2010 Ushers in a Variety of New Touchscreen Cameras

The year 2010 brings nine touchscreen cameras to the market, all of which are beginning to cause a stir with the digital junkies. With their new and unique features, these cameras make their debut (or are about to make their debut) and offer pleasant features in terms of touchscreen functions, connectivity, style and design. Here are the nine touchscreen digital cameras that will surely have you thinking about replacing your current camera this year:

Nikon Coolpix S4000

At just $200, Nikon presents another affordable high-quality product with its sporty Nikon Coolpix S4000 and with lots of nifty features to boot. One can capture high definition video up to 720p with its 5X optical zoom wide angle lens, 4-way image stabilizer, and 3-inch wide touchscreen viewer. One neat feature is how you can take shots by activating the shutter by simply touching the screen. Another touch control feature is the motion-tracking autofocus.

Fujifilm FinePix Z700EXR

This stylish compact 0.7 inch deep camera is something you may want to get for yourself, especially when you consider its low price at $280 dollars and its exciting new features. The Z700EXR Fujifilm FinePix is, of course, a touchscreen camera with a 3.5 inch wide screen. It has a 5X lens with optical zoom and a focal range of 36mm – 180mm. It has dual image stabilization and can capture high definition video at 720p. It also has online capabilities that will allow the user to upload pictures and videos directly to websites like Facebook and YouTube once the camera is connected to a laptop or PC.

Kodak Slice

This is another nifty product by Kodak that costs an affordable $350. It has a 3.5 inch wide screen and a clever onscreen keyboard that the user can use to label and tag people on images. The Kodak Slice is a 14 megapixel camera with internal 2 gigabytes of memory that can store approximately 5000 images outside its expanded storage that accommodates a mircoSD card. This model can take high definition video up to 720p and has a 5X zoom lens that is optically stabilized and has a zoom range of 31.5 – 157.7mm. The Kodak Slice, once connected to a laptop or PC, can also upload images and videos directly onto the Kodak Gallery, Flickr, youTube or Facebook for viewing and organization.

Canon PowerShot SD3500 IS

The SD3500 IS Canon Powershot is a 14 megapixel touchscreen camera with a 24mm – 120 mm focal range with its 5X optical zoom ultra wide angle lens. The touchscreen is 3.5 inches wide with drag-and-drop capability which can further be customized by the user. This is an improvement of Canon’s 2009 SD980 IS model which can now record high definition video up to 720p. Another new feature is the ability of the camera to allow the user to view objects as scale models instead of at their full sizes. At $350 dollars, the Canon PowerShot SD3500 IS gives other camera companies the run for their money!

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX5

This DSC-TX5 Sony Cyber-shot is a 10 megapixel camera that is shockproof (to 5 feet) waterproof (to 10 feet), dustproof, and freezeproof (to 14°F). This camera can be operated both underwater and on land, and has touchscreen capabilities on a screen that is 3-inches wide. At $350, it is a bargain considering that it has a 4X optical zoom range as well as a wide-angle lens that is optically stabilized. It is compatible to Memory Stick and SD/SDHC storage cards. Other nifty features are its ability to capture a panoramic images instantly with a panning motion via its Sweep Panorama Mode.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX7

The Sony maintains its slim figure with the DSC-TX7 which is less than one inch deep and costs $400.  With a focal range between 25mm and 100mm, the DCS-TX7 has a 4X optical zoom lens, Intelligent Sweep Panorama Mode, HDR capabilities, and AVCHD video capture. The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX7 also utilizes TransferJet which enables the user to transfer files, videos, and images to other TransferJet-compatible gadgets and devices by simply holding the camera an inch away from them.

Samsung TL240

The Samsung TL240 is still un-priced but promises gesture-based controls in terms of navigation and data file management. A new feature is that this model will only store captured videos and images to the external microSD cards instead of the camera’s internal memory. With capabilities of capturing 720 high definition videos ,and zooming between a focal range of 31mm and 217mm with a 7X optical zoom lens, the Samsung TL240 also has haptic feedback with its 3.5-inch wide touchscreen.

Samsung CL80

Another anticipated touchscreen camera is the Samsung CL80 which is still un-made priced but promises a slew of enviable features that have digital camera enthusiasts at the edge of their seats. The most special feature of the Samsung CL80 is its unibody style design that is possible through a process called hydroforming. With a big 3.7-inch wide screen, this 14 megapixel camera has Bluetooth 2.0 support and WiFi, making uploading pictures and videos to YouTube, Picasa, and Facebooks possible directly from the camera itself. The touchscreen enables the user to use gestures like camera tilting to toggle the menus, rotating an image through a mere circular swipe, or drawing an ‘x’ to delete an image. The Samsung has high definition video capture with 720p which enables shots at 30 frames per second. It also has dual digital/optical image stabilization and a lens with a 7X optical zoom.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FP3

The Lumix DMC-FP3 by Panasonic, which is yet un-priced, is anticipated to attract many buyers with its 30 frame per second capture rate, 720p high definition video recording, and 4X lens with optical zoom with a range of 35mm – 140mm. This 15 megapixel camera has new feature called the Intelligent Auto Mode that will assist the user in enhancing image quality. With its 3-inch wide touchscreen, one can control the camera’s navigational functions for playback and image focus.