I think, for me and me alone, the best camera to carry or use is the camera that I enjoy carrying and that I enjoy to use.
For others and equally ( maybe more ) valid, might /would be the camera/s that they have/enjoy/fit for purpose/can afford/is at hand/ gives the best output/personal choice. Maybe they prefer gadgets with a lens. Their money, their choice. And a perfect choice for them.
Leaving the worn out cliche about it is the photog and not the camera, to me the performance of a camera along with an attached lens is the more appropriate combination to consider as to what I carry.
Here then are some issues that determines, for me, the camera system I would/carry...
1. Hapstics should suit me. While some enjoy carrying LF cameras up and down the hill..I prefer something lighter. If a car/4x4 can go..so can I.
2. Minimilist operational controls and/or menu system/s I have been used to. Familiar dials in positions I am accustomed to for over 30 years. I do not need or want to read camera manuals. I do not need or care for video, currently.
3. Rugged enough ( as tested by me over the years ) to withstand the rigors of travel that I encounter.
4. Decent low light capability. Upto iso 1200 is more tha enough for me. Higher iso, at very acceptable picture quality, is always welcome..a convenience and nothing more. I do not shoot black cats in a coal mine.
5. Focus accuracy. Critical for me. I do not shoot multiple images..if so, very rarely. Focus where I want it. Not where the camera decides. Where I decide.
6. Excellent print quality up to A2 size. I don't print larger than this, ever.
7. Service and support, in case of equipment failures.
8. The best camera system I can afford.
9. The equipment in between my ears should function and concentrate on making an image..not on figuring the how/where/why of camera/lens settings. This is even before I raise the camera to take a shot. The camera system should assisst me perform this function intuitively.
Here are some shots taken haphazardly this morning. All are 100% crops. Monochrome jpegs. Except for one no sharpening has been applied. Simple contrast applied ( in some cases ) via the Levels slider.
Try auto focusing with this sort of background.
Sharp pictures, as the man said, are just sharp pictures. But here is one. 100%, jpeg, direct from the camera..
Photos taken with a now discontinued and 9 year old camera. 10MP.
This system more than meets all my requirements.