With the first wave of camera announcements for the year over and more to come as we approach PMA 2009 in March, here are some digital camera trends we’re gonna see this year:

• 12 megapixels is the new “10 megapixels” and 18 megapixels will be the new “15 megapixels”. Remember all those 10 megapixel ultra-compact cameras we saw last year? Well, that’s out of fashion now and this year we’ll be seeing new 12 megapixel ultra-compact cameras… and well, I hope camera manufacturers have taken steps to keep noise levels around the same, or less (wishful thinking), as last year’s 10 MP models.
• Beauty modes – What’s the latest “gimmick feature” this year? Forget Face Detection, just about all cameras have that now… and no, Smile Detection was sooo 2008. In 2009, we have “Beauty modes” popping up on camera makers’ latest models which remove blemishes, pimples, wrinkles and the like. We’ll see how well “Beauty mode” works in real life on various cameras once I get my hands on the latest stuff.
• Intelligent auto modes – Ever picked up a camera and felt lazy to adjust shutter speed, ISO or even pick a scene mode? Well apparently “Intelligent Auto” or “Smart Auto” or whatever camera makers call them, will automatically detect the scene you’re framing and pick a mode for you. Panasonic decided to start early by having this mode on their cameras last year (and so far, Intelligent Auto on their cameras seem to work fine) before everyone else started doing the same this year.
• Easy/Simple modes can also save your life and/or your picture when your camera is in the hands of someone who doesn’t know how to use even the simplest of point-and-snap cameras; who may accidentally bump the controls of your camera, potentially ruining your settings for the current/next shot. Easy/Simple modes are so basic that the only thing a person can do is change the flash setting… and even then it reverts back to “Auto Flash” every time you power off the camera.
• HD movie mode will be everywhere. I’m sure more and more cameras this year will have a HD movie mode of some sort, mostly 720p (1280 x 720) at 24 or 30 FPS I anticipate, so we can all once again fill up our hard disks screens with video.

Of course, as we move through the year, there may be several “unexpected things”, aka revolutionary features, (last year it was the live view-only Panasonic G1) which I look forward to seeing as these things usually make the digital camera arena more interesting.

Panasonic announced six new compact cameras today, many of them sound really interesting/impressive (especially the Lumix ZS3/TZ7) and I look forward to getting my hands on them for review. Also, Panasonic seems to be entering the “camera name-game”, like another certain Japanese camera company by giving all the cameras announced today different names, depending on where in the world you live (oh, fantastic).

Panasonic Lumix ZS1 (aka TZ6) and ZS3 (aka TZ7)
(Compact super-zoom cameras)

• 10 and 12 effective megapixels (though the ZS3/TZ7 has a higher-res CCD, it still snaps at 10 MP resolution)
• 25 – 300 mm (f3.3 – f4.9) 12X optical zoom lens
• Optical image stabilization
• 2.7 inch LCD (ZS1) and 3 inch LCD (ZS3)
• New Venus Engine HD imaging processor
• Intelligent Auto mode and Panorama Assist functionality
• No manual controls
• ZS1: WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
  ZS3: 720p 60 FPS (!!) movie mode with stereo sound (AVCHD codec uses less space); dedicated movie button, windscreen, Intelligent Auto while recording, selectable movie bit rates
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in April for $300 (ZS1) and $400 (ZS3) respectively
• ZS1 will come in your choice of silver or black
  ZS3 will come in your choice of silver, black, blue or red

Panasonic Lumix TS1 (aka FT1)
(Rugged ultra-compact camera)

• 12 effective megapixels
• 28 – 128 mm (f3.3 – f5.9) 4.6X optical zoom lens
• Optical image stabilization
• 2.7 inch LCD
• Rugged design: Waterproof (10 feet), shockproof (5 feet) and dustproof
• New Venus Engine HD imaging processor
• Intelligent Auto mode and Panorama Assist functionality
• No manual controls
• 720p 60 FPS movie mode with mono sound (AVCHD codec uses less space); dedicated movie button, windscreen, Intelligent Auto while recording, selectable movie bit rates, LED illuminator
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in April for $400
• Comes in your choice of silver, green and orange

Panasonic Lumix FX48 (aka FX40)
(Ultra-compact camera)

• 12 effective megapixels
• 25 – 125 mm (f2.8 – f5.9) 5X optical zoom lens
• Optical image stabilization
• 2.5 inch normal LCD
• New Venus Engine 5 imaging processor
• Intelligent Auto mode and Panorama Assist functionality
• No manual controls
• 720p 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in April for $350
• Comes in your choice of silver or black

Panasonic Lumix FX580 (aka FX550)
(Compact touchscreen camera)

• Essentially the FX48 with a different design and 3 inch touchscreen display
• Available in for $400

Panasonic Lumix FS25
(Compact entry-level camera)

• 12 effective megapixels
• 29 – 145 mm (f3.3 – f5.9) 5X optical zoom lens
• Optical image stabilization
• 3 inch LCD
• Ol’ Venus Engine 4 imaging processor
• No manual controls
• WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in April for $350 (FX48) and $400 (FX580)
• Comes in your choice of silver, black or gold

Panasonic announced four compact cameras today – merely updates to last year’s low-end models which probably won’t get any “oohs” and “aahhs” from the crowd but people who want a small, affordable camera might consider looking at these.

Panasonic Lumix FS6 and FS7
(Point-and-snap cameras)

• 8 effective megapixels (FS6)
  10 effective megapixels (FS7)
• 33 – 132 mm (f2.8 – f5.9) 4X optical zoom lens
• Optical image stabilization
• 2.5 inch LCD for FS6, 2.7 inch LCD for FS7
• No manual controls
• Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically) with face detection and Intelligent ISO
• WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in March for $160 (FS7)
• Comes in your choice of silver, black, pink, blue or green

Panasonic Lumix FS15
(Compact camera)

• 12 effective megapixels
• 29 – 145 mm (f3.3 – f5.9) 5X optical zoom lens
• Optical image stabilization
• 2.7 inch LCD
• No manual controls
• Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically) with face detection and Intelligent ISO
• Subject tracking and intelligent exposure
• WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in March for $200
• Comes in your choice of silver, black or blue

Panasonic Lumix LS85
(Budget camera)

• 8 effective megapixels
• 33 – 132 mm (f2.8 – f5.9) 4X optical zoom lens
• Optical image stabilization
• 2.5 inch LCD
• No manual controls
• Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically) with face detection and Intelligent ISO
• WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses 2 AA batteries
• Available in April for $120
• Comes in your choice of silver, black or pink

Canon announced their latest entry-level camera today – The new PowerShot A480 is 25% smaller than the old A470 it replaces and sports some new things other than design (Such as motion detection).

Canon PowerShot A480
(Compact entry-level camera)

• 10 effective megapixels
• 3.3X optical zoom lens
• 2.5 inch LCD
• No manual controls
• Motion and Face detection with a redeye removal tool
• VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses 2 AA batteries
• Availability and price unknown
• Comes in your choice of silver, black, blue or red

Casio made an announcement of several compact cameras with some rather… unique features today. The high speed FC100 is the most interesting of the bunch and it doesn’t have a whole lot of megapixels either (at least compared to the 12 to 15 megapixel compacts we’ve been seeing lately)

Casio Exilim FC100
(Compact camera with high-speed shooting)

• 9 effective megapixels
• 37 – 185 mm (f3.6 – f4.5) 5X optical zoom lens
• Sensor shift image stabilization
• 2.7 inch LCD
• No manual controls
• 30 FPS burst mode at 6 megapixels: Slow motion, high-speed anti shake, high-speed best selection and night scene take advantage of this to take many photos in order to reduce blur/pick the best shot
• 720p HD 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in March for $400

Casio Exilim FS10
(Ultra thin camera with high-speed shooting)

• The Exilim FS10’s feature set is a whole lot like the FC100 except in a different design and form factor. Here are the changes:
• 38 – 114 mm (f3.9 – f5.4) 3X optical zoom lens
• NO image stabilization =(
• 2.5 inch LCD
• Available in March for $350
• Comes in your choice of gray, white, red or blue

Casio Exilim Z270
(Compact point-and-shoot camera)

• 10 effective megapixels
• 28 – 112 mm (f2.6 – f5.9) 4X optical zoom lens
• Sensor shift image stabilization
• 2.7 inch LCD
• No manual controls
• Dynamic Photo feature allows you to superimpose/overlay one photo over another
• Makeup feature reduces skin wrinkles and blemishes
• 720p HD 24 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in March for $230
• Comes in your choice of gray, black, pink or gold

Casio Exilim Z400
(Compact point-and-shoot camera)

• The Exilim Z400 is a whole lot like the Z270 except a few changes:
• 12 effective megapixels
• 28 – 112 mm (f2.6 – f5.8) 4X optical zoom lens
• 3.0 inch LCD
• Available in March for $300
• Comes in your choice of silver, gold, brown or pink

Casio Exilim S5
(Low cost ultra-compact)

• 10 effective megapixels
• 36 – 107 mm (f3.1 – f5.6) 3X optical zoom lens
• 2.7 inch LCD
• No manual controls
• WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in March for $180
• Comes in your choice of silver, black, gold, pink, blue or purple

Casio Exilim S12
(Low cost ultra-compact)

• 12 effective megapixels
• 36 – 108 mm (f2.8 – f5.3) 3X optical zoom lens
• 2.7 inch LCD
• No manual controls
• Dynamic Photo and Makeup features
• 720p HD 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in March for $250
• Comes in your choice of silver, black, green or pink

Sony just announced a very interesting (but rather expensive) compact camera which is equipped with a huge touchscreen LCD and built-in WiFi connectivity. The built-in WiFi (there’s even a web browser in the camera!) allows you to upload photos and videos online to places like YouTube and Photobucket.

Sony Cyber-shot G3
(Large screen camera with WiFi)

• 10 effective megapixels
• 35 – 140 mm (f3.5 – f5.6) 4X optical zoom lens
• Optical image stabilization
• 3.5 inch touchscreen LCD
• No manual controls
• Intelligent scene recognition and dynamic range optimization features
• Built-in WiFi connectivity with a web browser!
• VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes Memory Stick Duo memory cards (4 GB internal memory)
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available now for $500
• Comes in your choice of silver, black, blue or pink

Sony announced just one camera today (hmm will we see more before CES this weekend?) which is an entry-level compact camera.

Sony Cyber-shot W220
(Entry level compact camera)

• 12 effective megapixels
• 30 – 120 mm (f2.8 – f5.8) 4X optical zoom lens
• Optical image stabilization
• 2.7 inch LCD
• No manual controls
• Intelligent scene recognition and dynamic range optimization features
• VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
• Takes Memory Stick Duo memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in March for $190
• Comes in your choice of silver, black, blue or pink

And here’s where the rumor and speculation part comes in (I don’t really do rumors, speculation and such but I couldn’t resist, seeing Sony only announced ONE camera today which is odd)… surely Sony won’t just announce just one lone compact camera and be happy for the rest of spring 2009. Based on their history in announcing cameras over the past years, I suspect we’ll see several higher-end models with bigger screens (3 inches?), larger zoom lenses and of course, megapixel increases; which probably will be announced between this weekend and PMA 2009 in March. Speculation for model names, if anyone’s interested: I’m thinking Cyber-shot W250 for a slightly higher-end model and Cyber-shot W500 for the flagship W-series with lots of megapixels (could be 14.7 megapixels like the others, or Sony could push for even more! Oh no!)