Upgrade from Canon A40

[Beanboy]

Looking for a replacement. Price is not a concern. Above and beyond what the A40 has, I require the following:

640x480 /30 fps unlimited length movie mode
manual focus
5MP or above
4x zoom or greater
faster power on/autofusing/shutter lag
better low-light focusing. A40 has trouble indoors at night with normal house lighting.

Nice, but not required:
AA batteries
compact flash/SD
image stabilization
equal or smaller in size, won't mind having to step-up to a "bumpy" form-factor (Canon 1S for example)

Nothing on the market seems to meet my needs, which I find surprising after all of these years. Canon still hasn't upgraded their movie quality on the A-series, and it looks like the newest lens (4x) is a downgrade in quality.

Fuji E550, Pentax 750Z, Sony D#$^@#%D V3, KM Z5, Canon 1S is what I've read reviews of and come close, but all have a major failing somewhere along the line. Am I missing anything? I am waiting for an update to the Canon 1S... Anything else on the horizon? Cameras that I've missed? Thanks!

-B

[Geoff Chandler]

All I can say is that I reckon every camera has something you won't be quite so happy about. It's the same for me and, I reckon, just about everyone else.
So - look through all the reveiws - list what you want in order of priority - then see which few come closest and then check them out side by side.
That's my 2 penny worth. (Notice I didn't mention any actual cameras!)

Geoff Chandler

[Rex914]

I think you'll be pretty happy with either the Sony V3 or Canon Powershot G6. Both fit your description quite well. The Sony has the better movie mode while the Canon takes better pictures and has more features. However, the Sony is a little more compact and wins big points on style. Both are great cameras nevertheless.

[Beanboy]

The V3 is close, and so is the 1S. Not like I need it soon, I have a film SLR for the days I really want to take photos. Just would like a digital that I can use as a point and shoot, but also use more often instead of the SLR.

-B

[Break]

Wow! We're like the same person! I have an A40 as well, and those are the requirements I'm setting for a new camera.

The DSC-V3, Canon Powershot G6, and the Nikon Coolpix 8700 (too expensive though) are the top candidates on my list. The DSC-V3 has the extremely annoying bright light aperture selection problem, however. Otherwise it would be perfect. The G6 is hindered by the weak movies.

Both feel great in my hand, and the Sony button layout is pretty although the buttons are hard to press.

If Sony releases a firmware update, I'm pouncing on the V3. If not, the G6 is probably a better choice, provided it gets cheaper.