What's the very best point and shoot camera?

I've been on the hunt for a p&s to supplement my digital slr. I must admit to some serious ignorance when it comes to p&s'.

I'm curious as to what is considered the very best p&s (price not a factor). I realize this is very subjective and depends on what you want it for.

I'm simply looking for a camera to throw in my purse when I don't want to lug all my slr equipment around. It doesn't need to be pocket sized, in fact I prefer it to have some substance as I'm use to an slr. Low noise is important. High iso isn't so much, beyond 400 seem to be completely useless. I would prefer to have IS. A long zoom is also desireable but not a deal breaker.

I know the S3 is very popular in these parts and I'm definitely considering it but is there something better?

Which P&S has the largest sensor.

(I prefer Canon but will go elsewhere if there is better to be found)

No such thing as the "best camera." There's cameras that do different things and you should look for one that does what you want it to do. The difference in IQ between point and shoot cameras is greater than the IQ difference in SLR cameras.

Specifically, most Canon's produce more or less the same IQ, so you can't go wrong. All point and shoots are going to have a small sensor, nothing you can do about that. If you want a larger sensor, you're looking into the DSLR world.

If I had the money, I would upgrade to the G7 regardless of what people are saying. The IQ and samples that I've seen are tremendous. I personally don't like anything smaller than that and am now quite used to my S2, which I really like, so would recommend the S3 as well.

Ah, and for the lady, may I suggest the SD700IS? A handy little camera which is ready when you are and fits snugly in the smallest of purses. (I don't have a purse, but this little beaut fits nicely in my jean jacket pocket.) I carry mine with me all the time.

700IS for size and portability based on how you described i think...

Another vote for the 700IS, my wife loves hers...compact, 6 megapixels, 4X optical zoom & IS in a very small package. Its a perfect second camera and I think the small size is a bonus.....if you are thinking of a large P & S, why wouldnt you just take the SLR?

No longer in production and I don't now if there is a replacement, but the Canon Pro1 is absolutely awesome. The ONLY P & S in the world with a Canon "L" lens!!!! Yep, red ring on a point and shoot! I have one, loved it and it got me interested in in the Canon line, as did this site. My wife still uses it and I think it is an incredible camera and it has quite a following of fans. I would even suggest buying a used one if you could. But, it is not a tiny camera like many others, so it depends on what you are looking for.

mishnogram wrote in post #2692995
If I had the money, I would upgrade to the G7 regardless of what people are saying. The IQ and samples that I've seen are tremendous. I personally don't like anything smaller than that and am now quite used to my S2, which I really like, so would recommend the S3 as well.

So you're saying you think the G7 would be better than the S3? These are two on my short list. How is the G7 better? I know they both have IS, the G7 has 10MP vs. the S3's 6MP but does that really make much difference on a p&s? The S3 has the rotating lcd and a much longer zoom. Just looking at the specs the S3 seems to be better, other than the Megapixels. Am I wrong in this assumption?

G7 = full control, might not be best for P&S, but rather a step before DSLR
S3 = ultra-zoom, if you need that sorta thing, takes great pics.
SD700 IS = i'm biased, but it IS an amazing camera. IQ is superb. 4x zoom is more than enough, but not too many manual controls.

you should decide on one of these three based on your NEEDS. cameras dont pick people, people pick cameras. there is no best camera.

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EllenC wrote in post #2693471
So you're saying you think the G7 would be better than the S3? These are two on my short list. How is the G7 better? I know they both have IS, the G7 has 10MP vs. the S3's 6MP but does that really make much difference on a p&s? The S3 has the rotating lcd and a much longer zoom. Just looking at the specs the S3 seems to be better, other than the Megapixels. Am I wrong in this assumption?

I think that the G7 has a hot shoe for flash and better layout. It's also supposed to be a G series camera so I'm guessing better built quality and potentially better lends? (I know its not faster).

I couldn't recommend the G7 over the S3 because the 12X zoom is too important for me and so is the swivel screen. I'd recommend that you try both of them to see how they feed for size etc. Tons of people here own an S2 or S3 so I'm sure they'd be more than willing to show you samples of their work for comparison.

Graystar wrote in post #2694128
It's got a larger sensor than the SD700 (7.1 MP) and a larger zoom (6x vs. 4x).

More megapixels doesn't mean larger sensor. If anything, the G7's noise would be worse, cramming more megapixels into the same size sensor.

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sugarzebra wrote in post #2693368
Another vote for the 700IS, my wife loves hers...compact, 6 megapixels, 4X optical zoom & IS in a very small package. Its a perfect second camera and I think the small size is a bonus.....if you are thinking of a large P & S, why wouldnt you just take the SLR?

The chunky S3 is still worlds smaller than my SLR with lens attached. Then of course there's always that second lens (or third) that you must haul around, oh and don't forget the flash.

The SD700IS, the S3 and the A710 seem to be forum favourites. I need to do some more comparison research on the above models before making a decision. I also wanted to look at other makes such as sony, panisonic, fuji and leica just in case they have something better.

I used to have a panasonic DMc-Tz1, which is supposed to be one of their best P&S. It had an excellent lens, an excellent zoom and if you shoot everything on ISO 80, it's not a bad camera at all. But it really tends towards the noisy...most panasonics do, for some reason.

My S3-IS has been my favorite P&S we've had in the house (A80, A620, G6...which my husband still has and loves, DMC-TZ1 and S3-IS). I don't own it any more (daughter took it) but I always shot in AV (I don't know why a previous poster said you couldn't have full control with it...I seem to remember that I did) used spot metering (something not in every camera). It only went from f2.8 to f8, so that's limiting and there is a bit of shutter lag, no more than other P&S though. I loved that camera for my P&S...got excellent photos with it...and it metered amazingly well for a P&S, something I found lacking on a lot of compacts. Myself, I would choose btw. it and the G7 probably, if I was buying another one...I was not fond of the tilt lcd, though some really like it...I found it small and irritating. That was my only complaint concerning it, that and the fact that it doesn't allow for shooting in raw.