Compare the Best Digital CamerasJanuary 2021

There are four main camera types that you will need to decide between when choosing a new camera. Each have their own advantages and disadvantages and which one is right for you will depend on what type of photos you plan to take and what you aim to get out of your photography. Many people use a mobile phone as their camera these days, which is fine for day to day snaps but for quality photographs it's hard to beat a dedicated camera.

Image Sensors Explained

Megapixels & Sensor Size

Bigger sensors require physically bigger cameras and also bigger lenses to gather enough light to cover the sensor. For this reason the biggest sensors tend to found on the biggest cameras such as the DSLRs. This is also the reason why mobile phone manufacturers use very small sensor sizes.

The physical size of the sensor is described in many different ways including fractions and letters. Unfortunately it is not easy to relate these sizes to one another, but the chart to the left provides a guide and shows how each sensor size relates to the size of traditional 35mm film.

Full frame sensors are sensors that are physically the same size as traditional 35mm film. Full frame sensors are desirable because they capture very detailed images, but also because they are directly compatible with the huge range of lenses designed for 35mm film. There are plenty of DSLR cameras with sensors which are smaller than full frame. These cameras can still be used with 35mm lenses, but the smaller sensor size means that a conversion factor will apply to the lens. For example if a camera with non-full frame sensor has a conversion factor of 1.5 then a 200mm lens will behave like a 300mm lens, which is great if you want to be closer to the action, but not so good if you need a wide angle shot.

Optical vs Digital Zoom

Camera Screens

Viewfinders

Traditional cameras have optical viewfinders. This means that the image viewed through the viewfinder is exactly the same as the image that camera will photograph. Optical viewfinders reflect light entering the camera's lens off a mirror and into the viewfinder. When the photo is taken the mirror quickly flicks out of the way to let the sensor receive the image. All top end DSLRs have optical viewfinders. Some cameras have digital viewfinders which are basically a second very small screen viewed through the viewfinder. Digital viewfinders have the advantage of allowing you to preview how the final image will look including any applied effects, however generally speaking they are considered inferior to an optical viewfinder.

Image Stabilisers

Some cameras have image stabilisers. These devices are designed to reduce the effect of hand shake on the stability of the camera thereby producing a sharper photograph. They are particularly important for large zoom cameras as zooming in will amplify the effect of any hand shake on the camera image.

There are two main types of image stabiliser: optical and digital. Optical image stabilisers work using a special lens which moves to counteract the effect of any hand shake. Optical stabilisers are considered superior as they do not artificially manipulate the image quality.

Digital image stabilisers work by a processor analysing the photo after it has been taken in order to reduce image blur. This can be achieved by the camera taking multiple photos and then combining the best parts of each photo together.

Autofocus

The camera's focus setting determines which part of the image is sharp.

Compact cameras will have an intelligent autofocus system which attempts to determine which part of the image should be in focus. These generally work well, but sometimes the camera can focus on wrong thing, for example when shooting through a window the camera may focus on the glass. Often budget compact cameras do not have a manual focus setting.

ISO, White Balance & Manual Exposure

Some cameras let you manually set the white balance of the photo too. White balance is important because different light sources (such as the sun or artifical light) produce different types of light which can affect the colours in the photo and if set incorrectly can make the photo look unnatural.

Continuous Shooting

Some cameras support rapid continuous shooting. This lets you hold down the trigger to take a rapid succession of photos, which is useful for capturing fast moving subjects. The speed at which the camera can take multiple photos is measures in frames per second and most cameras will have a limit on the number of photos that can be taken in quick succession. For best results you will also need a fast memory card which is capable of saving images very quickly.

Lens types

For system and DSLR cameras there are hundreds of different lens types available giving you a huge range of creative possibility. Lenses fall in to a number of distinct categories each of which has their own unique benefit.

Lens Aperture

Lens aperture refers to the size of the hole inside the lens that lets light through to the sensor. A large aperture will let lots of light in which lets you take very short exposures, effectively freezing any moving objects in motion. A small aperture lets through very little light which means a longer exposure time is required. This can be used to create motion blur and to control how much of the image is in focus (depth of field).

Aperture is measured with an f number and it is worth looking at what the lowest f number is that the camera supports. In the case of interchangeable lens cameras the f number will depend on the lens itself, not the camera body. The lower the f number the bigger maximum aperture is which means the lens is capable of capturing more light. Bigger aperture lenses produce better quality images in low light conditions.

WiFi, Bluetooth & NFC

WiFi, Bluetooth and NFC (Near Field Communication) are all methods of wirelessly connecting the camera to other devices and to the internet. This lets you send photos directly from your camera to your phone or computer, and some cameras let you take photos on the camera using a remote app on your phone. With a direct internet connection your camera can upload photos directly to Facebook and Twitter. Some cameras also allow you to download apps to your camera for editing photos.

GPS

Cameras with a built in GPS will automatically tag your photos with the location that they were taken at. The location is stored inside the photo so even if you copy the photo to your computer or other devices the location information will always be attached. Location data lets you view all the photos created in a certain location and also allows you to create cool maps of your trips.

Creative Effects

Most cameras feature a host of creative effects that can be applied to the photos that you are taking. These include changing the image colour, perspective, tone and shape.

Create cool city shots in black & white or sepia, or apply artistic effects like watercolour or crayon to landscape shots. Many cameras include automatic scene detection which will adjust the camera settings for example when the subject is backlit.

Video

Virtually all new cameras can record video, which saves carrying around a separate camcorder. Some cameras can record Full HD video and even 4K video. DSLRs with built in video recording can produce outstanding video quality and are a popular choice for amateur film makers. Don't forget that videos will take up much more space on your memory card than photos.

Digital Camera Prices

The price range of cameras is from $27 to $24,388 and in total we found prices for 541 cameras. On average, a new camera costs $716 and 80% of cameras are priced between $81 and $1,510. The Leica M10 is the most expensive camera that we found at $24,388, and the Polaroid IE826 is the cheapest at only $28.

Digital Camera Brands - Price Range

The highest average digital camera price out of all brands is Hasselblad digital cameras with an average price of $6,834. Hasselblad digital cameras range in price from $4,499 to $9,169.

Phase One digital cameras start at $4,199 and their most expensive digital camera costs $4,199. The second highest average digital camera price out of all brands is Phase One digital cameras with an average price of $4,199.

Leica cameras range in price from $95 to $24,388, and the average price of Leica cameras is $3,889 which is the third highest average price of all camera brands.

Digital Camera Brands - Average Ratings

We have evaluated 6,098 expert reviews and 14,263 user reviews for cameras and used this information to calculate the average rating for each brand of digital camera. Canon is the top rated camera brand with an average rating of 85%. Nikon is the second best brand with 82% and Panasonic is the third best brand with 81%.

Biggest Camera Retailers

The biggest digital camera retailer by number of products currently for sale is eBay. We found 612 current digital camera offers from eBay. The second biggest retailer is Adorama with 337 offers. That means eBay is much bigger than Adorama when it comes to cameras. Overstock is the third biggest retailer with 208 current offers.

When Are Most New Digital Cameras Released?

February to March is the most common period for new digital cameras to be released in. For the latest digital camera technology you may want to think about waiting until February 2021. Also the price of the current cameras may drop off just before the latest models are released in February. Last year most new digital cameras were released in February, with six new digital cameras released that month. The biggest month in 2019 for new camera releases was March, with 10 new cameras released that month. August was the biggest month in 2018 for new cameras, with 16 new cameras released that month.

How Fast Do Camera Prices Drop After Release?

New cameras drop in price by an average of 2% in the first 6 months after they were first released.

If you are prepared to wait then you could save an average of $17 on a typical $716 new camera by waiting 6 months before buying.

Optical Zooms

The optical zoom of a camera is a measure of how much the camera can zoom in to the subject using the camera's lens system. An optical zoom is superior to a digital zoom because the zoom is achieved using the optics of lens which means that the full extent of the digital sensor is always used to capture the image.

Comparing all cameras, the optical zooms range from 1x to 125x. The optical zooms of the majority of cameras range from 1x to 5x. The Nikon P1000, which is priced at $788.99, has the biggest optical zoom and is a 125x optical zoom digital camera. The Sigma DP2 Quattro, which is on sale for $539.00, has the smallest optical zoom and is a 1x optical zoom camera.

Weights

The camera's weight will depend on the type and size of camera. Compact cameras are usually the lightest while digital SLRs will be heavier. Also consider the number and weight of lenses to take when using a SLR.

The weights of digital cameras range from 50g to 2.7kg. The weights of the majority of cameras range from 50g to 150g. The camera with the heaviest weight is the Mamiya RZ67 Pro II, which is a 2.4kg digital camera and sells for $2,299.90. The camera with the lightest weight is the Panasonic Lumix DMC-XS1, which is an 88g digital camera and is available at $209.99.

Camera Types

Compact digital cameras are small and easily fit into any pocket. Bridge cameras fill the niche between Single-Lens Reflex Cameras (SLRs) and compact cameras, usually have a better image quality but the lens is fixed and cannot be changed. Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Cameras (MILCs) are smaller than SLRs while providing similar manual settings, but usually have a smaller body meaning there is usually no space for an optical viewfinder. Digital SLRs usually have the best image quality and a wide range of lenses is available for each model, however, Digital SLRs also tend to be the most bulky and expensive camera type.

We found 1,059 cameras that are compact cameras, which makes compact the most popular camera type amongst new cameras. Slr is the second most frequently found camera type amongst new cameras. We found 183 cameras that are slr digital cameras.

Megapixels

The resolution of the images a digital camera produces is measured in megapixels (MP). One megapixel is equal to 1 million pixels and is a result of the pixel width multiplied by the pixel height of the image. While a higher image resolution generally results in sharper images, only a relatively low megapixel count is required when printing the image at a small size or to display it on a computer screen.

The megapixels of digital cameras range from 0.3MP to 80MP. The megapixels of most cameras range from 14MP to 17MP. The Phase One 645DF+, which is available at $4,199.00, has the highest megapixels and is an 80MP digital camera. The digital camera with the lowest megapixels is the Nikon Coolpix P310, which is a 1.61MP digital camera and sells for $199.00.

Which Are the Cheapest Retailers for Digital Cameras?

The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying cameras. For each retailer it shows the total number of cameras where they currently have a market leading price. The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying digital cameras. For each retailer we took all of their prices and looked at what proportion of those prices where the cheapest on the market. The cheapest retailer that we found was eBay. 512 of their digital camera prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.

Proportion of Digital Cameras for Which Each Retailer is Cheapest?

Assessing how cheap each retailer is for cameras by counting the number of cheapest prices for that retailer, makes the retailers that offer the greatest number of camera prices more likely to offer the greatest number of cheapest prices. The chart below considers the proportion of each retailer's camera prices that are the cheapest compared to other retailers. The cheapest retailer that we found using this approach was eBay. 83.7% of their camera prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.