Recommendations wanted for compact long zoom camera with full exposure control

In My Humble Opinion
1

I have a Canon dSLR that I like just fine, except that it is too large and bulky to always have with me. I have a little Nikon point-and-shoot that goes everywhere (and an Android phone) but which are both frustratingly impossible to control, exposure-wise.

Now I’m starting to see a class of cameras which look like a good compromise: compact and pocketable, long zoom (5:1 and up, sometimes way up), with full exposure control modes (P, Av, Tv, M). Some even have WiFi connectivity, which would be quite the plus.

My so-far random walk through the stores and websites has turned up the Canon Powershot G16, the Samsung WB 800F, the Sony Cybershot DSC-HX/50V, and many similar ones until my head started to spin.

Anyone have a favorite camera in this class? One with full control, great image quality, and good reliability? Money is no object, at least up to $500 or so.

Thanks!

2

Anticipating a trip where I didn’t want to carry my Canon dSLR I bought a Sony NEX-3. It doesn’t have the long zoom you want, but other than that it’s a fine camera with interchangeable lenses. Newer models may have additional features.

3

I took the following photo of the moon with an Olympus SP-810UZ at about 30x zoom without a tripod - it’s a handheld shot. I bought the camera off eBay for about $150.

http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a504/kg2095/Moon2_zps88c56cfa.png

Review of Olympus SP-810UZ

4

Thanks for the input! Those are some fine looking devices.

So far, my leading contenders are the Canon Powershot S 120 and the Nikon Coolpix P330. Anyone have any experience with either of those? Or something better?