Pentax Optio WG-2 Digital Camera Review

Speed and Timing

Startup is fast and shutter lag is not a problem. But in terms of continuous or burst shooting, the WG-2 is sluggish, even by tough-cam standards.

Two drive modes are available: Continuous, which shoots at full res, and Burst, which shoots at 4 or 5 megapixels. An auto-bracketing drive mode is also available, shooting at +/- 1 EV stop, non-adjustable.

We measured a top speed of 1.87 shots per second at full resolution in continuous drive mode. That's about twice as fast as last year's WG-1, but very slow compared to any of its top-tier competitors in the adventure-cam category. It's puzzling, because backlit CMOS sensors usually enable speedy continuous shooting, but not here.

The typical 2-second and 10-second self-timer options are available, as is a remote-control setting. And as usual for Pentax, they've included an interval timer, programmable from 10 seconds to 99 minutes, and from 2 to 1,000 shots. A bit overboard, sure, but it's always better to have the option, right?