It’s ironic that the first digital SLR with video capabilities comes from a company that has never made a camcorder. But that didn’t stop Nikon from breaking new ground with the 12-megapixel D90, the long-anticipated successor to the popular D80 prosumer SLR.

Remember that beautiful sunset photo from Jamaica? Or was it the Bahamas? No worries—the first high-end camera with a built-in GPS receiver keeps track for you.

There is no single measure of autofocus ability, so we did two main tests to judge the cameras chops. The first was to see how well each camera performed in difficult situations: low light and subjects with very little detail. In the second, we picked subjects that are easy to get in focus and simply measured how fast each camera could do it.

This was our setup:

Lenses

The smaller your camera, the more susceptible it is to even the slightest tremble, which can leave your photos looking like Impressionist paintings. Fortunately, optical image stabilization has trickled down from pro cams to the shake-prone pocket models. The cameras use motion sensors to detect any quiver and move a piece of the lens to compensate for it. I tested three in the most blur-inducing scenarios: in low light without a flash-the slow shutter speed gives you more time to twitch-and at full zoom, which magnifies shake.