I have a Nikon d70 and a d700 that I use for various things, but these guys are big and bulky and just to sexy for what I need on a daily basis. I also have a Kodak z812 IS that i have been using for everyday picture taking, but this guy is kinda bulky. I need something smaller that I can just slip in my bag and has a decent battery life etc. I want something in the 10-12 megapixel range, and I do not really care on brand. This will mostly be used indoors to take pictures of servers, racks, cabling, and other network items for documentation purposes. I thought the Nikon coolpix with a touch screen was interesting, but I have read mostly bad reviews on it. I was thinking of a canon, but I have been reading bad reviews on them also with regards to grainy pictures and durability of camera. I wish the iphone had a 10 mp camera with a flash then it truly would be the best device in the world!

I love my sony cybershot. Its compact,fits right in my pocket. It takes great pictures and has great battery life.

Canon's powershot cameras are the way to go, and less proprietary than Sony. I am also partial to Nikon Coolpix, but am currently unfamiliar with their latest line.

Also take a look at CNET's 5 overall best digital camera list:

http://reviews.cnet.com/best-digital-cameras/?tag=leftColumnArea1.0

There are two little Powershot models in that list.

The Nikon Coolpix will be similar in controls / menu to the d70. I'd opt away from Sony and go with Canon or Nikon if I had to choose.

We've been consistently happy with the Canon PowerShot ELPHs for that sort of thing. They usually don't have quite as high MP counts, but you get much better picture quality by respecting the CCD's limits instead of pushing for a meaningless high number (and when do you really need 12 MP vs 10 MP for low end use).

Yeah... I read good things about the PowerShots. I wanted a tough camera (read: waterproof, shockproof, freezproof, dustproof etc) for outdoor activities and surfing. I was going to get the Olympus Stylus Tough 8000, but from what I was reading the picture quality blows. I decided to order the Canon Powershot D10 instead. Its ugly as sin, but has good reviews so far and supposedly takes nice pictures for what it is. Doesn't need to look good for what I'm using it for, just needs to function.

Ordered it a couple days ago, should be here next week. I'll let you know what I think.

The Nikon Coolpix will be similar in controls / menu to the d70. I'd opt away from Sony and go with Canon or Nikon if I had to choose.

Have a Nikon Coolpix with 8.0 megapixels and 3.0 LCD, and it is pocket size and takes nice pics.