Digital Camera review for Pentax Optio M10

Pentax optio M10 is a 6 mega pixel, 3x optical zoom digital, movie with sound and a 2.5" LCD screen. The Optio M10 is a compact sized digital camera with full automatic functions and pre set scene modes for ease of use. Movie: MOV (QuickTime Motion JPEG) approx. 20fps with sound. The other feature of this camera is Pentax Optio M10 incorporates an ultra-efficient power management system to save battery consumption.

The main Pentax Optio M0 specifications are;

Type:: Compact-type digital still camera with built-in zoom lens, autofocus, auto exposure and auto flash
Effective Pixels:: 6.0 megapixels
Image Capture Device:: Type – 1/2.5 inch interline transfer CCD with a primary color filter; Total Pixels - 6.18 megapixels; Color Depth - 12 bit x 3 colors; Recorded Pixels - Still: 6M (2816x2112 pixels), 5M (2560x1920 pixels), 4M (2304x1728), 3M (2048x1536), 2M (1600x1200 pixels), 0.8M (1024x768), 0.3M (640x480 pixels); Movie: 320x240, 160x120 at 30fps, 15fps
Focus System:: Type - TTL contrast detection autofocus system; Autofocus – 9-point Multi AF, Spot, Tracking AF; Focusing Range - Auto Focus: Normal - 2.3 ft (0.7m) to Infinity; Wide Macro - 4.0 inches (0.1 m) to 2.62 ft (0.6 m) at 5.8mm; Tele Macro - 1.31 ft (0.4m) to 2.62 ft (0.6m) at 17.4mm
Lens:: Type - PENTAX power zoom; Focal Length – 5.8mm – 17.4mm; 35mm Equivalent - 35mm - 105mm; Aperture Range – F2.8 –F4.9; Construction - 6 elements in 5 groups (2 aspherical elements); Optical Zoom - 3X; Digital Zoom - 4X; Combined - Approx. 12X
Exposure Control:: Light Metering Method - TTL multi segment metering; Sensitivity - Auto, or User select ISO 64, 100, 200, 400; Exposure Control Method - Program AE; Exposure Modes - Green, Program, Picture, Movie, Voice recording; Exposure Compensation - +/-2 EV (1/3 steps); Shutter - Type: Programmed AE electronic lens shutter with CCD electronic shutter; Shutter Speed - Approx. 1/1500 – 2 seconds White Balance - White Balance Control: TTL Auto, Manual; Available Settings – Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten light, Fluorescent light; Flash - Operation Modes: Auto, Flash-off, Flash-on, Red-eye reduction; Effective Range - Approx. 13 ft (4m) (5.8mm at Sensitivity Auto), Approx. 8.2 ft (2.5m) (17.4mm at Sensitivity Auto)
Shooting Specifications:: Picture Modes – Night scene, Landscape, Flower, Portrait, Surf & Snow, Sport, Kids, Pet, Soft, Firework, Food, Self-portrait; Digital Filter - Playback: Black & White, Sepia, Red, Pink, Purple, Blue, Green, Yellow, Soft, Brightness; Drive Modes - Single-shot, Continuous, Self-timer, Photo frame Movie Mode - Shooting Time: from approx. 1 sec. to memory card capacity
Time:: Modes - dd/mm/yy, mm/dd/yy, yy/mm/dd
Image Storage:: Storage Media - Approx. 22MB built-in memory, SD memory card removable; File Formats - Still: JPEG (Exif 2.2), DCF 1.1 (Design rule for Camera File system), DPOF 1.0(Digital Print Order Format), PRINT Image Matching III; Movie: MOV (QuickTime Motion JPEG) approx. 20fps with sound
LCD/Viewfinder:: Optical Viewfinder – N/A; LCD Monitor – 2.5 inch, Low reflection TFT color LCD; LCD Coverage – Approx. 100%; LCD Resolution - Approx. 115,000 pixels
Playback Specifications:: Playback Modes File - Single, Index - Nine image; Magnification – Maximum 8X; LCD Function - Scroll, Image rotation, Slide show, Movie playback (w/sound), Resize, Trimming, Digital filter, Movie edit, Picture frame, Red-eye removal, Calendar; Erase and Image Protect Modes - Single, All
PictBridge:: One image printing, All image printing, DPOF auto print, Paper size
Language:: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Swedish, Dutch, Japanese, Chinese, Korean
Interfaces:: Type - AV output terminal, USB terminal; Video Output - Compatible with NTSC and PAL formats (monaural sound)
Power Supply:: Two AA Batteries (Alkaline or rechargeable NiMH), AC adaptor kit (optional) (allows approximately 640 shots* with 2500mAh NiMH, 220 shots* with Alkaline) * According to CIPA-compliant testing (with LCD monitor on and flash used for 50% of the shots)
Physical Specifications:: Operating Temperatures - 32 degrees to 104 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees to 40 degrees Celsius); Camera Casing - Plastic; Dimensions (W x H x D) - 3.5 x 2.3 x 1.0 inches (89 x 60 x 25mm); Weight – 4.2 oz. (120g) without battery and SD memory card, 5.8 oz. (165g) loaded and ready
Computer System Requirements:: Mac Requirements - OS: Mac OS 9.2 or later, standard equipped USB port; PC Requirements - OS: Windows 98, 98SE, Me, 2000, XP Home edition, XP Professional, standard equipped USB port (USB Driver install required for Win 98/98 SE)

What's in the Box:
Optio M10 Camera, USB Cable I-USB7 (39551), AV Cable I-AVC7(B) (39553), Strap O-ST20 (39195), (2) AA Alkaline Batteries, Software S-SW48 (CD-ROM)

Test Results:

Automatic mode Day shot testing (Outdoor):

Testing setting: Automatic mode, auto white balance, flash off, 6M super fine (3 star) quality and tripod is not used.

Nice and easy, that's all I can say about the photos taken by Pentax Optio M10.

(Photos have been resized to 500X375 pixels)

Auto focus 3X optical Zoom
 

Macro testing:

Testing setting: Macro mode, auto white balance, flash off, 6M pixel superfine quality and tripod is not used.

Pentax Optio M10 digital camera has good macro quality 3-4cm close up to the subject. We can se the flower clearly with good sharpness.

(Photos have been resized to 500X375 pixels)

approx. 3-4cm close up

Night shot testing (Outdoor):

Testing setting: preset Night shot mode, auto white balance, flash off, superfine quality and tripod is used.

Pentax Optio M10 is also easy to use with its night shot mode. With a tripod set up, users just need to point and shoot. As we can see the night shot photos bellow, there is less noise generated comparing to other compact size digital cameras. (Photos have been resized to 500X375 pixels)

Auto focus

 Night Shot Mode 3X Optical Zoom in

Home