Nikon Coolpix S10

Shoot round corners with this big-zoom marvel

In the rush for ever greater pixel counts, something's getting left behind - solid, back-to-basics, Victorian values such as decent picture quality, colour reproduction, usability, and, of course, the ability to shoot round corners.

Hoorah, then for the Nikon S10. It only has a six-meg sensor, so you won't be able to decorate your flat with 10ft-tall photos of your own face - it'll go to about A2 size - but it takes excellent snaps, and the twisting, palmcorder-like design is skilliant for party-shooting. It lets you take shots from all angles, so you can shoot cherishable moments with minimum hassle. A face-detecting mode means that portraits in particular are a cinch.

The 10x zoom is maybe a touch over-generous, although it's nice to know it's there in case you ever spy George Michael fumbling in distant bushes with a Cockney hod carrier. The blur-bashing Vibration Reduction system and high sensitivity also make it semi-usable at full magnification at pubs and parties, and more importantly, the lens is a marvel of sharpness and clarity at lower zoomage.

The only down side is that you have to slog through menus with a joystick designed by Satan to get to options like 1fps burst shooting, colour, focus and exposure options and "D-Lighting", which allegedly brightens underexposed pics. You'll need to use this with caution if you don't want that "photos-lit-by-nuclear-explosion" effect.

Photos and movies look generally spiffy though, with pin-sharp detail and realistic colours, and that's the most important thing. If you're after a versatile big-zoomer, this chunky twister will blow you away.