Canon PowerShot G11

Successor to the G10 reduces the pixel count from 14.7 to 10 megapixels in a move that sacrifices low ISO resolution for better performance at higher settings, and ends up a better camera for it. The G11 combines some of the best compact camera image quality with excellent levels of manual control, an optical viewfinder, flip-out screen, raw capability, superb battery life, flexible lens range and the ability to mount dedicated flashguns. It may not be the smallest camera out there (in fact it's one of the largest to use such a small sensor), but, if you can live with the compromises this all-round ability brings, then there's little that can touch it.