SAN ANTONIO – Selfies, food pics, pet pics -- we use smartphone cameras all the time.
But the cameras do have limitations.
As good as the camera technology has become in smartphones, Consumer Reports says there are still some things a good advanced point-and-shoot camera can do better.
"While smartphone cameras, they produce nice-looking photos on your phone. If you ever want to print them out, or crop, or edit, that's when you start seeing their quality kind of degrade," Consumer Reports tech editor Tercius Bufete said. "So, advanced point-and-shoots and DSLRs, these kinds of cameras can create images that, well, you can have for a long time and you know they'll stand the test of time in terms of quality."
Advanced point-and-shoot cameras also perform better in low light and zooming.
So what if you're looking for something that will capture those great photos of your vacation or your kid's first plunge into the pool?
"Make it a point to go to a store, take it in your hands, take a couple of shots and kind of play with the settings. Because that's when you know if something is truly right for you," Bufete said.
If sharing pics on social media is what you're looking for, many cameras can now easily connect wirelessly to your smartphone, so you can transfer your photos for sharing.
Buying a good advanced point-and-shoot should be seen as an investment.
CR's top-rated point-and-shoot cameras range from $645 for the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100 to $1,200 for the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 II.
The Canon Powershot G1 X Mark II for $650 and the Canon Powershot G7 X Mark II for $680 earned the Consumer Reports' "best buy" designation.