I had a look at 2 compacts today, no chance to go outside with them though.

I looked at the canon G11 and the canon SX210

Both are probably very good cameras, i liked the viewfinder on the G11 and the general feel of the camera, had something i could actually hold, yes it has an almost slr style grip, sure the camera is a bit larger but feeling confident holding it and being able to keep it very steady are definitely good things. I didnt think it was too big really, never had a camera in my pocket that wasnt on a phone anyway, the 35mm compacts were fairly chunky as well back in the day. The SX210, well its a different animal, tiny, felt like you could easily drop it, and tbh it felt very fragile compared to the G11, more x zoom and a higher MP but the controls were all wrong and the zoom control is fiddly compared to the G11s layout.

Both cameras shoot video but the G11 is only standard def, thats not a big deal for me as im not looking to do any video work, could be a deal breaker for some though im sure.

The cost is another factor, the SX210 is only £249 in store so probably a fair bit cheaper on the net, so it is substantially cheaper.

Wont be able to buy anything until the end of the month but its looking like itll be the G11 so far, after all its the closest thing i can get to having the dslr on me without actually taking it.

It shouldnt be so expensive that you fear breaking or losing it

Rules out pretty much all the worth having compacts then really, doesnt take much to bash the screen in a bag and break it, they are all rather exposed on the back, at least with the g11 you can flip it round and its protected.

Bridge cameras are like twice as fat as the lens doesnt retract fully into the body.