Leica D-Lux 4

The basics

Leica's first compact camera boasts a 1:1.63-inch CCD, 10.1-megapixel sensor. Meauring 109x60x27mm and weighing 228g, there's enough room to house a three-inch TFT display on the back, a 50MB of in-built memory, a memory card slot (SD, SDHC, MMC), support for PictBridge, and a battery that can take 380 shots.

The good

Generations of war and fashion photographers have sworn by Leica’s film cameras, and at last here’s a digital worthy of the brand. The D-Lux has a bright f/2 lens with an ultra-wide 24mm zoom setting to let you shoot all the angles in the dimmest of conditions. Its 10-megapixel CCD chip is about 45% larger than rival sensors, meaning smoother photos and less digital noise at higher sensitivities. Naturally, you can override any of the smart auto feature to take complete control of the camera, and you also get a cutting-edge high res 3-inch screen - and even widescreen HD (720p) movies.

The bad

The 2.5x lens tops out at just 60mm, so forget about zooming in for close-ups. Also, you might have to turn pro to afford the D-Lux: the same money buys you the latest Canon EOS 450D digital SLR, complete with two zoom lenses and a hefty memory card.

The bottom line

Hold the front page, the D-Lux 4 is the best compact digital camera on the market right now... if you can afford it. If not, check out the Panasonic DMC-LX3, which is identical apart from the Leica badge (and a few internal tweaks) but costs £250 less.