Pentax Optio A10

Initial Performance Observations
Our testing at the CES show was limited to taking indoor shots, but we found them to be generally well-exposed and exhibiting good color. Noise may be an issue, though. At the higher ISO settings (the maximum is 400) we saw significant amounts of noise in shadows and dark colors.

Otherwise the camera was responsive. Startup time was acceptable, at around 1.5 seconds, which is mostly the time it takes for the lens to telescope out. The shutter lag was also bearable, at under half a second.

The shake reduction system performed well, preventing much of the blurring you would see if you were shooting after having too much coffee. But it can’t compensate for big movements, so it’s not an excuse to not bother holding the camera steady. Pentax also says that using the shake reduction system shortens the battery life, as it has to drive the motors that move the sensor.

Value
The A10 offers high resolution, high quality images, and is easy to use. But it falls somewhere between the really simple point-and-shoot cameras and the advanced cameras, and it’s missing many features of the latter. Perhaps we could invent a new category for it: Sort-of-Advanced-Point-and-Shoot-Cameras. But even so, some might quibble and find the price of $350 a little bit steep for what you get. Then again, if the street price drops below $325 or $300, it might be the most economic 8 megapixel alternative available.

Who It’s For
Point-and-Shooters - The A10 does an effective job of taking images quickly, and they’re 8MP images to boot. This is a good point-and-shoot camera.

Budget Consumers - There are cheaper cameras out there, but the A10 is well priced for an 8 megapixel model.

Gadget Freaks - It’s not as thin and small as cameras like the Exilim EX-S600, but the small profile and high resolution might appeal to a few gadget lovers.

Manual Control Freaks - The A10 is best avoided by these users – the lack of access to settings like shutter speed and aperture would make them disappointed.

Pros / Serious Hobbyists – Serious users may want this as their casual day-trip-with-the-kids camera rather than their digital SLR; it has high resolution, is a lot easier to use covertly, and is a heck of a lot more portable. But it’s not going usurp your D200 anytime soon.