Top Studio Camera: Canon EOS 1Ds
Top Safari/Sport Camera: Canon EOS 1D
Top Enthusiast SLR: Olympus E-1
Top Entry-level SLR: Canon EOS 300D
Top Non-interchangeable lens Camera: Sony Cyber-shot DSC-F828
Top Compact Camera: Canon PowerShot G5
Top Ultracompact Camera: Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T1
Canon EOS-1Ds: Top studio camera
Canon's EOS-1Ds repeats this year. Kodak's entry was too little, too late. With a full-frame (35mm-film-sized) sensor, it provides 1:1 focal length equivalents with 35mm film and exceptional depth-of-field with best-in-class resolution.
Canon EOS-1D: Top safari/sports camera
The EOS-1D continues as the top camera, although the Nikon D2H provides serious competition.
Olympus E-1: Top enthusiast SLR
New for 2003, and signifying th stratification of the non-pro levels, is the "enthusiast" category, properly what we used to call the entry-level. The Olympus E-1 might be saddened to appear here, as Olympus marketed it as a professional camera, but at the $1,700 price point at which it was released it was well placed for enthusiasts who wanted features Canon only made available in its larger hardened cameras.
Canon EOS 300D: Top entry-level SLR
The entry-level category is really the sub-$1000 category this year, with makers trying to attract users to upgraded from point and shoots or dip their toes into their line-up. The new Digital Rebel (EOS 300D) is not just well marketed, it brings a lot of camera. The EF-S lens system also makes optimal use of the smaller imaging sensor found in digital cameras.
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-F828: Top non-interchangeable lens camera
The DSC-F828 is a high-resolution, 8MP, 28-200mm (equivalent) bridge camera. The camera has a fast (f2.0-f2.8) lens, records raw files, and supports standard compact flash cards.
Canon PowerShot G5: Top compact camera
Canon's PowerShot G is back as the top compact camera. The PowerShot G5 comes-in ahead of the Nikon Coolpix 5400 and Pentax Optio 555; both of which lack raw recording, and both of which have slower lenses at their long range.
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T1: Top ultracompact camera
The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T1 is a slim (21mm thick), light (180g), 4x zoom ultra-compact with a 5MP sensor. Sony continues to make very-compact cameras, but insist on using their own memory format.