Kyocera Mita Finecam S3

WHAT'S HOT: Kyocera's tiny FineCam S3 defies the conventional wisdom that smaller means less. With a stainless steel body measuring 3.4 inches wide, 2.2 inches tall, and 1.2 inches thick, it's one of the smallest digital cameras we've reviewed, yet it comes packed with features typically found on cameras three times its size, such as a 3.34-megapixel maximum resolution, aperture-priority automatic exposures, and QuickTime movies.

WHAT'S NOT: There's no instant review when you're in shooting mode, so you have to switch to playback to delete unwanted shots. The Finecam S3's small, rechargeable lithium ion battery needed recharging after only 98 shots.

WHAT ELSE: The Finecam S3's imaging is poorer than we had hoped, but it's not terrible, either. Our indoor flash shots seemed properly exposed and had good color detail. In shots taken with flash, our model's flesh tones looked a bit stark, though still acceptable; without flash, her features had a slightly yellow cast. Prints made from our outdoor shots showed solid blue skies with fine shading and just a hint of mottling. On the other hand, details in shadows dropped out. As we would expect from a 3-megapixel camera, the Finecam S3 produces pleasing 8-by-10 prints at its highest resolution.

Surprisingly, you don't pay more for the Finecam S3's diminutive size; its $599 price is below the average for 3-megapixel cameras we've tested recently. This is also the first digital camera we've reviewed that comes equipped with a Secure Digital MultiMedia card--a 16MB wafer the size of a postage stamp. Unfortunately, because it's relatively new, this media format costs about twice as much as a SmartMedia card. That will undoubtedly change over time, but at the moment you'll pay a premium for being first.