Pentax Q10 Review

November 15, 2012 | Mark Goldstein | Rating star Rating star Rating star Rating star

Introduction

The tiny new Pentax Q10 is one of the smallest and lightest interchangeable lens cameras currently available. At its heart is a new back illuminated 12.4 megapixel 1/2.3-inch CMOS image sensor and the super-compact Q-mount lens system. The Pentax Q10 also features a new handgrip, faster auto-focusing, Full 1080p HD movie recording, sensor-shift Shake Reduction mechanism, dust removal system, cleverly designed built-in pop-up flash, external flash hotshoe, 5fps continuous shooting, a 3 inch LCD monitor with 460k dots, ISO range of 100-6400, full range of automatic and manual shooting modes, RAW support, in-camera High Dynamic Range and an extensive range of Digital Effects. The Pentax Q10 is available in white, red or black priced at around £379.99/$599.95 for the single-lens kit with the 5-15mm lens, while the double-zoom kit (which also includes the new 15-45mm lens) will retail for £539.99.

Ease of Use

The Pentax Q10 is an incredibly small interchangeable lens camera by current standards, measuring just 58 (H) x 102mm (W) x 33.5mm (D) (marginally bigger than the original Pentax Q model) and weighing only 180g body only. You really do need to see it in the flesh though to appreciate how tiny the Q10 actually is - at first glance it looks rather like one of the company's DSLRs that has been shrunk in the wash on too hot a cycle. When you actually pick the Q10 up for the first time, though, it actually feels quite impressive, despite its diminutive size. Very little about the Pentax Q10 build quality feels compromised - the magnesium-alloy body feels durable and it even has sturdy memory card and battery compartment doors, a metal lens mount and a metal tripod mount that's thoughtfully in-line with the centre of the lens. The Pentax Q10 might initially look like a toy, but further exploration reveals a camera that's very much in the mould of its bigger DSLR cousins.

The Q10 has a new, more sculpted handgrip on the right-hand side that's easier to hold than the original Q's barrel-like design, coated in a rubberized compound to aid grip, that enabled me to just use three fingers to hold it and my right forefinger to operate the shutter button. The rest of the front of the Q's body is finished in the same textured rubber compound. On the rear there is a small plastic area where your right thumb sits that's embossed with three raised circles to aid grip, with the rest of the body finished in a textured matt black plastic.

The Q features the same IrSimple high-speed infrared data transmission system that's found on some Pentax DSLRs, the sensor for which is built-into the handgrip. This allows wireless image transfer from camera to camera, or from camera to a web page via a mobile phone, allowing easy sharing with other Q users and perhaps more usefully uploading downsized images to the web.

Also on the front of the Pentax Q10 are a small port for the AF Assist Lamp, a built-in flash unit (guide number 7 at ISO 200/m), and the so-called Quick Dial which provides quick access to four of your favorite Smart Effect modes. This dial can be customised to access either Smart Effect, Custom Images, Digital Filters, or Aspect Ratios. Cleverly the same flash unit can also be popped-up, accessed by a sliding switch on top of the camera, which widens the discharge angle to cover a 28mm angle of view. In practice having two different ways of activating the flash, either in situ or by popping it up, proves very adaptable.

Images are saved to SD / SDHC / SDXC cards, the most common media format currently available, with a slot accessed via the right hand side of the body, if viewed from the back. The supplied rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery which powers the Q10 is stored in a separate compartment on the left hand side of the body. On the base, along with the tripod mount, are the PC/AV and HDMI ports, the latter providing a direct connection to a HDTV set, both of which are protected by a rubber flap.

Pentax Q10 Pentax Q10
Front Rear

Just like Pentax's DSLRs, the shutter release action on the Pentax Q10 is quite loud and mechanical, something that you will either love or hate. I liked it, although it isn't great for close-up candid photography as your subject will probably hear you if you get too close. Pentax claim a battery-life of around 250 shots with the supplied lithium-ion, up slightly on the original Q, although it still means that you'll need to invest in a second battery for extended shooting.

The Q10 employs a contrast-detection autofocus system, with a face recognition function and 25 selectable focus points. Focusing with the supplied 5-15mm lens is quicker than on the original Q thanks to the improved focusing algorithm, and it's also consistent in good light even with fast-moving subjects that travelled across the frame thanks to the Tracking AF mode. The 25-point AF system offers fairly generous scene coverage and the camera also happily achieves focus indoors and in low-light situations, helped by the AF Assist lamp.

The Q10 is also quick to get going. Press the on/off switch on top of the camera and you're up and shooting in around a second. When using a lens that has a lens shutter the Q10 provides a fast top shutter speed of 1/2000th second, and it also has an electronic shutter with a faster top speed of 1/6000th second.

It takes about 2 seconds to store a single JPEG image at the highest quality setting, with no discernible lockup between taking shots, allowing you to keep shooting as they are being recorded onto the memory card. For single RAW images the Pentax Q10 takes about 5 seconds to store the image, although there is a brief lockup between shots. In the fastest continuous shooting mode you can hold down the shutter button and take a speedy 5 frames per second for up to 5 JPEGS, or there's a slower 1.5fps mode available which allows you to shoot up to 100 JPEGs.

The same tried and trusted Dust Removal II dust removal system found on Pentax's DSLRs is also present on the Q10, and works in three stages: first, an anti-static coating on the CCD helps repel dust and other nasties, while secondly, any that do settle are shaken free by a high speed, vibrating CCD-shift mechanism. Lastly, a sticky pad at the base of the CCD collects any stray particles to prevent them from attacking the sensor a second time round. Dust Removal can be set to activate whenever the camera is turned on or off.

Pentax Q10 Pentax Q10
Pop-up Flash

Side

The Pentax Q10 has a body-based shake-reduction system, moving the sensor to provide a 4-stop improvement, and meaning that any attached Pentax Q10-mount lens immediately becomes stabilized. Turn it on in the main menu and the Q10 automatically compensates for camera shake, which is a slight blurring of the image that typically occurs at slow shutter speeds. In practice I found that it does make a noticeable difference, as shown in the examples on the Image Quality page. You don't notice that the camera is actually doing anything different when Shake Reduction is turned on, just that you can use slower shutter speeds than normal and still take sharp photos.

The Q10's large 3 inch LCD screen is bright, clear and has a wide viewing angle of 170 degrees horizontally and vertically, and the high pixel count of 460,000 dots is very welcome too. The rear screen also doubles up as a comprehensive status display, which can be called up by pressing the Info button in record mode. You can also change all the settings right on the screen using a combination of the navigation pad and the rear e-dial. This ingenious solution spares you the pain of having to enter the menu, and makes most setting changes very simple.

The shooting mode dial on top of the Pentax Q10 offers dedicated modes for program, shutter priority, aperture priority and manual. These are backed up by full auto (the Auto Pict mode) and 21 different scene mode settings which are all indicated via the rear screen by unthreatening cartoon icons. The Auto Pict mode automatically detects scenes that require the Night Scene Portrait, Portrait, Landscape and Macro modes. The camera automatically sets the aperture, shutter speed, white balance, saturation, contrast and sharpness, leaving you to get on with composing the scene and taking the picture.

The Pentax Q10 shoots Full HD quality video, recording high-definition video at 1920 x 1280 pixel resolution at 30fps in the Quicktime MOV format. Video can also be recorded at 1280x720 pixels and 640 x 480 pixels at 30fps. The maximum size of a single video clip is either 4 gigabytes or 25 minutes. There's a built-in microphone for mono recording, but sadly no stereo sound or socket for connecting an external stereo microphone.

There are some notable drawbacks to the Pentax Q10's video mode. It's quite difficult to actually start recording one. You have to set the Mode Dial to the Movie mode, then press the AF-On or half-press the shutter button to set the focus, then press the shutter button to begin recording (with the same button ending the movie). It's not on a par with the one-button system that some rivals offer, and you can't take a still shot during recording either. You also can't autofocus during movie recording - pre-focusing before beginning recording, then focusing manually during the take, is the only option. In addition you can't set the aperture from the camera during recording, only before, and the shutter speed cannot be set by the user in movie mode either, so you will have to rely on the camera's auto-exposure system while filming.

Pentax Q10 Pentax Q10
Front Front

Completing the shooting modes is the BC mode, which stands for Blur Control. In this mode the Q10 automatically blurs the foreground and background to emphasise the main subject, with three strengths on offer to fine-tune the effect. It's essentially a dumbed-down but still useful mode for beginners, rather than a magic way of improving the bokeh at wide-open apertures.

To the left of the shooting mode dial is the raised and surprisingly tactile shutter release button and a hot shoe for additional illumination via an external flashgun, should it be desired. Holes for the microphone and a small Play button complete the Q10's top-plate.

On the rear of the Pentax Q10 is a dedicated button for aperture and exposure compensation adjustment (+/- 2EV), performed in tandem with the command dial that falls under your thumb at the back of the camera. Underneath is the Green mode button, which has two uses - firstly, when shooting in Manual mode, a single push of the green button allows you to instantly set the correct exposure for the subject, as calculated by the camera, useful if you need a starting point for your own exposure. Secondly, the Q10 offers a Hyper Program function which instantly switches to either the Shutter-Priority or Aperture-Priority mode from the Program mode, simply by turning the rear control dial. Pressing the Green button then returns to the Program mode. Alternatively the Green button can be customised to access the Preview, One Push File format, AE Lock, or Enable AF settings.

Underneath is a four-way control pad with a central OK button, a similar set-up to that found on most digital compacts that will be familiar to those trading up. It provides quick access to the ISO, Burst, White Balance and Flash settings. Underneath this control pad are the familiar Info and Menu buttons. The Menu button accesses the logical main menu system with the choice of five horizontal folders. Camera, movie and and playback settings are displayed next to each other so you can make decisions and adjustments on the fly. The fourth folder contains familiar set up options, with the fifth affording access to a wealth of custom settings. A nice touch is that each folder is split into a varying number of pages, with a maximum of 7 options per page so that you never have to scroll down past the bottom of the screen.

The Pentax Q10's HDR Capture option (only available for JPEGs) takes three images with different exposures, and then records a single image that combines the properly exposed parts of each one, expanding its dynamic range. Although the Q10 can microalign images before combining them, allowing hand-held HDR shots to be taken, for best results it's important to always use a tripod to prevent camera shake from blurring the HDR image, and it still doesn't work very well for moving subjects.

Pentax Q10 Pentax Q10
Memory Card Slot Battery Compartment

Pentax's Custom Images, similar to Nikon's Picture Styles and Canon's Picture Controls, are 11 preset combinations of different sharpness, contrast, saturation and colour tone settings. You can change the saturation, hue, high/low key, contrast and sharpness for each of the nine options, which include Bleach Bypass and Reversal Film?.

The Pentax Q10 additionally offers 11 different Digital Filters, which allow you to quickly apply an artistic effect to a photo before taking it (JPEG images only). Note that applying the Digital Filters slows the camera down somewhat, as it has to process the image for a few seconds after it's taken. The Q10 can also be set to automatically compensate for the distortion of its lenses.

The Multi-exposure mode can combine up to 9 exposures in a single image), with an auto exposure compensation function to help ensure that they blend together well. There's also an Interval shooting mode which can record up to 999 images at 1 second or slower intervals at a specific time, very useful for capturing time lapse sequences.

Once you have captured a photo, the Pentax Q10 has an above average range of options for playing, reviewing and managing your images. You can instantly scroll through the images that you have taken, view 9 thumbnails, zoom in and out up to a magnification of 16x, compare two images side-by-side, and see detailed information about each image by pressing the Info button. You can also delete single or multiple images, view a slideshow, rotate, resize and crop an image, protect images so that they cannot be deleted, and set various printing options, including creating an Index sheet of multiple thumbnails. There are also 17 Digital Filters that you can apply to an image after you have taken it, and you can develop RAW files and edit movies in-camera.

Importantly the Pentax Q10 can display a histogram both during and after taking a photo (just press the Info button) which is a great help in evaluating the exposure, plus any areas that are over-exposed can be set to flash on and off in the LCD preview to show you want you should be compensating for with your next attempt (you can turn this on or off). If you have never used a digital camera before, or you're upgrading from a more basic model, reading the comprehensive and easy-to-follow manual before you start is a good idea. Thankfully Pentax have chosen to supply it in printed format, rather than as a PDF on a CD, so you can also carry it with you.

Image Quality

All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 12.4 megapixel Best JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 3.5Mb.

The Pentax Q10 produced photos of good quality. Noise is fairly well controlled by the Pentax Q10, starting to appear at ISO 800 and becoming more easily detectable at the faster settings of ISO 1600 and 3200 when viewing images at 100% magnification on screen. The fastest setting of 6400 looks much better on paper than in reality. Colour saturation is commendably maintained throughout the ISO range except at ISO 6400. The RAW samples illustrate just how much processing the camera does by default, as they're noisier and much less sharp at all ISO values than their JPEG counterparts.

The 12.4 megapixel JPEG images were a little soft straight out of the camera at the default sharpening setting and ideally require some further sharpening in an application like Adobe Photoshop, or you can change the in-camera setting. Image stabilisation via the camera body is a great feature that works very well when hand-holding the camera in low-light conditions or when using a telephoto zoom lens. An added bonus is that it works with any lens that you attach to the Q10.

The night photograph was excellent, with the maximum shutter speed of 30 seconds and Bulb mode allowing you to capture enough light in all situations, although the maximum ISO speed is limited to 1600 in Bulb mode. The cleverly designed built-in pop-up flash worked well indoors, with no red-eye and good overall exposure.

The extensive range of Custom Images and Digital Filters quickly produce special effects that would otherwise require you to spend a lot of time in the digital darkroom, although some of them are less useful than others. The HDR mode greatly expands the dynamic range of a JPEG by combining three differently exposed images in-camera.

Noise

There are 7 ISO settings available on the Pentax Q10. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting, with JPEG on the left and the RAW equivalent on the right:

JPEG

RAW

ISO 100 (100% Crop)

ISO 100 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 200 (100% Crop)

ISO 200 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 400 (100% Crop)

ISO 400 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 800 (100% Crop)

ISO 800 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 1600 (100% Crop)

ISO 1600 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 3200 (100% Crop)

ISO 3200 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 6400 (100% Crop)

ISO 6400 (100% Crop)

File Quality

The Pentax Q10 has 3 different JPEG file quality settings available, with Best being the highest quality option, and it also supports RAW (Adobe DNG). Here are some 100% crops which show the quality of the various options, with the file size shown in brackets.

Best (3.43Mb) (100% Crop)

Better (2.21Mb) (100% Crop)

   

Good (1.16Mb) (100% Crop)

RAW (18.7Mb) (100% Crop)

Sharpening

Here are two 100% crops which have been Saved as Web - Quality 50 in Photoshop. The right-hand image has had some sharpening applied in Photoshop. The out-of-the camera images are soft at the default sharpening setting and benefit from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop. You can also change the in-camera sharpening level to suit your tastes.

Original (100% Crop)

Sharpened (100% Crop)

   

Flash

The flash modes include Auto, Auto + Red-eye Reduction, Flash On, Flash On + Red-eye Reduction, Slow-speed Sync, Slow-speed Sync + Red-eye Reduction, Trailing Curtain Sync, and Flash Off. These shots of a white wall were taken at a distance of 1.5 metres.

Flash Off - Wide Angle (27mm)

Flash On - Wide Angle (27mm)

ISO 64 ISO 64
   

Flash Off - Wide Angle (84mm)

Flash On - Wide Angle (84mm)

ISO 64 ISO 64

And here are some portrait shots. As you can see, neither the Flash On setting or the Red-eye Reduction option caused any amount of red-eye.

Flash On

Flash On (100% Crop)
   

Red-eye Reduction

Red-eye Reduction (100% Crop)

Night

The Pentax Q10 lets you dial in shutter speeds of up to 30 seconds and has a Bulb mode as well, which is very good news if you are seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 20 seconds at ISO 100. We've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like.

Night Shot

Night Shot (100% Crop)

Shake Reduction

The Pentax Q10 has a Shake Reduction mechanism built into the camera body, which allows you to take sharp photos at slower shutter speeds than other digital cameras. To test this, I took 2 handheld shots of the same subject with the same settings. The first shot was taken with Shake Reduction turned off, the second with it turned on. Here is a 100% crop of the image to show the results. As you can see, with Shake Reduction turned on, the images are sharper than when it's turned off.

Shutter Speed / Focal Length

Shake Reduction Off (100% Crop)

Shake Reduction On (100% Crop)

1/5th / 27mm
     
1/5th / 83mm

HDR Capture

The Pentax Q10's HDR Capture option (only available for JPEGs) takes three images with different exposures, and then records a single image that combines the properly exposed parts of each one, expanding its dynamic range. Here is an example which was shot with the four different modes (Off, Auto, 1 and 2). Although the Q can microalign images before combining them, allowing hand-held HDR shots to be taken, for best results it's important to always use a tripod to prevent camera shake from blurring the HDR image, and it doesn't work very well for moving subjects.

Off

Auto

   
HDR1 HDR2

Dynamic Range Correction

The Pentax Q10's D-Range Setting option allows you to set the camera to automatically correct for either the highlights, shadows or both.

Off

Highlight and Shadow Correction On

Custom Images

Pentax's Custom Images, similar to Nikon's Picture Styles and Canon's Picture Controls, are preset combinations of different sharpness, contrast, saturation and colour tone settings. You can change the saturation, hue, high/low key, contrast and sharpness for each of the eleven options?. They are shown below in the following series, which demonstrates the differences.

Bright

Natural

   

Portrait

Landscape

   

Vibrant

Radiant

   

Muted

Bleach Bypass
   

Reversal Film

Monochrome

   

Cross Processing

 
 

Digital Filters

The Pentax Q10 offers eleven different Digital Filters, which allow you to quickly apply an artistic effect to a photo before taking it (JPEG images only). They are shown below in the following series, which demonstrates the differences. Note that applying the Digital Filters slows the camera down somewhat, as it has to process the image for a few seconds after it's taken.

Toy Camera

High Contrast

   

Shading

Slim

   

HDR

Invert Color

   

Extract Color

Color

   

Water Color

Posterization

   

Fish-eye

 
 

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Pentax Q10 camera, which were all taken using the 12 megapixel Best JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample RAW Images

The Pentax Q10 enables users to capture RAW and JPEG format files in the DNG format. We've provided some Pentax RAW (DNG) samples for you to download (thumbnail images shown below are not 100% representative).

Sample Movie & Video

The Pentax Q10 can record HD video in the Quicktime (MOV) format. This is a sample movie at the highest quality setting of 1920x1280 pixels at 30 frames per second. Please note that this 20 second movie is 32.1Mb in size.

Product Images

Pentax Q10

Front of the Camera

 
Pentax Q10

Front of the Camera

 
Pentax Q10

Front of the Camera / Flash Raised

 
Pentax Q10

Isometric View

 
Pentax Q10

Isometric View

 
Pentax Q10

Isometric View

 
Pentax Q10

Isometric View

 
Pentax Q10

Rear of the Camera

 
Pentax Q10

Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed

 

Pentax Q10

Rear of the Camera / Turned On

 
Pentax Q10

Rear of the Camera / Info Screen

 
Pentax Q10

Rear of the Camera / Main Menu

 
Pentax Q10

Top of the Camera

 
Pentax Q10

Bottom of the Camera

 
Pentax Q10

Side of the Camera

 
Pentax Q10

Side of the Camera

 
Pentax Q10

Front of the Camera

 
Pentax Q10

Front of the Camera

 
Pentax Q10

Memory Card Slot

 
Pentax Q10
Battery Compartment

Conclusion

The Pentax Q10 is a minor improvement on last year's original Q model, most notably offering a slight improvement in image quality, snappier focusing and a more ergonomic handgrip. The biggest "upgrade", however, is undoubtedly the realistic price-tag - a whopping £220 / $200 less than the original Q on launch pits the Q10 more logically against higher-end compacts, rather than the compact system camera and entry-level DSLR competition that the Q faced.

The Pentax Q10 may look like a toy camera at first glance, but it actually proves to be a lot more full featured and intuitive to use in practice. Slightly bigger than the original Q, the new Q10 is still very much like a K-r or K-5 that's been shrunk in the wash. Despite its tiny dimensions, it's still straight-forward and fun to use, a real testament to the Pentax engineers, and it also offers a lot of functionality that's made its way down the food chain from the more sophisticated DSLRs. Sure, some of the controls are a little too small for our liking, but overall the Pentax Q10 is a lot easier to use than it size suggests, with the new handgrip a definite improvement.

Unfortunately, despite the introduction of a new image sensor, the Q's image quality still doesn't come anywhere near a DSLR, or the new breed of compact system cameras either. It may have DSLR pretensions and an ISO range to match, but in reality the tiny compact camera sensor at the heart of the Q seriously restricts its appeal. Prospective buyers of an interchangeable lens camera expect significant improvements in both features and image quality, and while the Q's photos are now respectable by compact camera standards, they can't match the results from rival models like the Nikon 1 series or even the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 compact.

Thankfully Pentax seem to have realised that the Q10 can't take on DSLRs or CSCs and priced it accordingly. While £379.99/$599.95 for the single-lens kit with the 5-15mm lens is still a big outlay, it does make the Q10 cheaper than some high-end compacts, against whom it more naturally competes. If you're looking for a camera that's small enough to slip inside a coat pocket, yet flexible enough to offer a DSLR-like take on the world, then the new, more affordable Pentax Q10 is at least worth taking for a test-drive.

4 stars

Ratings (out of 5)
Design 4.5
Features 4
Ease-of-use 4.5
Image quality 4
Value for money 3.5

Specifications

Type
Camera Type Lens-interchangeable SL digital-still camera
Sensor
Type 1/2,3’’ CMOS sensor, with primary colour filter
Effective Pixels Approx. 12.4 MP effective - 12,76 MP total
Still File formats: RAW (DNG), JPEG (Exif 2.3), DCF2.0 compliant RAW and JPEG simultaneously recordable
Recorded Pixels: JPEG : [4:3] 12M(4000x3000), 9M(3456x2592), 5M (2688x2016), 3M(1920x1440), [3:2] 10M(4000x2664), 8M(3456x2304), 5M(2688x1792), 2M(1920x1280), [16:9] 9M(4000x2248), 6 (3456x1944), 4M(2688x1512), 2M(1920x1080), [1:1] 9M(2992x2992), 6M(2592x2592), 4M(2016x2016), 2M(1440x1440); RAW : [4:3] 12M(4000x3000), RAW (12bit) : DNG
Quality level JPEG:  ??? (best), ?? (better),  ? (good)
Color: space sRGB, Adobe RGB
Storage medium: SD, SDHC and SDXC Memory card
Storage folder: Date (100_1018, 100_1019….)/PENTX (100 PENTX, 101 PENTX…)

Drive modes: Single frame, Continuous (Hi, Lo), Self-timer (12s, 2s), remote control (0 sec. 3 sec. continuous), Auto Bracketing (3 frames, remote control)
Continuous shooting: Continuous high : Approx. 5 fps up to 5 frames in JPEG (12M, ???)
Continuous low : Approx. 1.5 fps up to 100 frames in JPEG (12M, ???) 
Custom Image: Bright, Natural, Portrait, Landscape, Vibrant, Radiant, Muted, Bleach Bypass, Reversal Film, Monochrome, Cross Processing
White Balance: Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Fluorescent Light (D:Daylight Color, N:Daylight White, W:Cool White, L: Warm White), Tungsten, Flash, CTE, Manual (configuration on monitor).
Fine adjustment (+/-7 steps on A-B axis or G-M axis)
Noise Reduction: High-ISO NR
Dynamic Range Setting: Highlight Correction, Shadow Correction
Lens correction: Distortion Correction
Digital Filter: Toy camera, High contrast, Shading, Slim, HDR, Invert Color, Extract Color, Color, Water color, Posterization, Fish-eye
HDR Capture: Auto, HDR1, HDR2
Multi-exposure: Number of shots : 2-9, exposure adjusted automatically
Interval Shooting: Shooting interval : 1 sec. to 24 hr, Start interval setting :
immediately from the set time. Number of shoots : up to 999 images
Smart Effect:Brillant color, unicolor Bold, Vintage color, Cross Processing, Warm Fade, Tone Expansion, Bold Monochrome, Water Color, Vibrant Color enhance, USER 1 to 3

Sensitivity AUTO : ISO 100 to 6400 (1/3 EV steps)
Bulb mode : up to ISO 1600
Shake Reduction
Sensor shift Shake reduction
Sensor Cleaning Image sensor cleaning using ultrasonic vibrations ‘DRII’
Lens
Mount PENTAX bayonet Q-mount
Compatible Lens: Q-mount lenses
Focusing System
Functions Type: Contrast detection AF
Focus mode: AF/MF switching, Face Detection, Tracking , AF Select (25 Points), Select, Spot
Brightness range: EV1 to 18 (ISO125)
AF Assist Light: Dedicated LED AF assist light
Assist: OFF/ x2/ x4
Screen
Type Type: 3’’ TFT color LCD monitor, wide-angle viewing, 460k dots
Brightness and colors adjustable

Display: Field of view : approx. 100%, grid display (4x4 grid, Golden section, scale display), Bright/dark area warning, histogram
Flash
Type

Built-in retractable P-TTL flash

 

Guide Number approx. 4.9 (ISO 100/m) / approx.7 (ISO 200/m)
Modes P-TTL, Red-eye Reduction, Slow-speed Sync, Trailing Curtain Sync
Angle of View Coverage Wide-angle lens, equivalent to 28mm in 35mm format
Exposure Compensation  -2.0 to + 1.0 EV
Exposure Parameters
Modes Type: TTL image sensor metering, segment metering, center, weighted metering and spot metering              
Exposure compensation: EV1.3-17 (ISO 125, F1.9 lens), +/-2EV using the electronic shutter setting or using the ND filter
Exposure modes: AutoPicture mode (Standard, Portrait, Landscape, Macro, Night Scene Portrait, Night Scene, Blue Sky, Forest), Scene modes (Portrait, Landscape, Macro, Moving Object, Night Scene Portrait, Sunset, Blue sky, Night scene, Night scene HDR*, Night Snap, Food, Quick Macro*, Pet, Kids, Forest, Surf & snow, HDR*, Backlight silhouette, Candlelight, Stage lighting, Museum, Program, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, Manual, Bulb, Blur control* JPEG only
EV Compensation: +/- 3EV (1/3 EV Step)
AE Lock: Can be assigned to the green/delete button from the menu
Continuous as long as the sutter release button is pressed halfway
Shutter: Lens shutter : 1/2000—30 seconds (1/3EV step, 1/8000—30 seconds when electronic shutter setting is enabled), Bulb
* Shooting at 1/8000—2 seconds with electronic shutter and bulb shooting are not available when using a lens that has no lens shutter
Aperture: From wide open to F8 *Not available when using a lens that has no lens shutter
ND Filter: Off/On  * Not available when using a lens that has no lens shutter
Movie
Recording File format: MPEG-4 AVC/H.264
Recorded Pixels: Full HD (1920x1020, 16:9, 30fps), HD (1280x720, 16:9, 30fps), VGA (640x480, 4:3, 30fps)
Sound: Built-in monaural microphone
Recording time: Up to 25 minutes; automatically stops recording if the internal temperature of the camera becomes high
Movie Processing: Custom Image (Bright, Natural, Portrait, Landscape, Vibrant, Radiant, Muted, Bleach Bypass, Reversal Film, Monochrome, Cross Processing). Digital Filter (Toy camera, High contrast, Shading, Slim, HDR, Invert Color, Extract Color, Color, Water color, Posterization, Fish-eye)
Interval Movie:  Recording interval : 1 sec., 5 sec., 10 sec., 30 sec., 1 min., 5 min., 10 min, 30 min, 1 hr
Recording time : 5 sec. to 99 hr
Start Interval setting : immediately, from the set time
Movie Editing:Divide or delete selected frames, capturing a JPEG still picture from a movie
Special Features
Features Custom functions: 13 items

Mode memory: 
12 items

Button/Dial Customization:
Green/Delete button (Green button, Preview, One Push File format, AE Lock, Enable AF), Quick dial (Smart effect, Custom Image, Digital Filter, Aspect Ratio)

World time:
World time settings for 75 cities (28 time zones)

Playback functions:
Single frame, image comparison, multi-image display (up to 90), display magnification (up to 16X), rotating, histogram, bright/dark area warning, detailed information display, folder display, calendar display, slideshow.

RAW Development (file format, Aspect Ratio, Color space, Custom image, White balance, sensitivity, high-ISO NR, Shadow correction, Distortion correction)

Digital filter (Monochrome, Toy camera, High contrast, Shading, Slim, HDR, Invert Color, Extract Color, Color, Water color, Posterization, Fish-eye, Retro, Soft, Sketch filter, Miniature, Frame composite, Starbust, Base parameter Adjustment)

Edit:
Resize, Cropping, Index, Red-Eye edit, Saving Buffer as a RAW file
Language

English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Greek, Russian, Korean, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, and Japanese

Interface
Interface

Video Output: AV output terminal, HDMI output terminal (type D), compatible with NTSC/PAL

USB: USB 2.0 (high speed compatible) - MSC/PTP

Power
Source Battery Type: Rechargeable Lithium-ion Battery D-LI68
AC Adapter: AC Adapter Kit K-AC115 (optional)
 
Performance Battery Life:Number of recordable images : approx. 250 images (with 50% flash usage), approx. 270 images (without flash usage)
Playback time : approx. 160 min.
*using a new lithium-ion battery under the temperature at 23°C, tested in compliance
with CIPA standard. Actual results may vary depending on the shooting conditions/
circumstances
Dimensions
Height 58mm
Width 102mm
Depth 33.5mm
Weight

200g (loaded with battery and SD card), 180g (body only)

Accessories
Included Software Software SILKYPIX Developer Studio 3.0 for PENTAX
Software (CD-ROM) S-SW115—mounted on the camera
Kit Content USB Cable I-USB7
Strap O-ST131
Rechargeable Lithium-ion Battery D-LI68
Battery Charger D-BC68P
Hot shoe cover FK
Body mount cover
Optional PENTAX Standard PRIME 8.5mm f/1.9 AL [IF]
PENTAX Standard ZOOM 5-15mm f/2.8-4.5
PENTAX Fish-Eye 3.2mm F5.6
PENTAX Toy Lens Wide 6.3mm F7.1
PENTAX Toy Lens Telephoto 18mm F8
Optional optical viewfinder
PL Filter  
Remote Control

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