Pentax Increases Optio[n]s

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It was just last month that Pentax added to its popular Optio line with the rugged WP but has that stopped it? Oh no, we think not!

The latest rabbits out of an apparently very large hat are the Optio S5n and Optio 50. The former (above) is a 5 megapixel camera with large two inch LCD and 3x optical zoom lens. It measures just 83 x 52 x 20.5mm and almost floats above the scales at just 105g. Storage is handled via an SD memory card slot, while a USB2.0 connection should ensure high speed image transfers between it and a PC.

Video can be shot at 640 x 480 resolution at up to 30 frames per second (fps). Interestingly, the S5n has integrated MPEG-4 image compression to help reduce the near infamous amount of space that is traditionally hogged by video footage taken on digital cameras (a camera I own myself – the maker of which shall remain anonymous - only manages nine minutes of video from a 1GB SD memory card]).

Next up is the Optio 50. A entry level camera, the 50 can nevertheless also shoot pictures at 5 megapixels and zoom in optically up to 3x. It is not quite so compact at 91 x 61 x 27mm but it is hardly a brick either and the weight is still lighter than the average smartphone at 130g. In addition, a 1.8in LCD should be fairly easy on the eyes.

There is no video capability on the Optio 50 but it does support PictBridge, the direct print standard released by the CIPA (Camera and Imaging Products Association), meaning you can plug it into a compatible printer via a USB cable and produce photographs without turning on a computer.

Both the S5n and 50 are available this month and will retail at prices of £249.99 and £149.99 respectively, including VAT.

Link:
Pentax UK

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