Best for overall picture quality: Nikon D5000, £500
Compact digital cameras easily capture moving footage, but single-lens reflex cameras (SLRs, which comprise a large body and interchangeable lenses) are less adept at doing so. While all these SLRs can shoot high-definition video, they are compromised — for instance, the D5000’s 720p video is limited to five minutes to stop the 12.3Mp sensor overheating (the biggest single problem in adapting SLRs to shoot video) and is saved in the inferior Motion-Jpeg format (see panel). However, the Nikon is the easiest on test to hold, its tilt-and-swivel 2.7in LCD is handy for shooting self-portraits and over crowds and it takes stills of terrific quality.

Verdict: While SLRs can come close to camcorder video quality, it should be seen only as a handy extra feature for a stills camera, and that is where the D5000 shines.

nikon.co.uk

Best for looks: Olympus PEN E-P1, £600
This smart update of a classic compact 1960s Olympus really stands out — despite the appearance, it is in effect an SLR. Packing 21st-century electronics into its slim casing has resulted in some surprising omissions: for instance, it comes with neither an optical viewfinder nor a flash (matching accessories cost an extra £250). Furthermore, although the excellent lens is capable of delivering sharp images, overall picture quality is affected by noise (see panel). Both 12.3Mp stills and video (up to 720p) are better than from any compact, though, and its pair of built-in stereo microphones are a nice additional touch.

Verdict: Only the most style-obsessed should consider spending a fortune on this.

olympus.co.uk

Best for 1080p video: Panasonic LUMIX dhc-GH1, £1,030
The 12.1Mp GH1 captures 1080p video at an impressive 25 frames per second, making it Full HD. As footage is in the superior H.264 format (see panel), video was the best on test, though at 1080p it was very memory-card-hungry. Stills were unexceptional, however, and there are a number of niggles for a camera with such a large price. As with the Olympus, the body is smaller than that of a traditional SLR and has only a digital viewfinder, which cannot ultimately compare with a true optical view and makes for tricky manual focusing. Also, the grip feels too small to steady the camera and its outsize lens properly.

Verdict: Save £500: forgo Full HD in favour of a better camera.

panasonic.co.uk

Best for SLR beginners: Pentax K-x, £555
As the 12.4Mp K-x was launched only last month, you can expect the price to come down in due course. Of the cameras on test with 720p video, this one gave the best-quality footage, though it was still beaten by the Panasonic and the Canon set to their maximum 1080p. An easy camera to hold, the Pentax gave stills of generally fine quality and has a large number of digital effects activated via easily navigated menus. Unlike the other cameras, it takes off-the-shelf AA batteries rather than a bespoke lithium-ion rechargeable, but unfortunately eats them at a fearsome rate, so be prepared to spend extra on longer-life lithium AA cells or some rechargeable batteries and a mains charger.

Verdict: High-quality video and stills coupled with easy handling.

pentax.co.uk

Best for 1080p on a budget: Canon EOS 500D, £560
Although, at 15.1Mp, the 500D’s sensor produced the highest-resolution images on test, processing power is as important a consideration when it comes to video quality. Fortunately, the Canon excelled in this regard, having the power to use the superior H.264 encoding format to provide the second-best-quality video on test, and recording at up to 1080p (albeit at a reduced rate of 20 frames per second). Slightly less comfortable to hold than the Nikon, it has a 3in LCD screen with a massive 920,000 pixels — ideal for reviewing high-definition footage — and its sharp, vivid stills are excellent.

Verdict: Shoots the best video available from an SLR at this price, although the Nikon is the better all-rounder.

canon.co.uk

JARGON BUSTER

H.264
One of several competing file formats used to compress and save high-definition video, and the format often said to offer the best combination of quality and small file sizes. Its use does, however, demand lots of computing power.

Motion-Jpeg
An alternative to H.264, also used for recording HD video. The compression technique is a little more prone to blockiness — the fleeting, mosaic-like appearance of blocks of pixels — than that of H.264, and creates larger files. It does, however, require less processing power to work with HD video, so is more common in cheaper cameras.

Noise
Like blocking, another digital aberration: random coloured speckles on an image. Noise can form when the sensor is exposed to light for a long time, heating it up and knocking out individual pixels. Noise is a particular affliction of smaller sensors, where each pixel is responsible for a larger part of the final image.