Best compact
A real camera that fits in a hip-belt pocket
Sony ZV-1 II
1-inch sensor, 18-50 mm equivalent, ~290 g
A one-inch sensor is a genuine step past a phone in low light, and the wide end handles a valley that a phone flattens — battery life is poor, and in the cold it is worse than poor.
Meaningfully better than a phone at dawn and dusk
Small enough to be carried, which is the whole point
Wide enough for lodge interiors and tall peaks
Battery life is genuinely bad — take three spares
No weather sealing
Fixed lens, no reach for wildlife
Not for you if: Wildlife in Chitwan or Bardia. You want reach there, not width.
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