I do a lot of time lapse work and I'm concerned about the toll this takes on my shutter. I currently own a use a 5DmkII (rated at 150K actuations) and a Xti (rated at 50K). Some of the time lapses I do are 1 frame a second. Played back at 24p after just 35 minutes my Xti shutter is past it's life.

Recently I read somewhere (unfortunately I don't remember where) someone stated compact cameras use electronic shutters which don't require actual mechanical shutters and therefore theoretically have a much longer lifespan (in terms of actuations). Is this true? If so, for some of the less DSLR needed time lapses maybe I'll opt for a G10 or even smaller format camera (not sure when the mechanical shutter begin--I assume DSLR level).

Also, my 5DmkII has live view as does the newer Rebel and 50D. Does this use an electronic shutter? Could I shoot indefinitely in live view without wearing anything out? Why even use a mechanical shutter in that case?

Thanks for any input.