Sony has been doing better since they aquired Konica Minolta but for a point and shoot Canons are the best overall.
Don't get too caught up in how many pixels it has or what ISO it can go up to. Are the shots good at that high of an ISO? ISO 6400 at three MPs is going to look terrible- unless you want a really grainy look. I keep my ISO as low as possible.
Picking a digital camera can be VERY confusing. My consideration has been picture quality. To help get started (I know you have put a lot of time into it already which is probably why you are getting confused) I might suggest starting with Steve's Digicams
http://www.steves-digicams.com/best_cameras.html . He has some good lists of recommended cameras and from there you can go and compare reviews. Check out some of Steve's reviews and also try here
http://www.dpreview.com/ . You can also google search the specific cameras.
Let me know if there is more I can try to help you on. I do not know about specific cameras but I can try to compare some if you like or try to answer general questions you may have. I hope some of this helps!
I shoot Nikon on my DSLR and have a Fujifilm six MP camera (F31fd- now discontinued) I use for my infrared shots. I have won some awards with both. I also used to have a Nikon point and shoot and a Konica Minolta A200. Even with all these, I would say definately take a look at Canon.
Features I would look for- bigger LCD (easier to view but they use more battery power). Through the lens viewing (a window to look through and see what you are pointing at- the LCDs can be hard to see in bright light).