Need info on how to choose a P&S camera (details inside)

Need a final word people.

HX9V is still selling for more than 300 $ on amazon and for some reason the price of Canon SX230 HS has been reduced to 200 $ on amazon.com

With the price becoming more lucrative, is it advisable to go for the canon.

Remember that i will take videos but not very often, main use is pics and occasional videos so that 1080p/60fps or whatever in HX9V is not very important.

And something which has caught my eye is that whenever i read something about the HX9V the video is praised like anything but there is no word on pic performance or very less details, don't know why.
 
The SX230 is a good camera with pretty good zoom. But I'm not satisfied with PQ, at most just a notch above avg. And low light performance is very avg too. My cousin sis has the HX100 and its PQ is far better with better zoom too.
 
Ok so i am changing my priorities now. Zoom is not really that important because looking back at the pics that i have taken in past 1 year or so, i see that there is almost negligible number of pics taken with 5X zoom (maximum capability in my current camera). So i am all for a good camera which takes good pics and not running after those travel zoom cams.

I am open to different opinions that you all have to offer.

Reading reviews and amazon opinions, i might just strike off SX230 HS and HX9V from the list. I guess i am too much confused.

Should i go back to checking the Panasonic ZS series cameras ?

One that caught my eye is the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS10

Specs and price look good but no idea about performance.

I have a Panasonic Lumix as of now but want to know if in general the Lumix are considered better cameras ?

Btw the ZS15 and ZS20 have MOS written in their title (on amazon), does this mean they have CMOS sensors which supposedly is better right ?

Current options i checked are

ZS8

ZS10 (i think this is ZS8 + some extra features like GPS, 3D etc).

ZS15

ZS20

Also many of the specs say the lens is wide angle and figures like 24mm - 28mm etc. Is it lower the better or the other way round ? And what does it actually mean ?
 
Writing this in a hurry as I am getting ready to leave for office. So here's the short version of the reply:

1. CMOS sensors are supposedly better, especially in higher ISO settings, but in terms of real world performance, there is little to separate CMOS from CCD sensors.

2. ZS10 and ZS15 have poor image quality, compared to ZS8 or ZS20. (from reviews)

3. Lumix cameras are definitely considered very good, on par with Sonys and Canons

4. Simply put, wide angle (the smaller number in the zoom range) indicates how wide a picture you can take at minimum zoom. So a lens with 24mm lens will cover a wider area than a 28mm lens. Extreme wide angle lenses (for eg. 10mm) are those which produce the fish eye effect - though they are not seen in compact cams. Check more info about wide angle lenses here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide-angle_lens
 
Ok so if someone can list down the options i should look for a P&S in 300 $ range (if it is less i have no issues, 300 $ is max i would like to pay, no bridge camera at all), i would really appreciate.
 
MOS sensors are made by panasonic and CMOS are made by Sony (P&S,APS-C,FF),samsung(p&s,APS-C) and canon (APS-C,FF).

The canon ,nikon and Sony P&S are using the same tech sensor from Sony especially the BSI - CMOS for the higher end and the low end using the Sony CCD sensor.

The BSI-Cmos sensor in cameras do perform better in higher ISO,but in low iso the CCD sensors are more then a match.

The panasonic sensors are slightly behind the ones from Sony and probably looks like they are on par with the samsung sensors.

Panasonic cameras however have the leica lens this one just seems to edge out the other P&S lens and as a result the details are better. Sony also has the carl zeiss lens in their mid and high end cameras,but they have good colors where as the leica still seems to have the edge in details.

Best to compare images from all these cameras ,to come to a conclusion.You can use digitalversus.com since they seem to test all kinds of p&s cameras,where as dpreview lately are only testing ILC cameras and large sensor cameras.

Even the HX9v is now a EOL product replaced by the HX10V.
 
#[member='adder']

I am not really concerned about an EOL product as that will be better for me as it might come cheaper.

Possibly i am doing too much research before buying the camera.
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I read that sony HX9V does something to images which result in pics turning out like water color paintings or something.

Is the Lumix ZS20 a good bet ??

What other options do i have ?
 
That thing you are talking about the Sony is due to the aggressive noise reduction in Sony P&S cameras.Its fine in high contrast images but at low contrast images one can spot those artifacts but then again its only seen at 100% crop.

Well since the latest Sony cameras like the NEX-5n ,A57 seems to have upped the ante in Jpeg processing, i feel the same algorithm or tweaks may also have been applied to the new 2012 P&S cameras,buts that just my guess.

If you can check out digitalversus you can compare the entire test shot same like dpreview chose any part of the shot from all those cameras ZS20 aka TZ30 vs Sony HX9V and HX10v,from what i see the sony lens is sharper in corners where as the panasonic appears to be softer,even in the center i see more details from the Sony vs the said panasonic.
 
I might probably go for the Canon ELPH 300 HS as it is cheaper in price (under 200 $) and seems perfect for my use as i mostly use AUTO mode and don't really use those fancy modes. Records at 1080p max which is good but i might always use the 720p option. With extra battery and case i am looking for max 200 $ bill and hey this camera is slim which is good.
 
So which camera was finally purchased? I need to buy a camera too and the requirements sort of aligned with what was needed by raksrules.
 
sumit.sol said:
Boy I was reading each thread with interest and found out you did not purchase any camera. I am also on a lookout for a P&S
Click to expand...

I am sorry but i did not update the thread. I did buy a camera just before i was going i leave US. I bought canon ELPH 110 HS. It is very small and fits my pockets easily. Alsp bought 2 after market batteries extra. Also my requirement was to have a simple P&S and no manual controls necessary or useless for me.
This camera is nice but i haven't got a chance to use it fully till now.
Bought for under 130$ i think.
 
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