Honorable mention: For a great value in a compact digital camera, check out the 8-megapixel Canon PowerShot A630 ($225 - $275). Although it has fewer bells and whistles, it takes excellent pictures and acceptable video. It's quite a bit larger than the SD800 IS, though; it's not really a pocket camera. But, then, it's quite a bit less expensive too.

-- Scot Finnie

Digital camcorder: Sony HDR-SR1 Handycam

The new Sony HDR-SR1 raises the bar in cool camcorder features by combining high-definition (HD) video recording with hard disk drive storage. Never before have these two advancements been available in the same model.

HD is the wave of the future, and this baby lets you get onboard in style with up to 1,080 lines of horizontal resolution. And the hard disk drive storage lets you do away with those pesky tapes and discs. The 30GB disk lets you store up to four hours of HD video (You also have the option of recording standard-definition video).