Casio Tryx puts a clever twist on the compact point-and-shoot

Casio has re-imagined the traditional point-and-shoot with the new Tryx, a camera with a "variable frame" design for flexible shooting options. It will shoot 12.1 megapixel stills and 1080p HD video.

Casio brings this unconventional design to consumers in hopes of opening up more still and video possibilities to them. The 3.0-inch touch screen can flip and swivel free of its frame 270 degrees, and the frame itself rotates 360. This, in theory, makes for easier video recording and image capture from awkward angles. The camera can even act as its own tripod.

Behind the unusual design is a familiar piece of technology - a 12.1 megapixel backside illuminated CMOS sensor. That chip is backed up by dual processors and an Exilim Engine HS, making possible slow motion video capture at up to 240 fps and 360-degree "slide panoramas."

The 460k-dot resolution touch screen provides features like a touch shutter and touch focusing. The lens offers a very wide 21mm equivalent angle of view. It's a fixed focal length optic with an f/2.8 aperture. Digital zoom is available with Casio's high speed SR zoom technology, capturing several images and layering them together in an effort to create one clear image. The Tryx will accept SD, SDHC and SDXC memory cards.

The Tryx also incorporates an in-camera HDR processing mode. Called HDR-ART by Casio, this mode will combine several images captured with varying exposures to create one image with adjusted contrast and saturation for an HDR look. The amount of HDR processing can be adjusted by the user.

We recently reviewed the Casio Exilim S200, and while it was certainly thin and the price was right, it failed to impress in image quality. Will a new CMOS match the new camera design with better quality images? We'll be getting some face time with the Tryx on the show floor at CES this week.

Pricing and availability
The Casio Tryx fetches an MSRP of $249.99. It will be available in April 2011.