These five small SUVs have modest proportions, sharp driving manners, and fuel-sipping engines that make them a savvy choice for city dwellers.

This photo provided by Buick shows the 2025 Envista. The Envista is Buick’s least expensive SUV but it doesn’t lack style or comfort. (Courtesy of General Motors via AP)

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The Andor Shamrock SR-750 is based on Czerny-Turner optical design. The Shamrock is available as a pre-aligned detector/spectrometer option allowing for seamless integration of software,…

If you’re routinely in a hurry, Edmunds suggests sidestepping the 152-horsepower base four-cylinder engine and upgrading to the punchier 182-horsepower version. Subaru puts it in every 2025 Crosstrek except the base trim level. The interior is simple but durable, the controls are logically placed and within easy reach. At 19.9 cubic feet in capacity, the cargo area is on the smaller side among compact SUVs. Yet its low load floor and wide-opening hatch make it easy to get bulky items aboard.

The Mercedes-Benz GLB justifies its premium price with cutting-edge technology, a smooth ride and strong performance. The GLB’s upright shape is also practical. This pint-sized Mercedes has 22 cubic feet of cargo volume and an adult-friendly second row. There’s even an optional third row, but it’s suitable only for kids.

The dispersion and efficiency of a grating are dependant on the distance between adjacent grooves and the groove angle. Gratings are generally better than prisms - they are more efficient, they provide a linear dispersion of wavelengths and do not suffer from the absorption effects that prisms have which limits their useful wavelength range.

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The Andor Shamrock SR-500i imaging spectrometer is based on Czerny-Turner optical design. The optimized optical design provides exceptional performance for multi-track Spectroscopy.…

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The Volkswagen Taos is a compact SUV that Edmunds has found to feel a cut above many similarly sized rivals. The Taos is easy to maneuver, and its upright shape and large windows mean outward visibility is excellent. This matters a lot in the cut and thrust of city driving. Passenger and cargo space ranks among the best in its class, and the Taos’ engine is powerful enough for quick getaways at stoplights.

This photo provided by Kia shows the 2025 Soul. The Soul’s small size makes it easy to park and drive in the city. (Courtesy of Kia America via AP)

SUVs are popular in part due to their elevated ride height, commanding view of the road, and roomy interiors. Yet many midsize and large SUVs feel cumbersome in city driving. Smaller and more agile vehicles are a great alternative to help make city driving less of a chore. Edmunds’ experts have brought together five city-friendly SUVs that are right at home navigating busy traffic and squeezing into curbside parking spots. All pricing below includes the destination charge.

Every 2025 Taos comes with a user-friendly 8-inch touchscreen and wireless device charging. And since navigating city traffic can be tricky, it’s nice knowing that driver assist features such as rear cross-traffic warning, blind-spot warning and automatic emergency braking are all standard.

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This story was provided to The Associated Press by the automotive website Edmunds. Nick Kurczewski is a contributor at Edmunds.

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Andor’s new Mechelle ME5000 Echelle spectrograph has been designed to provide simultaneous recording of a wide wavelength range (200-975 nm) in one acquisition. It has no moving…

This photo provided by Volkswagen shows the 2025 Taos. The Taos packs plenty of modern tech and safety features into a tidy package. (Courtesy of Volkswagen of America via AP)

It takes something a little extra to stand out in a city environment. This is why the Buick Envista earns a spot on this list. It has an eye-catching design that cuts a stylish path through traffic. Few vehicles are able to do this at such a budget-friendly price.

Inside and out, the Envista looks and feels like a more expensive vehicle than it really is. The touchscreen interface is attractive and easy to use, while available features like heated front seats and a heated steering wheel, a power liftgate, and rain-sensing wipers impart an upmarket appeal to Buick’s least expensive SUV. One trade-off is cargo space, the Envista’s swoopy shape means trunk volume is less than what many competitors provide.

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Expected spectral resolution and simultaneous bandpass are also influenced by how light is coupled into the spectrograph, the central wavelength of interest and associated grating “working angle”, as well as the detector pixel array format at the output plane. Some of these trade-offs can be assessed with the Andor resolution calculator for Kymera and Shamrock Czerny-Turner spectrographs.

where: n is the order of diffraction, λ is the diffracted wavelength d is the grating constant (the distance between successive grooves) θi is the angle of incidence measured from the normal and θd is the angle of diffraction measured from the normal. The diagram above shows the orders of the diffracted wavelength. As well as positive orders, light can also be diffracted in the opposite direction (i.e. n = -1, -2 etc.) Higher orders may also appear, but these decrease in intensity. Usually the first order lines (n=1 or n=-1) are the most intense.

Edmunds singles out the Soul’s agile handling and fuel-sipping engine as reasons to buy one. Both should come in handy for urban driving. And considering city living isn’t inexpensive, it helps knowing the Soul is the least pricey of the five vehicles listed here. One downside to know about the Soul: You can’t get it with all-wheel drive.

This photo provided by Subaru shows the 2025 Crosstrek. The Crosstrek’s outdoorsy design also works well for driving in the urban jungle. (Courtesy of Subaru of North America via AP).

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The Subaru Crosstrek has standard all-wheel drive and the rugged look of a vehicle bred for life in the wilderness. Thankfully, the Crosstrek is equally capable in an urban jungle. Subaru gives the Crosstrek an elevated ride height to help with off-roading, but that extra clearance also comes in handy when dealing with big speed bumps or steep parking garage entrances.

These influence the choice of grating line density, blaze angle/wavelength, master (different masters for a given line density and blaze angle yield different efficiency and polarisation characteristics) and grating size.

During testing, Edmunds noted the standard 221-turbocharged four-cylinder has enough grunt to get the GLB from zero to 60 mph in 6.5 seconds. Want to further shorten your commuting times? A 302-horsepower sport-tuned model, the AMG GLB 35, is even more rapid and rides on a hunkered-down suspension. You can get GLB with some helpful tech features, such as a surround-view parking camera system, but be aware that adding a lot of options can send the GLB’s price soaring far above a city skyline.

This photo provided by Edmunds shows the Mercedes-Benz GLB. The GLB is a great prick if you want an upscale small SUV that’s ideal for driving in the city. (Courtesy of Edmunds via AP)

Andor’s Kymera 193i spectrograph has been designed with research-grade performance, versatility and ease of use in mind. The ‘intelligent’ motorized adaptive focusing allows access…

The dispersed light is then re-imaged by the spectrograph and the required wavelength range is directed to a detection system. Gratings consist of equally spaced parallel grooves, formed on a reflective coating and deposited on a substrate. The shape of the grooves (blaze angle) influences what wavelength range the grating is best optimised for.

A diffraction grating is an optical element, which separates (disperses) polychromatic light into its constituent wavelengths (colors). The polychromatic light incident on the grating is dispersed so that each wavelength is reflected from the grating at a slightly different angle. The dispersion arises from the wavefront division and interference of the incident radiation from the periodic structure of the grating.

City living can mean space is at a premium. With this in mind, car shoppers who want a spacious vehicle with a small footprint would be smart to put the Kia Soul on their shopping list. The Soul is Kia’s smallest vehicle, but its boxy shape allows for a generous amount of headroom and legroom in both the front and second rows. The 24.2-cubic-foot cargo hold is also commendable.