Pentax’s 8 megapixel Optio A10 features include - 2.5 inch LCD, 3x optical zoom lens, shake reduction system, captures full-screen VGA (640 x 480, 30 fps) video, tracking auto focus, approx. 150 shot lithium-ion battery, and top ISO of 400.
<
!–more–>
<
h2″>Pentax Optio A10 Reviewer - Opinion Thermometer
| Sample Photos at Flickr | |
| Imaging Resource |  |
| Think Camera |  |
| Cameras.co.uk |  |
| Digital Camera Shopper |  |
| PopPhoto | |
| Megapixel | |
| * Pentax Optio A10 Review Roundup | |
| DCRP | |
| DP Interface | |
| CNET | |
| Steve’s Digicams | |
| DP Review | |
| Digital Camera Review | |
 |
What’s in The Box
Optio A10, USB Cable I-USB17 (39233), AV Cable I-AVC7(B) (39553), Strap O-ST20 (39195), Lithium-ion Battery DL-18 (39121), Battery Charging Stand D-BC42 (39318), AC Plug Cord D-CO2U (39477), Software S-SW42 (CD-ROM), Operating Manual, Serial Number Card
Pentax Optio A10 Spec Sheet
[Pentax Optio A10 Specs at Pentax]
Pentax Optio A10 Owners Manual
[Pentax Optio A10 Users Manual scroll to bottom of page]
[Pentax Optio A10 Software Downloads]
Read More Pentax Optio A10 Reviews
Imaging Resource - 10/27/2006 - has reviewed the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and they write - “The Pentax A10 was also one of the slowest compact models I’ve tried in recent months. For starters, while images looked great on the camera’s high-resolution LCD, scrolling through them on the screen is a very slow process that I found so frustrating I quickly sought out the 9-frame playback setting so I could speed through shots quicker. The slow scroll speed, unfortunately, carries over to almost all aspects of the camera. In our speed tests, the Pentax A10 fared poorly overall with a slow start-up speed, noticeable shutter lag even when pre-focusing, and abysmal shot-to-shot speed even when the camera was in Continuous mode.”
Think Camera - 9/6/2006- has reviewed the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and rate it 7 out of 10 - “Despite a few flaws in the camera’s responsiveness when taking photos, the A10 definitely lives up to its role as the flagship Pentax compact. It’s a very satisfying camera to use, especially with the multi-function Green menu. Images may be a bit noisy at higher ISO levels but it isn’t a fatal problem, images are more than fine for screen use and A4 printing and very sharp.”
Cameras.co.uk - 8/24/2006 - has reviewed the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and they write - “I am struggling to come up with any really solid reasons for buying the Pentax Optio A10 over other digital cameras with a similar specification. It is not a bad camera or anything like that it is just in a competitive market a digital camera needs something to stand out and say buy me. Try as I might I cannot come up with that elusive reason to buy the Optio A10.”
Digital Camera Shopper - 8/15/2006 - magazine (issue 35) has reviewed the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and here is their opinion - “The A10 is well made, user friendly camera that produces some great images. Color reproduction is excellent, as are details levels. But a couple of quirks when using it and a tendency to under-expose images leaves it just short of being top of its class”
PopPhoto - 8/14/2006 - has reviewed the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and here is their opinion - “The Optio A10 produced good images in most conditions we shot in. It produced good results with good detail and sharpness especially at ISO 50. However, there was a lot of noise when used above ISO 200 and above. The Shake Reduction system was very good and the A10 is probably one of the more affordable cameras that offer this normally more advanced option. The A10 offers a full boat of fun features, such as 640×480, 30fps MPEG-4/DivX movie clips, plus plenty of in camera editing options and a slew of shooting modes.”
Megapixel - 8/9/2006 - has reviewed the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and here is their opinion -
Positives: - Very good image quality with good light. - Excellent metering. - Reliable white balance. - Excellent colour rendition. - Image stabilizer. - Excellent high resolution monitor. - Extremely well finished
DCRP - 07/03/2006 - has a new review of the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and believes it offers a lot of features for much less money than competitive cameras -
“Camera performance is undoubtedly the A10’s weak spot. The camera is slow to start up, there’s noticeable shutter lag (especially with flash shots), and shot-to-shot speeds are below average. Focusing speeds were about average, and low light focusing was good thanks to the A10’s AF-assist lamp. The camera’s continuous shooting mode was especially poor. While it will keep shooting until you run out of memory, the 0.5 fps frame rate and blacked out LCD make the feature almost useless. Battery life was well below average.”
DP Interface - 05/26/2006 - has posted a new review of the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and although it lacks manual contols they write - “Sadly, I cannot recommend the Pentax Optio A10 because I don’t know how many photo opportunities you’ll miss with this camera: Sluggish performance plus below average battery life is already a bad combination. If you’re looking for an ultra-compact with good battery life, a big LCD, image stabilization and high ISO sensitivity, take a look at the Sony T30 or if you’re looking for manual controls, scene modes, fancy movie mode and 8 megapixels, consider the Casio Z850. Ultimately, the Pentax Optio A10 is not a good buy.”
CNET - 05/23/2006 - has posted a new review of the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and rates it a 6 out 10. They go on to write - “Its LCD has issues outdoors and in burst mode, but this ultracompact 8-megapixel Pentax Optio A10 for the snapshooting set is easy to operate and versatile.”
Steve’s Digicams - 05/12/2006 -has posted a new review of the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and has this to say - “While the Pentax Optio A10 offers some appealing features (8-megapixels, Shake Reduction, etc.), the overall performance of this camera in all areas was disappointing. It does have the ability to capture pleasing photos that have enough resolution to create poster size prints. However, its poor movie mode results and extremely slow shooting performance really bring the model down.”
DP Review - 05/08/2006 - has posted a new review of the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and has this to say. “The Optio A10 is a deeply frustrating camera for a reviewer; on the one hand it is capable of producing some of the best results in its class, the lens is obviously excellent, image processing is fairly subtle, and unlike so many similar cameras the default contrast, saturation and sharpening are spot-on. On the other hand it can be really, really annoying to use; by today’s standards shooting feels slow and unresponsive, and has a screen that can’t be seen at all in bright weather. Throw in the dismal battery life and total unsuitability as a social ‘party snaps’ camera and you’d think this was a camera you’d only recommend to someone with a masochistic streak, or someone you really didn’t like.”
Digital Camera Review -04/14/2006 - has posted a new review of the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10 and here’s the bottom line. “The Pentax Optio A10 is a nice compact point and shoot, but to get the best results with the images, you’ll need to adjust some settings. I found the images to have oversaturated colors, and to be consistently underexposed. Also, the multi-segment light metering mode was challenged by some lighting conditions.
Digital Camera Info - 01/07/2006 - has a sneak preview of the 8 megapixel Pentax Optio A10. This is an initial CES 2006 exclusive - behind the scenes preview/review. They write - “The A10 is a small, well-built compact camera, designed to be Pentax’s new flagship of their Optio line with the addition of a shake reduction system. But there are some serious omissions: the lack of access to commonly-used manual controls is a big problem for a camera supposedly designed for more advanced users. There’s no way to manually set shutter or aperture and the manual focus is a pain. The battery life is also on the low side.”
Pentax Optio A10 Initial Press Summary
The flagship model of our new Optio compact digital camera series featuring a proprietary Shake Reduction system for higher image quality.
January 4, 2006 - PENTAX Corporation is pleased to announce the launch of the new PENTAX Optio A10 compact digital camera with an 8.0 effective megapixel CCD, which combines a slim, lightweight, stylish design with a new proprietary Shake Reduction system for sharper quality images.
The Optio A10 represents a complete overhaul of our Optio compact digital camera series and will be the first model of our new high-end Optio A Series.
Major Features
1. High image quality
Loaded with a large CCD The Optio A10 is equipped with a new large 1/1.8-inch CCD boasting 8.32 total megapixels. With about 1.6 times the light receiving area of our conventional compact camera CCDs, this large CCD offers advantages in superior tone reproduction, texture delineation, and noise reduction.
2. High-performance smc PENTAX zoom lens
Constructed from seven elements in five groups, including three double-sided aspherical lenses, the newly developed smc PENTAX zoom lens produces clear, high-contrast images. This design corrects effectively for spherical and other aberrations and our original coating cuts out ghosting and flare.
3. New ASIC*1
A new ASIC supplies the Optio A10 with dramatically more image-processing power. Thanks to the ASIC’s high-speed processing capability, the Optio A10 attains a higher level of tone reproduction and color correction based on enormous amounts of actual photo data. *1: Application Specific Integrated Circuit *2. PENTAX’s original SR ( Shake Reduction) system
PENTAX’s newly designed Shake Reduction system really comes into its own in shooting conditions that are sensitive to camera shake, such as telephoto shots or indoor shots without a flash.
The SR ( Shake Reduction) mechanism:
(1) Two internal gyro sensors detect the amount of camera shake. (2) A dedicated CPU quickly calculates the necessary correction from the amount of camera shake and the lens’s focusing data. (3) A special proprietary mechanism moves the CCD based on the calculated correction to compensate for the camera shake.
3. Super-compact, lightweight body
We kept the Optio A10 as slim as possible despite completely redesigning the lens unit from the optical lens to the image sensor, enlarging the CCD, and adding an anti-vibration mechanism to absorb camera shake. Furthermore, by utilizing the PENTAX Sliding Lens System*2 and high-density mounting technology, we were able to squeeze the camera in a 88.5 x 54.5 x 23 mm (wxhxd), 125g body with an incredibly efficient layout that leaves almost no spaces between components. *2: PENTAX’s proprietary lens system that offsets the central lens groups from the optical axis and houses the lenses in two separate stages in the lens barrel to reduce the overall lens length and thereby minimize the body depth.
4. Elegant, stylish design
The beautiful form of the Optio A10 is attained through numerous refinements such as the highly textured aluminum alloy exterior, the 12-faceted accent lens ring, and the connector cover designed to blend in with the camera. While exuding a sense of style and sophistication, the design has not overlooked the camera’s grip or operability. The position of each control component has been optimized through operational tests and a Handing indentation has been added to the left side of the camera’s topside surface.
5. Intuitive Mode Palette
The Mode Palette, which lists various modes on the LCD monitor, lets you quickly and expertly navigate through and select from the 15 shooting modes and 15 playback modes. And by using the translucent through display, which superimposes mode icons over the LCD monitor image, changing settings while framing the subject could not be easier.
6. Auto Picture Mode
The Auto Picture Mode makes taking photos even easier and even more fun. Selecting the Auto Picture Mode from the shooting Mode Palette has the camera automatically select the mode from Portrait, Landscape, Night Scene, or Standard according to the shooting conditions.
7. High-quality movie mode with long recording times
The Optio A10 smoothly captures movies at 30 fps (frames per second) at sizes up to 640×480 pixels with image quality rivaling camcorders. Since it employs the DivX® MPEG-4 movie format,3 the Optio A10 can record longer, high-quality movies. Camera shake can also be corrected automatically by switching on the Movie anti-Shake feature.4 *3 The Optio A10 is DivX® certified. Movie playback is not supported on Macintosh operating systems. *4 Using the Movie anti-Shake feature results in a narrower field of view than normal.
8. High-definition, easy-to-view LCD monitor
Despite its slimness, the Optio A10 manages to fit in a large, 2.5-inch LCD monitor with the clarity of approximately 232,000 pixels. The monitor is easy to see even in bright locations because of its backlight and low-reflection type. All of this means it is easier to navigate menus, make settings, and compose shots as well as to display crisper, more beautiful images.
9. Other features
(1) Precise autofocus with a tracking AF function feature (2) Candlelight mode allows high-sensitivity shooting at a Standard Output Sensitivity of 800 (3) Approximately 24 MB of built-in memory; supports external SD memory cards (4) Built-in AF-assist light (can be switched on or off) (5) Frame composite function can add decorative frames to images (6) Pan-focus function for effortless snapshots (7) Convenient image-rotation display for confirmation of vertical shots (8) ACDSee for PENTAX image viewer/image management software (9) FotoNation’s red-eye compensation function for flash photography (10) USB 2.0 (HI-SPEED) compatible (11) DPOF functions, Exif Print, and PRINT Image Matching III compatible (12) PictBridge compatible
{ 0 comments… add one now }