These cameras try to do what cell phones can

The film-roll cameras of 2002 really felt downtrodden with the introduction of digital cameras. And now, the digital cameras of 2010 feel the same way what with the release of phones with 12.1 megapixel cameras. The mobile phone seems to be capturing every department in the electronic gadgets section - absolutely everything, right from clicking snaps, a video or two, GPS and the likes. So can the digicams get back at the intruding mobile phones?

The Panasonic DSZ-7 and Samsung’s HZ35W are two new cameras with top-class features…which come at a price of $399.95 and $349.99 respectively. Both try to out-class the infamous mobile phone. Both have zoom lenses with wide-angle and telephoto reach, Global Positioning System receivers to "geotag" photos, high-definition video recording, the choice of point-and-shoot or manual modes, and in-camera editing tools.
What justifies the price tag of the cameras is their zooming capabilities – 12x on the Panasonic and 14x on the Samsung.

But fear not, for they are really sleek 1.3 inches thick cameras. They aren’t a tad bit oversize and can snuggly fit in your pocket. There are close to 30 scene options on the Panasonic and 14 on the Samsung, the best being auto select. However, certain aspects let you down. For example, the GPS is poor on both the cameras, it doesn’t make sense for editing options in the cameras and the video recording isn’t as good as one would expect. For that matter, a flip camcorder could really give these digicams a tough fight.

The minor glitches don’t really cause much of a hindrance while using the cameras. It goes on to show that to be able to win over the camera phones, the trump card has to be better picture quality and spectacular clarity. That is one category the cameraphones cannot give much of a competition.