Yet the efficiency cornucopia is the manual model: You have to turn the crank.

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Ditmire from Fox-Pitt says the lesson from Tuesday may be that the manual part of the hybrid model at NYSE will disappear more quickly than many already expect.

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Despite the camera's extraordinarily compact dimensions, the new Cyber-shot RX1 model offers a full range of manual control modes on par with typical high-end full-frame DSLR cameras.

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With an expected arrival date in 2014 and six new Datsun vehicles planned, the new model will be extremely basic (think manual transmission and few, if any, airbags) and the consensus even among Nissan employees is that the release will be difficult to pull off.

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You'll find the requisite shoulder strap in the box, this time with a nifty connector that simply slides onto the camera and locks into place with a thin coin or key, along with a USB cable, AC adapter and, in the case of our test model, a Japanese-language user manual.

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The 201-horsepower, 2.4 liter model is more responsive, but it only comes with a six-speed manual transmission, a deal-killer for most buyers.

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The most efficient Cruze model, the Eco, uses a 138-horsepower, turbocharged, four-cylinder engine and a manual, six-speed transmission to achieve an EPA rating of 28 mpg city, 42 highway.

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