Model Design / Appearance (7.5)
The Optio Z10’s small and sleek body makes it one of the most attractive cameras produced by Pentax. It has a black matte shell with a few chrome highlights and elements to add some visual interest. Overall, the camera looks good.
Size / Portability (7.5)
The Z10 has dainty measurements of 3.7 x 2.3 x 1 inches. The camera is thinner, at about 0.8 inches, but its siding lens cover adds just enough to make it an inch thick. This cover is one of the things that separates the Z10 from its sister model, the S10. The S10 has a 3x lens that extends from the camera and does not have a lens cover, but does have a 0.8-inch thin body. This Optio weighs 4.4 ounces unloaded and 5.1 ounces when the battery and memory card are inserted.
There is a wrist strap eyelet on the right side where users can loop the included strap into it and carry it like a giant charm on a bracelet.
Handling Ability (5.0)
This camera is about the width of two pancakes and handles similarly to the breakfast food. Maybe not even that well. The Z10 is a box of a camera and doesn’t provide any hand grip to make long photo shoots comfortable. It isn’t built for long photo shoots, though: it’s made to whip out of a pocket and snap an occasional picture. The sliding lens cover provides some substance for the right fingers to hold, and the plastic bumps on the back are a feeble attempt to provide traction for the right thumb’s support. Handling is not a strong point for the Pentax Z10.
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 Control Button / Dial Positioning / Size (6.75)
The buttons on the back of the camera are small and plastic in contrast to the large, metal shutter release button on the top. The plastic buttons on the back make a high-pitched crackling noise when pushed in; they sound low-quality. They are small, but aren’t crammed together so tightly that they’ll be accidentally simultaneously pushed.
Menu (7.0)
The menu is easily accessible with the designated menu button to the lower right corner of the LCD screen. The menu’s contents vary depending on which recording mode is selected. The most options, outlined in the table below, are in the Program mode.
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Recorded Pixels
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8M, 5M, 4M, 3M, 2M, 1024, 640
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Quality Level
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Best, Better, Good
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White Balance
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Auto, Daylight, Shade, Tungsten Light, Fluorescent Light, Manual
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AF Setting
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Focusing Area (Multi, Center, Tracking), Focus Limiter (On, Off)
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AF Metering
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Multi-segment, Center-weighted, Spot
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Sensitivity
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Auto (64-100, 64-200, 64-400, 64-800, 64-1600, 64-3200), 64, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200
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EV Compensation
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-2, -1.7, -1.3, -1, -0.7, -0.3, 0, +0.3, +0.7, +1, +1.3, +1.7, +2
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Movie
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Recorded Pixels (640, 320), Quality Level (Best, Better, Good), Frame Rate (30, 15), Color Mode (Full Color, B&W, Sepia), Movie SR (On, Off), AF with recording (On, Off), Optical Zoom (On, Off)
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Digital Wide
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On, Off
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Digital Zoom
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On, Off
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Instant Review
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5 , 3, 2, 1, 0.5 sec, Off
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Memory
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Flash Mode, Drive Mode, Focus Mode, Zoom Position, MF Position, White Balance, Sensitivity, EV Compensation, AE Metering, Digital Zoom, Display, File No.
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Green Button
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Green Mode, Fn Setting
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Sharpness
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-1, 0, +1
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Saturation
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-1, 0, +1
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Contrast
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-1, 0, +1
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Date Imprint
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On, Off
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The menu items are spelled out in text, but there are some icons for the individual options. There aren’t many live views; that handy feature is only available for viewing white balance, exposure compensation, saturation, and contrast. The Setup menu only has one live view, for the brightness level of the LCD. The Setup menu is tucked in the menu system and accessible with a quick scroll to the right.
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Format
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Format, Cancel
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Sound
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Operation Volume (Off, 1-5), Playback Volume (Off, 1-5), Start-up Sound (1, 2, 3, Off, User), Shutter Sound (1, 2, 3, Off, User), Operation Sound (1, 2, 3, Off, User), Self-timer Sound (1, 2, 3, Off, User)
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Date Adjust
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Date Style (YMD order, 24/12 hr), Date, Time
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Alarm
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Alarm (Off, Once, Everyday), Time set
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World Time
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Select Time (Home, Away), Destination, Hometown (DST on, off)
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Language
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English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Russian, Thai, Korean, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Japanese
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Folder Name
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Standard, Date
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USB Connection
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PC, PictBridge
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Video Out
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NTSC, PAL
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Brightness Level
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+/- 3
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Power Saving
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2 min, 1 min, 30 sec, 15 sec, 5 sec, Off
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Auto Power Off
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5, 3 min, Off
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Guide Display
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On, Off
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Reset
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Reset, Cancel
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Perhaps the first thing users will do when they unbox the Pentax Z10 is try to turn off the annoying beeping operation noise. Sound number three may prove all too tempting: a soft meow is much more soothing while navigating a menu than a shrill beep.
Navigation is done using the multi-selector. There are arrows on the screen guiding users which way to push the selector to access certain options. Navigating isn’t very complicated, but the menus themselves are lengthy and there is no way to instantly jump to a certain page or set of options. It comes in one long list, although there is a page indicator (eg. 1/3) at the top of the screen. All in all, the text menus are intuitive, but not perfect.
Ease of Use (7.0)
The Pentax Optio Z10 has properly-labeled buttons and fairly intuitive menus, but neither are top of the line. The camera is missing a mode dial, which would have been a nice escape from the menu system altogether. The menus could have been organized more neatly, too. That said, the Z10 does have its “Green mode,” which is exceptionally easy to use. It can be accessed with the green button on the camera – not quite a mode dial, but as close as it gets on this camera. It automates everything and disables the menu system so beginners don’t get lost and confused.
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