Change views. Not lenses.

Small in stature. Big in power. The PENTAX X70 packs the capability and control of 12.0 megapixels and a 24X zoom lens into a convenient, compact build. It’s the heart of a DSLR in the body of a compact camera.

Product Features

• 24X wide-angle optical zoom
  The 24X optical zoom is equivalent to 26–624mm, making it ideal for close-up as well as distant shots. Whatever your need – landscapes, group shots, wildlife, sports, and more – this camera’s got you covered.
• 12.0 megapixels
  An impressive 12.0 megapixel CCD captures large, detailed images, which can be printed as 11x14 -inch enlargements (and larger) in clear resolution with impressive image quality.
• High Resolution 2.7 inch LCD screen
  The large, bright 2.7 inch LCD screen lets you easily compose, capture, and review your images and video with great clarity. You can also use the built-in electronic viewfinder to frame and shoot, so you know you’ll be able to get the shot in any lighting situation.
• Triple Shake Reduction technology
  The X70 boasts three Shake Reduction technologies to reduce camera shake and blurring of the subject: Mechanical Shake Reduction via a CCD shift mechanism, Digital Shake Reduction via high ISO, and Movie Shake Reduction for blur-free video capture.
• High-speed continuous shooting
  With high-speed continuous shooting at 11 FPS, the X70 makes sure you get the winning shot, even in with the fastest action.
• Fast Face Detection
  With PENTAX’s face detection technology, the camera quickly and automatically sees up to 32 faces in 0.03 seconds, so portraits and group shots are bright and focused, even in backlit situations.
• Flexible movie capture
  HD movie capture vividly captures moving memories in widescreen 720p (15 FPS) as well as full speed 848x480, VGA, and QVGA resolutions.
• Super Macro mode
  Close focusing, Super Macro mode brings out the details in even the smallest subjects as close as 1 cm from the lens.

Product Specs

Pentax K-7’s Review

wired.com

06/02/09

Super Svelte Shooter Pushes Prosumer Performance

In a time when people are tightening their belts like Christian Bale in The Machinist and scrutinizing each purchase, Pentax introduces a pocketbook-friendly prosumer DSLR body that’s bursting with useful features, some only found on cameras costing two or more times its $1300 price tag.

Demonstrating that it’s serious about making a run at the top-end offerings from Canon and Nikon, the K-7 bows with a spankin’ new 14.6 megapixel, 28.1mm (diagonal) CMOS image sensor and an updated Prime II processor that enables HD-video capture, built-in high dynamic range shooting, a 77-segment metering system, pre- and post production filtering and distortion correction all in a form factor more than 10 percent smaller (and actually easier to handle) than its predecessor, the K20D.

Pentax prides itself on rugged cameras and the K-7 makes no deviation from that heritage. The magnesium-alloy clad body has more than 70 weather seals that fairly ensure you’ll be able to keep firing away in some soppy conditions.

Beyond its unimpeachable durability Pentax has gamely tackled one of digital imaging’s biggest bugaboos — white balance. At times even the highest end pro models struggle, especially with fluorescent lighting. In our testing, the K-7 gives those heavyweights a lesson when it comes to getting the color right. Even in the toughest mixed-lighting conditions, the Pentax achieved excellent color reproduction. Plus the K-7 includes four unique fluorescent light presets and postsets, so you can tune the color temperate to either your eye or the temp of the bulbs.

Speaking of settings, the K-7 has a raft of in-camera digital filters so you can overlay multiple effects like monochrome, Holga-like softness and vignetting, fisheye, star bursting, color. Even tastier, your in-camera adjustments are saved as a new file, so you won’t lose the original image. High dynamic range (HDR in shutterbug parlance) image making as a post-production effect has become quite popular.

The K-7’s new processor allows you to make HDR images in the camera by snapping off three frames in fast succession and then merges them for you, eliminating the need to own costly post-production software. Our results were not as refined as Photoshop or Photomatix can produce, but the savings in time and money make a big difference. It’s good to note that if you intend to use the HDR feature a lot, keeping things steady with a tripod will certainly enhance your results.

High-definition video is probably the buzziest of buzzwords in DSLRs today and Pentax has jumped into the deep end with the K-7, which records 702p at 30 frames-per-second, something none of its more expensive competitors can claim. With selectable video output through the on-board HDMI port you can see your movies in 1080i, 720p or 480p depending on how you’ll watch it. Our results with the video were very good, but we’re still not totally sold on video from a DSLR no matter who’s selling it.

Finally, one area where superior Japanese engineering doesn’t always translate in the American market is with a camera’s user interface, and the K-7 is no exception. By and large, it’s a super quick focusing compact image-maker — once you learn how the menu system works. But it’s just a step or two behind Nikon and Canon in ease of use. In spite of that, Pentax has nearly hit a home run with the K-7. It’s svelte, sturdy, fairly easy to operate, has a great range of available lenses and a feature set that’s unmatched at this price. Think of it as a solid double with an RBI.

WIRED Speedy 5.2 frames per second. Super sturdy construction. Lots of pro features at a prosumer price. Improved battery life and 100 percent field-of-view viewfinder. Faster, more robust processor. Live View with contrast focus and face detection. Shoots 5.2 frames-per-second with shutter speed up to 1/8000. The 77-segment metering system and 11-point AF system are quick and spot on. Internal mechanical shake reduction.

TIRED User interface needs to be simpler and more unified.