Samsung

Samsung's compact camera lineup continues to mature, and PMA sees the introduction of several well-designed new models with some genuinely unique features. Highlights include the i6, the first digital compact to boast real ‘portable media player’ capabilities, for those of you with a need to watch movies and play music between taking pictures. We were more impressed by the L85 - the world's first camera with HDMI support for HDTV video output. The L60 is a nice 6MP slimline compact with a 3x zoom and MPEG-4 movie capture, and the new S series (S500, S600 and S800) looks to offer a decent 'bang for your buck' with big screens - and in the case of the 8MP S800 - MPEG-4 video capture. Also new for PMA is the cute entry-level model, the A503, which packs a 5MP sensor, 5x optical zoom and a decent array of features into a very compact black, silver or red body. Of course the big news for Samsung this year is its entry into the digital SLR market, thanks to the recently-announced alliance with Pentax. The GX-1S and GX-1L are straightforward re-badge jobs, but conversations with Samsung indicate that the company won’t be resting on its laurels and we can expect to see new, very different models later in the year.