Around a year ago we had our new reviewers trained to the point where they were ready to produce their own reviews. Before we even started recruiting we knew we'd start them off with compact cameras - partly because a compact camera review is considerably less involved than an SLR, partly because there are so many compact cameras on the market. Perhaps predictably every compact review we released was met with a torrent of complaints suggesting that we shouldn't be wasting time on 'point and shoots' when there were so many SLRs in the queue.
By the time spring arrived two things were obvious; that we were going to struggle to keep up with the flood of new SLRs, and that the compact camera market had reached something of a plateau, with 'new' models being nothing more than 'old' models with marginally bigger screens or vital new features such as smile detection. So we took the decision (and, I should add, not lightly) to concentrate our limited resources on covering all the SLRs in depth before we went back to compacts.
To be honest it wasn't that difficult a decision; we get at least 20x more people reading an SLR review than a compact review (with most compacts sold being in the sub-$150 bracket I think it's safe to assume that the amount of pre-purchase research buyers are doing isn't considerable).
Fast-forward to today and we've finally scaled the mountain of new SLRs and are, save for the couple of models currently mid review (the Panasonic G1, for example), up to date. So what to do about the scores of compact cameras we turned a blind eye to over the last year or so? Compacts still make up the majority of camera sales and we certainly haven't abandoned them (we've already posted our full Panasonic LX3 review and have several others, including the Canon G10, in progress), but the sheer number released each year makes giving them a full review impossible (and, at the entry level, the cameras simply don't warrant a 10 or 12 page review).
We therefore decided to try an idea Phil and I have been toying with for several years now; a roundup/group test that will, we hope, give a snapshot of the compact camera market as we enter the peak holiday buying period. So we spent a couple of days researching and shortlisting, and ended up with a list of 35 or so cameras to include. We've now got them all in the office and I've spent a week in the studio with them doing the first round of tests. We hope, within the next four weeks or so, to publish all five of the group tests (they're split into budget, 'style', 'advanced', 'high end' and 'SLR-style').
To give you a taste of what to expect here's the list of cameras we've picked; don't expect a full review of every one of them (though there are some that will eventually make it to full review state), and don't be too surprised if a few of them change if we can't get hold of them....
- Samsung L210
- Canon A470
- Kodak C1013
- Sony W120
- Nikon CP L18
- Fuji FinePix Z20fd
- Canon A590IS
- Panasonic LZ8
- Olympus FE360
- Canon PowerShot SD790IS / IXUS 90
- Casio EX-S10
- Fujifilm Z200fd
- Nikon CoolPix L210
- Nikon Coolpix S60
- Olympus Stylus 1040
- Panasonic FX37
- Pentax Optio S12
- Sony DSC-T700
- Canon SD880 /IXUS 870
- Fuji F100fd
- Nikon Coolpix S710
- Pansonic FX150
- Samsung NV1000HD
- Sony W300
- Canon G10
- Kodak Z8612 IS
- Nikon P6000
- Panasonic LX3
- Ricoh R10
- Pansonic TZ5
- Canon SX110 IS
- Sony H10
- Canon SX10 IS
- Fujifilm S2000HD
- Fuji S8100FD
- Kodak Z1015 IS
- Nikon P80
- Olympus SP565
- Panasonic FZ28
- Sony H50
I would like to continue to see reviews on the better quality compacts as well as the DSLRs, as not everybody want's a DSLR, and a lot of people will want, or have both. So keep up the excellent work.
Posted by: Bruce Richardson | 7 Nov 2008 11:04:38
I think the idea of a group comparison is great for compact cams, in fact I think it would be good for dslr's as well, after all the major cam mags do that and it is very handy. looking forward to seeing the group reviews as i am looking for a compact with good IQ. I do landscape and hardly ever go above ISO 100 using a tripod if I have to, but choosing a compact is very difficult, whilst the G10/LX3 etc would meet my needs the question is will lesser models do just as good but for less cash. I hope the group tests will help with this, best site on the web !!, all the very best.
Posted by: Donald Mackinnon | 7 Nov 2008 11:42:42
How about releasing mini reviews here on your blog?
Posted by: rommel | 7 Nov 2008 12:24:13
I am trying to post a comment on Lars post about ACR but just cannot find where. What is the trick? What am I doing wrong?
Posted by: Andre Oliveira | 7 Nov 2008 13:10:42
Wow, that explains it! I wondered why the compact digi reviews all but dried up...
The group reviews sound great, I am looking forward to reading them.
Please add the Canon PowerShot SX1 to your list, even though it will not be available in the USA (according to Canon).
Posted by: Hylandsson | 7 Nov 2008 16:20:23
"So we took the decision (and, I should add, not lightly) to concentrate our limited resources on covering all the SLRs in depth before we went back to compacts."
Well, maybe not ALL the DSLR's. Do you feel this may be a good time to reveal why dpreview has still not released a full review of the Canon 1DMIII?
Posted by: Gingerbaker | 7 Nov 2008 17:04:14
Re: the 1D Mark III.... to be honest it just got sidelined so many times by other camera we found more interesting (including the 1Ds III, because it's full frame, was the highest res at the time) that it got to the point where we felt we'd have little to add by spending a four weeks doing a full review. That's not to say we won't, it's still on the board behind me... it's just low priority...
Posted by: Simon Joinson | 7 Nov 2008 17:13:43
That's a long list and frankly some of those cameras don't really seem worth reviewing (or at least not right away) Perhaps you should focus on reviewing cameras with RAW and/or PASM before you get into the fully-auto things with no manual control.
Posted by: mjkerpan | 7 Nov 2008 17:32:50
Please don't completely forget about those of us who really don't want to deal with constant lens changing in the field. There are a lot of us who love our "bridge" cameras (and would replace those we have with another bridge camera when the time comes) and would like to be kept up to date on those!
Posted by: I.A.M. | 7 Nov 2008 17:46:56
I never thought I'd see the day! Bravo, Phil. And I know this is the wrong place to post a comment about the blogs themselves, but that topic was "closed"......K.
Posted by: Koo22 | 7 Nov 2008 18:40:33
and......please don't ever change the white text on black background....you must not listen to the newbies! The elders here love it the way it is. K.
Posted by: Koo22 | 7 Nov 2008 18:42:10
Great idea. I use a dSLR but my kids for example use P&S cameras and there is little credible information about them available anywhere. Their specifications all look the same, so it would be good to see what they are really worth.
Posted by: Ted Szukalski | 7 Nov 2008 21:52:18
Have visiting this site since it was reviewing the Nikon Collpix 995 and joined a couple of years later. There has been steady progress in what is an expanding market. However, I'm disappointed that there is no medium format digital on here. When DPR started, it represented the forefront of digital photographic technology, however, as stopped short in recent years with the demarcation at digital SLR's. We're now into 65mp backs, 4th generation, without a single review. IS this ever going to be looked at or is DPR only going to cater for part of the market?
Posted by: Christian Hough | 7 Nov 2008 22:46:23
Hire me, I'll do the compacts!!!
Now, seriously, get more people. Bussines can't be going bad at all, can it?
You're bound to become an even greater geek internet sensation, I'm sure (maybe the day you decide to make a YouTube channel, that's the way it goes these days)
Posted by: MisoMan | 8 Nov 2008 00:45:08
I think one area where DPRs reviews for Serious Compacts (with RAW support) fall short is in RAW image comparison. This was seen in the LX3 review. The only reason a serious compact user like me would choose such a camera is because of the RAW mode and so DPRs review was of very little help to me. To most of us serious shooters, IQ is more important that body, handling, etc. I would have loved to see RAW image comparisons between LX3, G10 and P6000 and at least 2-3 images in the LX3 sample gallery that were converted from RAW. Sites like photographyblog.com are doing a better job in this regard as they at least allow users to download RAW files and process them. Hope DPR will consider this request.
Posted by: Mayank Bhatnagar | 8 Nov 2008 02:22:34
Another of your great ideas, Phil! [I mean creating the Blog, though the group comparison format is also a great idea]. We really need to hear more from you and your staff. I sincerely hope that, on the Blog, you and your staff will also give us assessments of industry trends and their significance. A little of that is being done as part of the comments in the reviews, but it would be nice to hear more.
Keep up the great work!
Posted by: Conrad | 8 Nov 2008 18:11:59
While P&S becoming increasingly similar, it is getting harder and harder to find good special interest cameras, e.g. for elderly people or for children.
Therfore it would be great to include 2 questions into such group review:
1. If someone normaly needs reading glasses: Can you use the camrea without glasses?
2. Is the camera childrenproof? ( thus: is it robust? is it possible to use it without reading skills).
To both questions I had a hard time fining good answers when researching presents last year.
While there are "cameras" aimed at children around, the image quality is often surprisingly bad, even for models with a price point way higher than entry-level p&s. I am sure a lot of the people here would appretiate a recommendation on a good camera for children. ...
Thanks for the great page,
regards
ralf
Posted by: ralf | 8 Nov 2008 21:22:06
DP Review was better before Zidar got the boot for completely bogus reasons! That jerk who complained about me was a liar and a communist!
Posted by: Zidar | 8 Nov 2008 22:11:47
Regardless of price, the quality of a camera is a big deal to me and as difficult to evaluate as ever. Low price doesn't make evaluation easier. Argubly the need for review is greater for a point & shoot because there are more of them.
I use a point & shoot when I want a light, compact, rugged camera. Price isn't a huge factor (though of course I like that it has dropped).
Please don't stop reviewing point & shoots just because their value (benefit per dollar) has become amazing.
ps. Thanks for lobbying over the yrs for wider angle and better image quality. Finally Canon seems to have got the message, with the SX1 with 28mm-equiv.
Posted by: Jim | 9 Nov 2008 02:54:50
I think the policy regarding compact camera reviews a reasonable one. The only reviews of compact cameras I'm interested in would be those that have a larger than average sensor and have raw capacity.
Like most readers, I'm more interested in dslr reviews. For that matter, is there a list of upcoming reviews and a targeted publishing date? Also, any chance of reviewing the new Leica medium format. Its statistics look impressive. My guess its pricetag will match Leica's reputation.
Best, Keefe.
Posted by: Keefe Borden | 9 Nov 2008 03:51:16
Please add the Canon SX1IS to the list as it has a CMOS sensor (Need to see what effect it has on noise) plus a zoom with a proper wide angle. Also very interested to see a comparison with the SX10IS as well.
Posted by: Dave Kimberley | 9 Nov 2008 09:51:43