No longer a convenient compromise, todya’s compact cameras can offer hi-def movie recording, a dozen megapixels and impressive zooms. Here are the five world’s sexiest digicams:

Canon IXUS 100 IS (www.canon.com):- Canon’s IXUS is a design classic. It’s the sort of camera you just love holding and using – which is impressive considering small products often disappoint on a practical level. This soapbar-sized shooter produces 12.1 MP images via an f/3.2 lens and Canon’s new DIGIC 4 processor. The IXUS 100 must fancy itself as a private eye because there’s plenty of detection going on: motion detection is an anti-blur technology – great if you’re a fan of street photography – while face and blink detection are used to capture more pleasing portraits.

In this company, the canon’s 3x optical zoom looks weedy and the 2.5 inch LCD is the smallest here – but that’s needless nitpicking, as the breadth of features is a match for its rivals. The i-Contrast function improves contrast and detail in lo-light shots and there are plenty of exposure and focus adjustments. The camera’s guilty of overcooking some red subjects, while elsewhere shots don’t quite “sing” the way you’d like them to, but it’s still a very competent performer and one blessed with a solid autofocus. In a nod of to Apple’s iPod and its accelerometer, when you tilt the IXUS 100 in playback mode your photo will rotate to match the angle of the display.

Its a thing of pocketable beauty and versatility that’s great whether you’re partying or stalking the streets.

Pros: Slim, stylish and desirable design; great for sharp portrait shots

Cons: Tends towards over-exposure, reds are overcooked

Resolution: 12.1 MP

Zoom: 3x optical zoom

Display: 2.5 inch

Extras: Scene and motion detection

Movie Mode: HD 1280×720 @ 3ofps

Size: 87×55x18mm, 115g

Casio Exilim EX-FC100 (www.casio.com):- Casio’s new snapper is part of a streamline range that majors in high-speed burst shooting. The FC100’s party trick involves grabbing up to 30 shots per seconds, from which can then pick the best. Resolution is limited to 6MP in this mode, but that’s fine for most instances. If you don’t mind flicking through and deleting shots as you go, or filling up your memory card at a much higher rate than usual, it’s one way to avoid blinking subjects.

That high-speed ability can also be used to store up to 25 frames in a continually refreshing buffer before you press the shutter, which can help compensate for both the camera’s slight lag and your own reactions. Plus there’s a slo-mo video mode on hand, which can capture up to 1000 frames per second, but that sees the resolution drop to just 223×56 pixels. There’s a standard-issue f/3.6 lens and a rather slow 5x optical zoom. images are framed and reviewed using conventional 2.7 inch LCD screen, via a 9.1 MP sensor. Ergonomics could be better, but there’s nothing too out of the ordinary to get to grips with. Performance is fairly impressive, especially when it comes to colour reproduction. Some results appear washed out but edge definition is among the best.

It is a dependable model that’s unlikely to let you down, though probably won’t do much for your cred.

Pros: Great for shooting rapid bursts; pre-record – don’t miss a shot

Cons: Zoom is sluggish to react; autofocus not the most accurate

Resolution: 9.1 MP

Zoom: 5x optical zoom

Display: 2.7 inch

Extras: High-speed serial picture recording

Movie Mode: HD 1280×720 @ 30fps

Size: 100×59x23mm, 146g

Pansonic DMC-FX550 (www.panasonic.com):- This Panasonic snapper has that perfect mix of compactness and features. Its pocket-sized dimensions and retro styling give it a classy, rugged feel that’s a joy to use – yet there are also enough options to keep you happy while creating the perfect shot. It’s a 12.1 megapixel model with a 5x optical zoom and a full complement of manual controls, as well as a 10-shots-per-second burst mode. The 25mm  ultra-wide-angle f/2.8 lens is ideal for landscape shooting. Its short focal length ensures you snap the bigger picture, while the auto-focus is quick and reliable when used on  closer subjects.

The  3 inch touchscreen LCD lets you flick through your pics in that iPod Cover Flow style and handles certain functions (such as auto-focus tracking), while others (macro and flash, for example) require additional button presses. Standard face recognition is taken a step further with the ability to teach the camera to recognise familiar faces and priorities them in group shots, while basic editing functions allow you to resize, trim and title images directly on the camera. The images themselves are sharp, full of detail, well balanced and display a believable spread of colours that’s warm without venturing into oversaturation.

It’s a sophisticated camera in an easy-to-use package that delivers bold, bright and captivating pics.

Pros: Rich, crisp, hi-res images; intuitive, easy-to-use touchscreen

Cons: Zoom is too fast; jerky HD movie performance

Resolution: 12.1 MP

Zoom: 5x optical zoom

Display: 3 inch touchscreen

Extras: Full manual, Touch AF/AE

Movie Mode: HD 1280×720 @ 30fps

Size: 95×57x22mm, 145g

Nikon Coolpix S630 (www.nikon.com):- If you have nightmares about blurred shots, this Nikon is here to sooth your troubled mind. The S630 has four anti-blur functions. Vibration reduction and motion detection compensate for camera and subject movement, while a best-shot selector can be deployed to lift the sharpest snap from a 10-shot burst. The final weapon in the fight against smudgy pictures is a 6400 ISO mode, which will freeze a fast-moving subject in exchange for some graininess.

On par with all the others in this test bar the lower-resolution Casio, the Coolpix houses a 12MP sensor, which sits behind an f/3.5 lens with an impressive 7x optical zoom – the longest here. Round the back there’s a 2.7 inch LCD and a pleasantly minimalist set of controls  including a scrollwheel and direct access to scene modes, flash settings, timer and movie mode. For portraits there’s a blink warning, a “blinkproof” mode which takes two shots in succession, and the auto-focus can be set to prioritise faces. You also get post-processing tools such as D-lighting (to balance backlit shots) and another to level colour and contrast.  Picture quality is decent but isn’t quite up to the that of the Panasonic, lacking its colour accuracy, with a tendency to over-expose and blow out highlights.

Bristling with features and feeling great to use, the S630 can’t quite match the best on image quality

Pros: Comfortable, user-friendly design; extra mileage from 7x zoom

Cons: Only standard-def movie clips; not always accurate on colours

Resolution: 12MP

Zoom: 7x optical zoom

Display: 2.7 inch

Extras: 4x anti-blur technologies

Movie Mode: 640×480 @ 30fps

Size: 97×58x26mm, 140g

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T900 (www.sony.com):- Almost everything on this 15mm-thin slab is controlled from the touchscreen. With no conventional controls to clutter the rear panel, that allows the bright LCD to stretch itself to a generous 3.5 inch, giving plenty of room to poke around in its menus and explore your photos by flicking left or right or view them by date from a pictorial calender. You might expect features to be compromised by such dedications to a sleek form, but you ‘d be wrong. There’s a 12.1MP sensor and an f/3.5 lens with the respectable 4x optical zoom (which could be smoother) backed up with optical image stabilisation.

Shooting modes include Intelligent Scene Recognition (a sort of advanced automode) and a D-Range Optimiser which adjusts contrast in backlit scenes, which ISO levels go up 3200. Once you’ve taken your pics you can tweak them quite easily on the camera, removing red-eye, cropping and adding filters. Most impressive though, is the quality of its images. Reds are little too warm but the T900 gets more detail from its sensor than any other camera here. Close inspection reveals very little of the finging, smudging and edge-shadowing that lurks deep down in its rivals’ shots. Substance and style? Yep.

Compact, ultra-slim, and stylish, the T900 delivers reassuringly solid, expensive-looking images.

Pros: Superb control via touchscreen LCD; vivid, detailed high-quality shots.

Cons: Zoom should be much smoother, manual focus would prove useful.

Resolution: 12.1 MP

Zoom: 4x optical zoom

Display: 3.5 inch touchscreen

Extras: Optical SteadyShot blur reduction

Movie Mode: HD 1280×720 @ 30fps

Size: 98×58x16mm, 124g