Is the SLR mechanism still really useful? (Score 1)

The household name "SLR" is usually associated with more expensive cameras with manual adjustment possibilities and exchangable optics and so on. But the SLR mechanism itself is just the mirror arrangement which makes it possible to use the same lens for the viewfinder and the film. (Thus the name Single Lens Reflex) When the shutter is released the mirror moves away for a brief amount of time while the film is exposed. See howstuffworks for an illustration.

But is this mechanism really needed on a digital camera with a good LCD viewfinder? Doesn't it just drive up the cost and complexity of the camera? Also an LCD viewfinder has at least one great advantage over the optical one, since it shows you how the final image would be exposed. I can't really see any merit of an optical solution if the LCD resolution and quality gets good enough.

So, in short I think the SLR in "SLR" is overhyped. Give me a digital camera with good manual adjustment possibilites and exchangable optics, and I would be happy!