Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W310

The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W310 is small (3.8 inches by 2.2 inches by 0.7 inches) and inexpensive, but reviewers say other digital cameras are better choices. For example, the highly rated Canon PowerShot SD1300 IS (*Est. $150) also has a 4x zoom lens, 12-megapixel image sensor, shoots standard-definition video and is just a little thicker and shorter than the Sony -- but the Canon shoots better photos in test after test.

"It's not that the Cyber-shot [W310] produces poor quality images so much that the… SD1300 IS sets the bar very high for cameras in this price bracket," say the editors of CameraLabs.com. Imaging-Resource.com editors disagree; in their abbreviated tests, the W310 performed so poorly that they cut the test short. "Contrast is too high, colors are oversaturated, shadows are too dark, and the lens is just too soft overall," Imaging-Resource.com editors say. Both sources recommend the SD1300 IS as a better option, adding that it also has more features (such as a self-timer that snaps the shutter when a new face enters the scene) and a better LCD screen, which reviewers say is easier to see at angles and in low light than the Sony's.

We found reviews at several sources. CameraLabs.com thoroughly tests the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W310 and compares it with a couple of rivals in a lengthy, well-organized review. ConsumerReports.org's tests are thorough, too, and editors rank the W310 against 70 other cameras, but without discussing the cameras much. Imaging-Resource.com doesn't conduct a thorough test, but only because editors conclude that the camera is subpar. Amazon.com prints both positive and negative reviews by owners.