Pentax Optio T20: Slim Camera With a Wide View

Pentax is going for the slim record with its newly announced Optio T20 compact digital camera. What's most intriguing, besides being only ¾ of an inch thick, is that it has a 3-inch LCD preview, one of the widest on the market. Because the LCD is a touch display, you can select functions and settings with touch or stylus, instead of arguably less intuitive manual controls.

The fun features? A stylus and a drawing tool so you can scribble up your images by writing on them and a stamp function that stores your photos as stamps to add to other images. It shoots respectable video at 30 frames per second and has simple video editing software, too.

The Optio T20 has 7 megapixels, but only a 3x zoom, one of the limitations of a camera this small. You also want to test drive it to see how you feel about a touch screen interface and a stylus, which can be irritating to use when you're out and about. But considering the size and your personal preferences, it's a tradeoff worth considering. The camera will be available in October with a suggested price of $349.95.