The Technical Image Press Association (TIPA), which is made up of an international consortium of photo magazine editors, recently voted on the best imaging products of 2010. Below, you’ll find the categories and picks for the 2010 TIPA Awards. [Read more…]
Pentax K-x Hands-On
Editor’s note: Chris got some hands-on time with the Pentax K-x yesterday at the Pentax press event. He passed along a number of photos to share; however, he’s busy at the Pepcom event today. I wanted to get these hands-on images in front of you and highlight some of the key specs on the Pentax K-x.
The Pentax K-x headlines with a 12.4-megapixel CMOS sensor and video capture capability at 720p and 24fps. It packs a lot into a very small package at a very affordable price point – $650 for the single lens kit.
One of the more subtle, yet serious shooter features, is an 11-point AF system with 9 of those points being cross-type sensors. To put that specification into perspective, the much pricier Canon Rebel T1i offers a 9-point AF system with only cross-type sensor found at the center AF point. Better yet, the Canon 5D Mark II also has 9 AF points with a single cross-type sensor on the center point. So, Pentax is taking entry-level users seriously by spec’ing the K-x well above its price-point.
The Pentax K-x also matches the sensitivity of the Canon Rebel T1i with a range of ISO 100-12800 equivalent. We don’t have any samples to share yet; however, this is a bold spec that’s raising eyebrows.
What the Canon Rebel T1i and Nikon D5000 can’t do is provide image stabilization for every lens attached. The K-x has a sensor-based stabilization system, so no matter which lens is on the camera, the K-x will be working to reduce camera shake-induced blur.
As you can see from the photos here, the K-x is a rather compact DSLR, particularly when fitted with the wide angle smc-DA 15mm f/4 ED AL Limited lens shown above (top). Compact DSLRs have been quite the trend lately – Sony downsized its entry-level shooters without much more of a change and Nikon just dropped the compact and simple D3000 on the scene. The Pentax K-x fits rather nicely into the gamut of entry-level DSLRs with its compact size and feature set.
Hopefully, we’ll get our some time to take a closer look at the K-x soon and see if the performance and image quality are on par with the spec list. For now, it looks like Pentax has a real winner on its hands. If the K-x tastes as good as it looks (although the jury is still out on the red version), the K-x will definitely deserve some consideration on everyone’s entry-level DSLR shopping list.
More hands-on pics of the K-x below. [Read more…]