Like its NV3 and NV7 predecessors the NV11 is blessed with a rock solid build and a matt black metal finish complete with pop-up flash that’s almost retro in style.

Nigh identical to the NV7, save for a smaller lens barrel, Samsung has upped image resolution from seven to 10 megapixels for poster-sized prints, and thrown in a better than average 5x optical zoom (though the NV7 boasted 7x) to get you closer to the action.

It’s however kept with the unique ‘Smart Touch’ operation system. Instead of the typical menu button, two rows of piano-like keys around its 2.7in screen reveal the full extent of their functions when you run your finger across.

Though this saves time tabbing through various screens to make the selection you want, the size of the keys and the fact you only have to brush your finger very lightly to slip from one setting to the next makes operation fiddly.

More positively you do get low light capability up to ISO1600, and the latest must have of Face Recognition AF and AE technology, whereby the focus is biased toward a human face in the frame and the camera determines overall exposure based on that face.

Attendant features include 30 frames-per-second quality movie clips with sound that utilise the high compression Mpeg4 format (so you can fit more on a memory card), along with regular Jpeg stills.

Like its competitors the NV11 features a form of image stabilisation – here called Advanced Shake Reduction (ASR) – to prevent any camera shake blurring images.

What this effectively does is increase the shutter speed while boosting the ISO setting to compensate – the latter increasing image noise – rather than avoiding such problems with a mechanical or optical counterbalance. Look to the NV7 OPS for that.

As with most consumer snappers, image noise (think fuzzy TV signal) starts to intrude from ISO400, becoming more visibly pronounced at ISO800, while at maximum ISO1600 output starts to resemble a poor photocopy.

Still, images were otherwise evenly exposed under contrast-y conditions that would confuse most compacts – the NV11 sensibly erring on the side of underexpose occasionally so as to preserve highlight detail.

In the end, what the NV11 appears to be mainly doing is filling a gap in Samsung’s range. It’s a serious looking 10-megapixel camera that is really just a point-and-shoot in fancy wrapping, but without the Optical Picture Stabilisation offered by the lower resolution NV7 so as not to kill off that identically-priced camera’s chances.

Still, never mind what it hasn’t got. What the NV11 has in its favour is a winning double whammy that will floor most consumers; a high-resolution plus killer looks.

Vista compatible: Yes