i'm not a canon kinda guy either but they do make a few good compacts!
from what i hear the Nikon ones are a bit pony & should be avoided :shrug:
personally i use a Panasonic Lumix LX3 which gives great results but if you're used to the zoom range of a G9 you might find it a bit limiting :shrug:
there are other panasonics with longer zooms but they can't quite match the IQ of the LX3
apparently the Sigma DP1 & 2 are very good but you'd have to look into it & check out some reviews
you could spend more money & go for OLympus PEN or Panasonc GF1 or similar?
you might even end up with a canon S90 as everyone raves about these & from what i've seen they pump out some nice stuff.
your best bet would be to get onto a couple of the review sites & start comparing specs & reading reviews then when you have a particular mosel in mind search the forums using the model number as your search topic that way youll be able to read real accounts of ownership by people who actually bought them
maybe even use the model number to search flickr just to see the kind of thing you can do with them
basically you gotta do some searching & get reading :rules:
that way YOU can make an informed decision based on your own findings
usually asking a "which camera" question on a forum will just result in people posting a " buy a
box brownie. because thats what i've got" type answer :bonk:
i read long & hard before i chose my LX3 & as a result i'm happy with it so obviously you should buy one of those :nuts:
