Olympus E-620

	Pentax K2000 Comparison Summary
The Pentax K2000 is built for value, priced at $599.99 including lens and an external flash. We were impressed with how much you get for your money with this camera, including  respectable lab-tested performance, solid construction and easy-to-manage controls. The Olympus E-620 is clearly a more advanced camera, with a host of options for tailoring the shooting experience to your personal preferences, a wide variety of bracketing options and  Live View, which Pentax left out, along with a superior articulated LCD screen. When it comes to performance testing, though, the less expensive Pentax holds its own. The two cameras are neck and neck in resolution and, while the Olympus posted superior color accuracy scores, the Pentax and Olympus are neck and neck in resolution, while the Pentax is significantly better on dynamic range, white balance and image noise.
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	Comparison Specifications
	Olympus E-620	Pentax K2000
Price	$799.99 w/14-42mm lens	$599.95 w/18-55mm lens and flash, $679.95 w/ 18-55 and 50-200mm lenses (in white)
Dimensions	5.11 in/129.8mm (W) x 3.7 in/94.0mm x 2.36 in/59.9mm (D), 16.64 oz./472g	4.8 x 3.6 x 2.7 in/122 x 91 x 67mm 18.5 oz/ 524g
Resolution	12.3 megapixels	10.2 megapixels
Processor	TruePic III+ Image Processor	PRIME image processing engine
Sensor size/type	17.3mm x 13.0mm Live MOS	23.5 x 15.7mm, Interline interlace CCD with primary color filter and integrated Shake/Dust Reduction sensor movement system
Kit Lens	14-42mm f/3.5-5.6	18-55mm; 50-200mm
Viewfinder	95% field of view, 0.96x magnification	96% field of view, 0.85x magnification
LCD	230,000 pixel, 2.7 inch articulated LCD	230,000 pixel, 2.7 inch
Live View	Manual focus Autofocus: High speed imager AF, Phase-difference detection AF, Face Detection	No
Shutter Speed	1/4000 to 60 sec, bulb up to 30 minutes	1/4000 to 30 sec, bulb
Burst Speed	1-4 frames per second	3.5 frames per second
Autofocus	TTL phase-difference detection system, 7 points (11 points in Live View)	TTL phase-matching 5 point wide autofocus
Exposure Compensation	±5 EV in 1/3, 1/2, 1 EV steps	±2 EV in 1/3 or 1/2 steps
Noise Reduction	High ISO (three levels), Long Exposure	High ISO (three levels), Long Exposure
ISO range	ISO 100-3200 in 1/3 or 1 EV	ISO 100-3200 (1, 1/2, 1/3 steps)
Flash	Retractable flash, GN=17 @ISO200, (GN=12 @ISO 100.m)	Retractable P-TTL auto/manual popup flash
Media Format	JPEG, RAW	JPEG, RAW
Movie Mode	No	No
Media Type	CF (UDMA compatible), xD	SD, SDHC
Connections	Proprietary USB	Proprietary USB out, Video out
Other Hardware	No	AF200FG flash

Performance
In our lab testing, the Olympus E-620 posted superior performance in color accuracy and burst mode shooting, and the two cameras were comparable in resolution, with good results. On all of our other tests, though, the inexpensive Pentax was the better choice, including far more accurate white balance and dynamic range. Neither camera is going to win awards for its handling of image noise but, even here, the Pentax scored significantly higher.

Components
The most notable missing link in the Pentax component rundown is Live View; the Olympus E-620 offers a reasonable implementation of the feature, the Pentax doesn't offer it at all. While both LCDs are the same size and resolution, the E-620 offers the articulated hinge and HyperCrystal technology that make it more flexible and easier to use in low light (though this is, of course, more important if you're using Live View). Both cameras are quite small and, while the Olympus appears more solidly built than the Pentax, we were impressed with the quality of the value-priced K2000 as well. One surprising feature in the $600 Pentax bundle is an external flash unit, which retails alone for about $100. Unfortunately, it doesn't offer bounce flash capability, which makes it a less valuable add-on.

Handling
The Pentax K2000 has a much simpler, less cluttered design, with fewer direct-access buttons. That can mean slower shooting, but both camera offer well-designed LCD-screen control systems that put key settings at your fingertips. As for the way the cameras feel in your hands, the Pentax has a deeper righthand grip, making it easier to hold steadily compared to the stubbier Olympus design.

Controls
The Olympus E-620 provides a greater range of customization options than the Pentax K2000, allowing the sophisticated shooter to tailor the camera to his or her personal preferences, though some of these options are buried deep in the complex menu system. The top ISO and shutter speeds are the same for the two cameras, though the Olympus offers significantly faster burst-rate shooting. And both cameras ladle on the flashy filter features, with the six Art Filters provided in the E-620 competing against the six Filter Effects of the K2000. We found the Art Filters more interesting to shoot, though the Pentax offers two options we wish Olympus would adopt: the flexibility of adding the filter effects after you shoot rather than in the original photo, and settings that let you adjust the intensity of the filter's manipulation.

	ISO Examples
	Olympus E-620	Pentax K2000
ISO 100
	Olympus E-620	Pentax K2000
ISO 200
	Olympus E-620	Pentax K2000
ISO 400
	Olympus E-620	Pentax K2000
ISO 800
	Olympus E-620	Pentax K2000
ISO 1600
	Olympus E-620	Pentax K2000
ISO 3200

NOTE: The images above are not used in our testing or scoring, but are included here to show real-world examples of the differences between cameras at the various ISO settings.