point and shoot - Compact vs Mirrorless - why pick one over another?

What would be a reason for one to pick the compact (whatever it'd be P&S or something more advanced) over mirrorless compact system camera ?

Right now market is quite confusing — we have huge market of tiny-sensor compacts, we have mirrorless that use sensors in a size of these from P&S cameras (Nikon 1 being notable example), we have compacts with sensors bigger than most popular mirrorless system (Canon G1X vs m4/3), we have lot of APS-C sensor mirrorless which are matched by some of the compacts (Fuji X100 being most notable example, but even Leica has its X2), and to make it even more confusing — Sony released RX1 with full frame sensor, beating crap out of every mirrorless on a market.

So what are your arguments to pick compact over a mirrorless?

Why are they better, what's the reason behind logic of companies like Fujifilm which at the same time offers P&S and X-mount mirrorless using same sensor size?

Answer

Absolutely, there are good reasons to choose a compact camera, just like there are good reasons to choose a mirrorless. The key when looking at anything is deciding which reasons are important to you.

• Size: A compact camera is, well, compact. A mirrorless camera's body may be compact but once you add a lens, it will often be double the thickness of a compact. Plus, the lens does not retract into the body as with most compact cameras.


• Simplicity: A compact camera is an all-in-one package. Sure this takes away versatility but you do not have to worry about sensor dust or spend time changing lenses. This is the reason I believe we are seeing and will be seeing much more larger-sensor compacts.


• Optimization: When a camera and lens are designed together they can be optimized far more, either to give higher-quality (which a large-sensor of course) or better optical performance such as a brighter aperture.


• Price: There is saving in providing a camera and lens together, compared to something equivalent, obviously.

Personally I agree that this makes the market more difficult because there are now more compromises to deal with then ever. It is much harder to find one camera which is better in most respects than another. In the end, every type of camera is surpassed in some key area by another. It can be surprising and frustrating to realize this.