These cameras may be a bit too big to fit in your pocket but most are compact enough to be considered appealing alternatives to heavier, bulkier, interchangeable lens camera systems. 

Raw capture, full manual controls, low-light performance, fast glass; these are hallmarks of the enthusiast compact camera category. And while image quality from most of these models may not be quite as good as their mirrorless and DSLR counterparts, a few come very close. Quite different in shape and design, we've rounded up the 9 most interesting models currently available. Here are the cameras we think are worth a look:

On the following pages, you'll find what we liked and didn't like about each camera, links to our test scenes for image quality comparisons, and real-world galleries to give you a sense of how each performs outside the lab.

If you're willing to sacrifice a little in the way of direct control, you might also want to read our roundup of High-end pocketable compacts.

Aperture Comparison | Specifications Compared