Pentax K100D India - Pentax K100D Digital Camera Review, Pentax K100 D Features & Specifications

It seems as if the rain of digital cameras in the Indian market is going to be a long-lasting affair. The latest entrant in this arena is Pentax K100D digital SLR camera. With its innovative CCD-shift camera shake reduction system, the camera has already started garnering great reviews. It said that the shake reduction system has been developed by Pentax itself. The sensor resolution of six megapixels makes Pentax K100D all the more appealing to the customers.

Design

The body of Pentax K100D digital camera has been made mostly of plastic. In case you are worried about its sturdiness, don’t be. The camera comes with the perfect combination of lightweight metal chassis and special fiber-reinforced plastic for the external construction. In other words, it is the perfect fusion of sleek looks and rigid structure. Pentax has provided a soft rubber coating around the finger-grip, keeping the comfort of the user in mind. With dimensions of 129 x 93 x 70 mm and weight of 660 g (with batteries), Pentax K100D is definitely quite compact and handy.

Features

Pentax K100D digital SLR camera provides you the option of two 'tone' options - of Bright (the default) and Natural, which define color mapping, tone and sharpening baseline for image processing. Its sensor resolution, of six megapixels, accepts lenses using the Pentax KAF lens mount. As mentioned above, the "Shake Reduction" function is one of the best features of the digicam. You can control the focus manually as well as automatically, using a phase detection system with 11 points. When you click photos with Pentax K100D, you can frame them with the help of penta-mirror optical viewfinder.

The 2.5" LCD display of the digital camera, with a resolution of 210,000 pixels, allows you to review them also. It also offers a range of automatic controls, including eight scene modes and four Picture modes. Then, there is a five-mode flash strobe, with a two or twelve-second self timer. The images that you click with Pentax K100D can be stored in either Raw (uncompressed) or JPEG (compressed) formats. You can use NTSC / PAL switchable video output as well as a USB 2.0 Hi-Speed computer link for connectivity purposes. Four AA or 2 CR-V3 batteries provide power to the camera.

In case the batteries are down, you can use a DC input connection for powering the digicam. Other features of Pentax K100D include a choice of program, aperture- priority and shutter-priority or manual exposure modes; 16-segment multi, center-weighted or spot metering; shutter speeds from 30 - 1/4000 second; user-selectable ISO sensitivity from 200-3200 equivalent, eight white balance modes, including fully manual white balance. All in all, Pentax seems to have packed loads of features into the compact camera.

Technical Specifications

Sensor	• 23.5 x 15.7 mm CCD sensor • RGB Color Filter Array • Interline interlaced CCD • Built-in fixed low-pass filter • 6.31 million total pixels • 6.1 million effective pixels
Shake Reduction	CCD-Shift type
Image sizes	• 3008 x 2000 (Large) • 2400 x 1600 (Middle) • 1536 x 1024 (Small)
Image formats	• RAW • JPEG Best • JPEG Better • JPEG Good
Color space	• sRGB • Adobe RGB
Lenses	• Pentax KAF2, KAF, KA mount lenses - Power zoom not available - K mount lenses available with (function limited) - S mount lenses available with adapter (function limited) - 67/645 lenses available with adapter (function limited)
FOV crop	1.5x
Focusing	• 11-area AF (SAFOX VIII) • TTL Phase matching AF system • Focus point selectable • EV 0 to 19 (ISO 100) detection range
Focus modes	• AF-Single • AF-Continuous (Action mode) • Manual focus
AF assist	Yes, via flash
Shooting modes	• Auto picture mode • Programmed AE Mode • Shutter-Priority AE • Aperture-Priority AE • Metered Manual • Bulb • Picture modes • Scene modes
Picture modes	• Standard • Portrait • Landscape • Macro • Action • Night scene portrait • Standard flash-off
Scene modes	• Night scene • Surf & Snow • Text • Sunset • Kids • Pet • Candlelight • Museum
Metering modes	• 16-segment • Center-Weighted Average • Spot
Metering range	EV 1 to 21.5 (at ISO 200 with 50 mm / F1.4 lens)
AE Lock	• Button (20 sec timer) • Half-press shutter release
AE Bracketing	• 3 frames • 0.3, 0.5 or 1.0 EV steps
Exposure Compen	-2.0 to +2.0 EV in 1/3 or 1/2 EV steps
Exposure steps	• 1/2 EV (default) • 1/3 EV
Sensitivity	• Auto (200-800 default, can be changed) • ISO 200 • ISO 400 • ISO 800 • ISO 1600 • ISO 3200
Shutter	Electronically controlled vertical-run focal-plane shutter
Shutter Speed	• 30 to 1/4000 sec • Bulb
Flash X-sync	1/180 sec
Aperture values	Depends on lens
Preview function	• Optical preview (DOF preview through viewfinder) • Digital preview (shot taken and displayed without saving)
White balance	• Auto • Daylight • Shade • Cloudy • Fluorescent W • Fluorescent N • Fluorescent D • Tungsten • Flash • Manual
Image tone	• Bright (high contrast, vivid color, sharp) • Natural
Image parameters	• Saturation (-2 to +2) • Sharpness (-2 to +2) • Contrast (-2 to +2)
Viewfinder	• Penta-mirror type • Natural bright-matte II focusing screen • Magnification approx. x0.85 • 96% frame coverage • Diotric adjustment (-2.5 to +1.5) • Viewfinder info bar
Viewfinder info	• Built-in flash status • Picture mode • In-focus • Shutter speed • Aperture value • Exposure compensation factor • Manual WB • Manual focus • ISO sensitivity warning • AE lock • Focus point indication • AF frame with superimposed dislpay • Spot AF frame
LCD monitor	• 2.5" TFT LCD • 210,000 pixels
Custom function	• Default • Custom (18 functions)
Record review	• Off • 1 sec • 3 sec • 5 sec
Flash	• Built-in P-TTL electronic pop-up flash • Guide number 15.6 (ISO 200/m) • Angle of coverage 18 mm (27 mm as 35 mm equiv.) • Flash sync 1/180 sec • Electronic pop-up
Flash modes	• Auto • Flash on • Auto & Red-eye reduction • Flash on & Red-eye reduction
Flash compensation	-2.0 to +1.0 EV
External flash	• Hot-shoe • P-TTL • Modes: Auto, Red-eye reduction, High-speed sync, Wireless-sync
Drive modes	• Single shot • Continuous (2.8 fps, up to 5 JPEG frames)
Self-timer	• 12 sec • 2 sec • Automatic mirror lock-up with self-timer
Remote release	• InfraRed remote • Wired (optional) • Instant or with 3 sec delay
Playback mode	• One frame • Zooming in/out (up to 12x) • Nine-image • Histogram • Blinking highlights • Slideshow • Image rotation • Delete: One-frame-delete, All-frames-delete, Card-format, Protect
Digital filter (playback)	• B&W • Sepia • Color • Soft • Slim • Brightness
Menu languages	• English • French • German • Spanish • Italian • Swedish • Dutch • Russian • Korean • Chinese (traditional) • Chinese (simplified) • Japanese
Connectivity	• USB 2.0 Hi-Speed • Video out • DC-IN • Remote terminal
Video out	Selectable NTSC or PAL
Storage	SD or SDHC card
Power	• 4 x AA batteries (NiMH rechargeable recommended) or • 2 x CR-V3 Lithium (non-rechargeable) • Optional AC adapter
Firmware	User updatable via SD card
Dimensions	129 x 93 x 70 mm (5.1 x 3.7 x 2.8 in)
Weight (no batteries/lens)	565 g (1.2 lb)
Weight (no lens)	660 g (1.5 lb) (reduced by approx. 20 g if using CR-V3 batteries)