AMOLED screen and has an abundance of technology on-board including Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and AllSave – part of the DLNA wireless content sharing standard. Samsung ST5500 So far, so good, but it’s a shame that Samsung has opted to use …

ReviewPanasonic has updated its camera design with the Lumix DMC-FX70, and very nice it looks too, with a stylish curve on the right side of the camera body and a lovely matt black and silver finish. Panasonic DMC-FX70 However, on switch on, the screen looks a bit cluttered with icons on the top, right and bottom of the screen. …

ReviewA touchscreen camera for just £120? Well, if it was a dodgy brand you’d never heard of, you might not be surprised, but no one would describe Nikon in such terms. Nikon Coolpix S4000 According to retailers selling the Coolpix S4000, it’s going for half the suggested retail price, which either means Christmas has come early …

ReviewThis is the second cheapest touchscreen model, but you would never have guessed by its looks or design. It’s sleek, feels reassuringly solid and sports a rather nifty sliding lens cover, which turns the camera on or off. Fujifilm Finepix Z700 EXR It also includes Fujifilm’s Super CCD EXR sensor and a 5x optical zoom, …

Group TestMost camera touchscreens are around 3.5in in size with the best being large, clear, bright and highly responsive, but not overly sensitive. Most touchscreens use TFT LCD displays, although Active Matrix OLED (AMOLED) technology appears on compacts too. The advantages of OLED technology over LCD are that the screens can be made …

Group TestThe runaway success of products such as the Apple iPhone and iPad, which make extensive use of touchscreen technology, has shown that consumers love this type of interface – provided it’s executed properly. When you think about it, touchscreens are a logical choice for compact cameras, which over time, have become smaller, …

ReviewCanon Ixus 210 Canon’s first touchscreen compact, the Digital Ixus 200 IS was a disappointing offering, not helped by Canon providing both touchscreen operation and standard button control. Canon Ixus 210 The Ixus 210, however, is a different animal, offering just a three-way slider – for auto, program AE and movie modes – a …

Product Round-upThe credit crunch has made many of us cost-conscious consumers, and so it’s no surprise that more people are taking a closer look at sub-£150 cameras. And with summer holidays coming up, now's the time to take a peek. Naturally, at this price point, you're looking at a compact model, but you might be surprised by some of the …

ReviewThe success of Flip’s pocket camcorders has seen a fair few manufacturers scrambling to grab a share of this potentially lucrative market. Many of us, it seems, quite like the idea of owning a product that lies somewhere between a cameraphone and a camcorder. Samsung’s HMX-U10 is for the person who wants a highly portable …

ReviewToshiba’s Camileo S20 is aimed at a very demanding consumer. The type of consumer who wants a highly portable pocket camcorder with HD recording, and yet, has a budget of just £120. So, the Camileo S20 seems to offer it all – price, performance and portability. But can it really deliver so much for so little? Toshiba Camileo …

ReviewThe world seems to have gone 3D crazy. Crowds are flocking to see the 3D movie Avatar; consumer electronics companies are promising 3DTVs and Blu-ray Disc players, and broadcasters, such as Sky, are set to launch 3DTV services. Fujifilm has also got in on the act with the Finepix Real 3D W1, a camera for the masses that captures …

ReviewSony is renowned for its stylish compacts, and the DSC-WX1 is no exception. It not only looks smart, but contains some interesting technology too. At around £300, the DSC-WX1 is aimed at the top-end of the compact market, but do its features and performance justify the price? Sony Cybershot DSC-WX1 Broaden your horizons with …

ReviewLast February we looked at the Pentax K-m, a rather tasty entry-level DSLR. Yet the K-7 is a different kettle of fish from the K-m, it’s a more advanced model aimed at the enthusiast/semi-pro market. Pentax K-7 Environment friendly? Pentax's K-7 Measuring up at 96.5 x 130.5 x 72.5mm and weighing 750g with battery and card …

ReviewSome digital cameras cry out to be touched. They’re sleek, they’re stylish and it’s hard resist the temptation to pick them up. Canon’s range of Ixus cameras falls into this category, and the Digital Ixus 200 IS takes this step a further by being the first Ixus to offer a touchscreen interface. Canon Ixus 200 IS Touching …

ReviewEvery now and again, you come across a product that makes you think: How on earth did they do that? Well, Nikon’s Coolpix S1000pj is such a beast, because it’s a compact digital camera with a built-in pico projector. Nikon Coolpix S1000pj The little picture show: Nikon's Coolpix S1000pj In fact, it would appear it’s the …

ReviewIt doesn’t seem five minutes since we looked at the CX1 – well, back in April actually – so it’s quite surprise to find that Ricoh has already launched its successor, the CX2. Again, this is a super-zoom compact seemingly aimed at the enthusiast or the DSLR user who occasionally wants to pack something simpler and smaller. That …

ReviewThe Finepix F200EXR is the replacement for the Finepix F100fd, which we looked at last January. Although there are a number of similarities between the two cameras – they have the same sized image sensor, optical zoom and camera body – there are some differences too, not least the Finepix F200EXR’s new EXR image sensor. …

ReviewNostalgia isn’t what it used to be. We used to looked back at past technologies with fond memories, but be grateful that we lived in the modern world. Now, it seems, some of us want a piece of both the past and the present, with gadgets combining an old exterior with a modern interior. Olympus PEN EP-1 Olympus' PEN EP-1: not …

ReviewPanasonic’s DMC-TZ6 could be considered the little brother or, if you want to be a little less charitable, a stripped-down version of the DMC-TZ7 we looked at in August. Both models are super-zoom compacts or Travel-cams, designed for the person who wants a big optical zoom in a pocket-sized camera. The DMC-TZ6 is around £60 …

ReviewSometimes, less is more. Take Ricoh’s GR Digital III. It’s a compact camera costing more than £500, but if you’re looking for masses of megapixels, countless scene modes, HD movie recording or even an optical zoom, then forget it. This is the digital camera equivalent of the fixed-gear bicycle; a product for enthusiasts who …

ReviewPanasonic’s DMC-TZ7 has been around for a while now, although the company maintains it in its current range. It's not surprising, because it’s one of the few compact super-zooms on the market that includes HD recording – its closest rival is Canon’s PowerShot SX200 IS. Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ7 Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-TZ7 The …

ReviewKodak’s Easyshare M420 is aimed at the person looking for a reasonably cheap and convenient, compact camera that will basically take care of business, allowing you to simply point and shoot. As Kodak’s founder George Eastman once said: “You press the button, we do the rest.” So, the Easyshare M420 is cheap, but is it cheerful …

ReviewThere are some things you should never mix with water, such as a fine malt or electricity. Another is your digital camera, unless you happen to be the proud owner of a Pentax Optio W80. Pentax Optio W80 Waterproof and grit resistant: Pentax's Optio W80 This novel-looking camera is designed to be used underwater. It has a …