Photos: Compact cameras race ahead of the pack
Manufacturers have begun adding high-end features to some cameras to stand out from the crowd of compact models.
Panasonic G1
One of the most prominent parts of the effort to make small but powerful cameras came when Olympus and Panasonic developed the Micro Four Thirds standard for cameras that live halfway between point-and-shoots and bulkier SLRs. The standard combines the relatively large and high-quality image sensors of the companies' single-lens reflex cameras with smaller bodies and lenses.
The first Micro Four Thirds model is Panasonic's DMC-G1, which costs about $670 with a 14-45mm lens. Panasonic and Olympus both plan other models for 2009.
Olympus' Micro Four Thirds concept camera
Olympus gets compact
Casio's high-speed EX-FH20
Casio's EX-FH20 can shoot video at 420 frames per second at a resolution of 224x168 or 1,000 frames per second at 224x56. That's not a lot of pixels, but super slow motion nevertheless can be entertaining to see.
The $600 camera also can shoot a burst of 40 still images per second at its full 7-megapixel resolution.