Compact camera noise

[rich_dominic]

Why do manufacturers even bother putting higher ISO settings in compacts? THey just end up spackled with horrible noise in the dark. I got a Fuji F40 for exactly that reason.

[droopy1592]

Yeah the noise "forced" me to buy an SLR. I couldn't take the inside shots full of noise anymore.

[David Metsky]

Why do manufacturers even bother putting higher ISO settings in compacts?
Because for some uses these images are still worthwhile. If the choice is a noisy picture or no picture, I'll take the noise. Most of my shots are in full sunlight, but it's still nice to have the ability to capture a small shot at ISO 800. It all depends on your expectations and needs.

[r3g]

Plus it looks better on paper. Say someone who doesnt know much about cameras is looking at specs and they see that Camera1 can do ISO1600 while Camera1 can only do 800. They automatically think that Camera1 is better because of the higher numbers.