There are only 4 or 5 contenders for that are serious camera phones. The Sony Ericsson K850i, LG Viewty, Nokia N95 8GB and Samsung G800.

The K850i recently came top for in a test of cameraphones for image quality and SonyEricsson's or usually excellent all round phones for usability and quality.

The Samsung G800 is the first with optical zoom but it's massive!

The Nokia N95 8GB is well worth considering as it does all manner of great things - Sat Nav, good MP3 player and you can download apps. The lenses are Carl Zeiss, the same as Sony's proper digitla cameras. Again it's not very pocket friendly due to it's size and the N95 original product has been around for a while.

The LG Viewty is, in my view, the best looker. It talks the talk with Schneider lenses, image stabiliser software and can capture video at 120fps, meaning you can playback your happy slapping in slow motion. I've no idea how good the UI other reading that the touchscreen is easy to use. My friend just bought one and loves it.

In the end it depends on what matters most to you:

- If you want a reasonably sized phone that also has a great camera then the K850i may be the best choice.

- If you want to impress your mates the Viewty would be perfect.

- If you want a big bulge in your trousers get the G800 or N95 8GB!

It's a general misconception that higher resolution (Megapixels) provides a better quality image. To a certain point this is true, but one you get into 4+ MP, it only makes a difference if you're going to be blowing-up your pictures.

If you want to take good pictures on your phone, then you need a phone with a good camera lens - you could have a 7MP camera on your phone, but with a rubbish lens, your photos will also be rubbish. Alternatively, just selotape a decent camera to the back of your phone.

not just for blowing up prints later, but for 'digitally zooming' in later and cropping pictures.

Saying that, if you're really bothered about photography and picture manipulation, buy a camera...

I've been using a SE K850i for about three months now and even though it doesn't compare to a decent digital camera the results are not half bad, especially in good natural light, while the xenon flash does at least mean you can take reasonable pictures at night.