he enjoys the flexibility of having all of his gear available to him to use. as a generalist, I couldn't agree more. one moment I am shooting a landscape with GND filters on a tripod, the next moment I may want to be shooting a bird with a telephoto and extender. to do that, you have to walk softly and carry a big bag.
Yup. The serious part of my point is that I've got a couple smaller cameras, among them a S100 and a Fuji X100, that I got for just the reason of having a small side camera. The S100 gets some shots because during the working day it really is the only camera I can have with me. But, the poor quality of the shots compared to the DSLR is a bugger. The Fuji gets better shots, but the features - focus, speed, and shooting accuracy sucks. Again I find myself wanting the DSLR.
Will we ever have a camera that is as good as a DSLR in a tiny package? Possible, but I doubt it for a couple of reasons. One is the physics, a small camera simply won't be able to achieve the capabilities (speed, features, noise, IQ etc) of a DSLR. As small cameras advance so do the DSLR's. That will leave me wanting to use the DSLR.
Two, manufacturers want to place products such that there is a high end market and a middle end. Will somebody come out with a P&S body that has the capabilities of a Canon DSLR, with its full range of lenses, flashes, filters, etc etc? Possible but not probable.
Finally - more serious part here - I like my equipment. I like messing with it, taking care of it, and most of all using it. I would be lonely if I just had a little itty-bitty Leica and one lens, I'd feel like a puny girly man.