Right now, I'd say you've got two contenders for the top spot: the Olympus C-2000 Zoom and the Nikon CoolPix 950. Both list for $999 and are very nice cameras.

Like the CoolPix 950, the 2.1-megapixel C-2000 Zoom is a consumer camera that wades into professional territory. It offers excellent image quality and a plethora of manual controls that are sure to satisfy more serious shutterbugs. Whether this is the right camera for you will largely depend on your budget. But I will offer this advice: If you're looking in the $799 range, you should step up to the C-2000 Zoom. As of this moment, this camera is superior to anything in that price range -- your $200 will be well spent.

Features:

• 2.1-megapixel CCD, 1600 x 1200 resolution
  
• 3x optical zoom
  
• f2.0-2.8 lens (35-105mm equivalent)
  
• digital zoom (up to 2.5x)
  
• control lighting manually or automatically with built-in, intelligent 4-mode flash
  
• manual control of focus, aperture, shutter speed, ISO, and white balance
  
• programmable exposure control w/ digital ESP or spot metering
  
• sequence mode (shoot photos automatically in half-second intervals at any resolution)
  
• 8MB SmartMedia card included (stores seven images at highest resolution with minimal compression)
  
• uncompressed (TIFF) recording mode provides 100% native images
  
• remote control
  
• print images up to 10 x 14 on an inkjet printer
  
• optical viewfinder
  
• 1.8-inch LCD monitor
  
• lens cap
  
• accepts optional lenses
  
• 4.2 x 2.9 x 2.6 inches (WHD)
  
• 10.8 oz (without batteries)

• FlashPath floppy disk adapter
  
• AC adapter
  
• lenses (telephoto, wide angle)

There really isn't much missing here. The camera features a very high quality lens, which certainly has an impact on image quality. And as I said, you get plenty of manual options, though you can also go totally automatic.

The camera earns extra points for being able to accept optional lenses and for its spot-metering capabilities and sequence-shooting mode. This is also the only camera that ships with a remote control, which allows you to operate the camera's basic features (shutter, zoom) remotely. That means you can get behind the camera for group shots instead of having to set the self-timer (also included) and dash into the picture. And you can run a slide show remotely by hooking up the camera to a computer monitor or TV.

One glaring omission is a protective case (the CoolPix 950 ships with a nice one). I think all cameras costing more than $500 should ship with a case. That a $999 model doesn't is almost unconscionable.

Note: The camera currently ships with four NiMH batteries and a charger. However this is a promotional offer and is only available for a limited time (Olympus has not specified how long this promotion will last).

Features Rating: 92

Connectivity: You get an 8MB SmartMedia card but no FloppyDisk adapter ($69), which lets you slip your memory card into the floppy disk drive in your PC or Mac to easily transfer photos from camera to computer. Otherwise, you have to hook up the camera the standard way -- via serial port.

Olympus is going to offer a USB SmartMedia reader (it's supposed to ship shortly -- if it hasn't already), which would also simplify the transfer process. But the company doesn't include one with this camera, although it should (hint, hint).

Like most digital cameras, the C-2000 Zoom has a video out jack. I'm giving it extra points for having a flash synchronization socket, which allows you to attach an external flash (a professional feature), and the optional lens capability.

Connectivity Rating: 84

Look & Feel: Most of Olympus' digital cameras have a point-and-shoot design. Not counting the funky-looking 600 series, this is the company's first camera to really sport an SLR (single-lens reflex) design -- and it's really compact. (It actually looks a bit like Olympus's early 1980s compact 35mm models.)

For a small camera, the C-2000 Zoom has just enough heft to it to make you feel as if you're holding a substantial, expensive camera. This can perhaps be attributed to its aluminum outer casing. It is also well balanced.

Perhaps what's most impressive from a look & feel standpoint about the C-2000 Zoom is the relative scarcity of buttons. There are only four on the back, one of which is a navigational jog/shuttle. The Zoom button is placed within easy reach of your right index finger, and the sharp, smooth-motion LCD is situated on the left side of the camera's rear. The LCD placement leaves plenty of room for your thumb to grip the back of the camera without slipping over the LCD and leaving smudge marks (I can't tell you how many cameras have the thumb "smudge" problem).

Overall, my feeling was that the C-2000 Zoom's controls and menus were easier to figure out and navigate than the CoolPix 950's. Olympus cameras have always been easy to use, and the company has done a good job of making this camera fairly simple to operate -- despite its having more advanced features than Olympus' other cameras.

If you're choosing between the C-2000 Zoom and the CoolPix 950, your biggest consideration should be how much you value the CoolPix's swivel lens design (which clearly has its advantages). For me, it's a toss-up.

Look & Feel Rating: 93

Performance: As one might expect from a 2.1 megapixel camera, image quality is excellent. Does that mean there's room for improvement? Sure, but the C-2000 Zoom and the CoolPix 950 both offer image quality that's a notch above the competition. The C-2000 Zoom's color was true to life, and the camera was able to pick up details in shadows and difficult-to-photograph textures, such as a chain-link fence.

Olympus says you'll get sharp prints at up to 10 x 14. I didn't go that high, but the 8x10s I printed out on an Epson Stylus 750 Photo printer turned out pretty swell. Although these cameras still can't turn out the same quality print as a 35mm camera, they are getting closer.

I was more impressed with the sharpness of the snapshot-sized photos I printed out on a special Olympus photo printer (the P-330). The prints truly resembled the output from 35mm cameras.

If I had to make a call on which camera produced better quality images, the C-2000 Zoom or the CoolPix 950, I'd give the edge to the C-2000 (by a hair). The Olympus's colors simply seemed a tad more vibrant.

As far as speed goes, this is a quick camera considering the size of the image files it has to process on the fly. I was also able to quickly call up shots on the LCD for review, and deleting any unwanted shots could be accomplished with the click of two buttons. Again, these cameras simply aren't as fast as 35mm cameras. But the delays between shots are getting shorter.

Performance Rating: 92

Value: The top of the line of anything isn't going to be cheap, particularly when it comes to digital cameras, which are inherently expensive. That said, although the Olympus C-2000 Zoom isn't a bargain, it does deliver a lot of camera for the money. Digital cameras with this kind of image quality and these features used to cost twice and even three times as much two years ago. Of course, you'll probably get the same or better camera for $200 less six months from now [see important note below]. But if you've got to have the best now, the C-2000 Zoom is a reasonable deal.

Value Rating: 84

Overall Rating: 89