Pentax DSLRs receive the highest customer satisfaction ratings, according to a new survey of camera owners.

The survey, conducted by global market research firm JD Power and Associates, collected responses from DSLR owners who used an e-commerce site to make their purchase.

The study found that Pentax ranks highest in online buyer satisfaction with a score of 899 (on a 1,000-point scale), followed closely by Nikon (891) and Canon (888).

The study – conducted from May 2011 to April 2012 – measured customer satisfaction with DSLR cameras across five factors: picture quality (including picture clarity, sharpness and color); durability and reliability (including damage resistance, battery life and sturdiness); variety of features (including zoom, image stabilization and low light settings); ease of operation; and shutter speed/lag time (overall speed of the camera, including shutter lag time).

Pentax performed best in durability and reliability; variety of features; ease of operation; and shutter speed/lag time, according to those who responded to the survey, while Canon performed best in the picture quality factor.

The report also found that online buyers of DSLR cameras pay $1,291, on average, for their camera, up from $937 in 2011.

“Pentax’s customer base has shifted since 2011 from casual photographers to those who consider themselves semiprofessional or professional photographers,” said Sara Wong Hilton, director at J.D. Power and Associates.

“In fact, across the industry, the results indicate a slight increase in self-identified semiprofessional photographers, possibly leading to the purchase of more high-end camera systems.”

Click here to see the report from JD Power and Associates.

READ MORE

Full Frame DSLR: do you really need one?
49 awesome photography tips and time savers
99 common photography problems (and how to solve them)
33 myths of the professional photographer
Digital Cameras: what the manual doesn’t teach you

This latest addition to the popular Pentax K series features 16.28-megapixel resolution with a newly developed CMOS image sensor measuring 23.7mm by 15.7mm, as well as high-speed burst shooting, an extra-wide sensitivity range with a top sensitivity of ISO 25600 and Full HD video recording.

Personal touches can be added to recorded clips using various Custom Functions. Alternatively, the subject can be recorded in a series of video clips using the interval movie shooting mode.

The Pentax K-01 also comes with an HDMI terminal, which allows the user to simultaneously output both Full HD movie clips and stereo sound. It also has an external microphone input terminal. In addition, the Pentax K-01 features the new “PRIME M” imaging engine to ensure first-rate movie recording performance.

The new Pentax mirrorless camera also features the Pentax K lens mount, so users can make effective use of their entire range of PENTAX lenses, including those produced for film-format SLR cameras.

Also on board is a new HDR mode, which produces one extra-wide-gradation composite photo from three images taken at different exposure levels and can be instantly selected with a turn of the mode dial.

The Pentax K-01 also features 19 digital filters, such as Miniature effect which makes a real life scene appear as an image full of miniature models. Users can apply multiple digital filters to a single image.

Other key specs of the K-01 include an aluminium body designed by Marc Newson, 5 frames per second burst mode, shutter speed range of 1/4000-30 secs, high-res 920k-dot 3 inch LCD and DNG raw file shoooting.

The Pentax K-01 will be available from the end March 2012, priced £629.99 body only, or you can get the Pentax K-01 + 40mm DA XS lens kit for £679.99, the Pentax K-01 + DAL 18-55mm lens kit also for £679.99 or the K-01 + DAL 18-55mm lens + DAL 50-200mm twin lens kit for £799.99.

With a nod to Pentax’s original medium-format film 645 camera system, the new digital version looks and feels every bit as solid as its well-respected 1980s-era ancestor, sporting a similarly intuitive design. Despite its retro looks, however, the Pentax 645D is equipped with up-to-date photography technologies and plenty of advanced functionality: all in an easy-to-use package.

Read our full review of the Pentax 645D on TechRadar.

It can be difficult to keep track of Pentax’s D-SLR range. There seem to have been so many slight variations on existing models and so much overlap between them. But maybe the new K-x will sort it all out. This is Pentax’s brand new entry-level D-SLR, though its price and features seem to place it a couple of rungs up the ladder.

Pentax K-x Review: Overview

The key features include a new 12.4 megapixel sensor, Live View with contrast detection AF (and Face Detection) and a High-Definition 1,280×720 movie mode running at 24 frames per second (fps). Where most basic SLRs are content to stumble along at a modest 3fps in Continuous Shooting mode, the K-x can shoot at 4.7fps. You get an 11-point autofocus system, built-in anti-shake (and Pentax’s is the best), plus a dust-removal system with a dust alert mode to highlight any debris clinging to the sensor and an on-demand cleaning cycle to shift it.

Unusually, the K-x runs on a set of four AAs rather than a rechargeable lithium-ion battery. Pentax claims up to 1,300 shots on a set of lithium disposables, and our camera managed a couple of hundred on a set of alkalines and still displayed full power at the end of it (though it did drop into the red during more intense spells of shooting).

Pentax K-x Review: Overview
Pentax K-x Review:  Image Quality
Pentax K-x Review:  Verdict
Pentax K-x Review: Price, Specifications and Product Images

Pentax K-x Review: Image Quality

Pentax continues to incorporate the kind of features that won’t make the headlines but will make a difference to your shots. Dynamic range is one of these. In previous models, Pentax has incorporated a dynamic range expansion feature that appears to selectively adjust the ISO in real time in different parts of the scene – much better than postprocessing fixes such as Nikon’s D-Lighting. It’s now been enhanced so that you can opt to increase highlight and shadow detail independently. It works, too. JPEGs show the kind of extra highlight detail you would previously have needed to shoot RAW to achieve. There’s also a dedicated HDR mode, which shoots two different exposures and blends them in-camera. A tripod is needed to ensure the two shots line up, but it works pretty well.

Common bugbears with D-SLRs (or rather their lenses) are chromatic aberration and distortion. Pentax’s 18-55mm lens suffers from both, but the K-x can process them out, and it does a very good job of it too. However, it can’t fix the edge softness that’s also a characteristic of this lens, which appears to be a cheapened version of Pentax’s usual 18-55mm with a plastic rear mount and no distance scale on the focus ring. There are some autofocus issues, too. First, the kit lens sounds more like a coffee grinder than a lens. This is more serious than it might seem, because it colours your whole impression of the camera. It makes you think the K-x itself is crude, even agricultural, and it’s not.

The other downside is that there’s no AF point illumination in the viewinder. Why have an 11-point focus system if you can’t tell which AF point’s being used? This seems like a serious omission. However, the new control layout is a success. Pentax has abandoned its sloppy, multi-directional control pads in favour of single, separate buttons, and an interactive interface that lets you select an icon for the setting you want to adjust, then spin the control wheel to change the setting.

Picture quality is striking. The definition is about what you’d expect from a 12-megapixel APS-C sensor and a modest kit lens, but the colour and contrast is terrific. Some may find them too rich, but if you’re an ex-film user who misses the depth and vibrancy of Velvia or Sensia, say, this is like coming home.

Pentax K-x Review: Overview
Pentax K-x Review:  Image Quality
Pentax K-x Review:  Verdict
Pentax K-x Review: Price, Specifications and Product Images

Pentax K-x Review: Verdict

Features: 5/5

On the surface, the K-x is a starter camera; underneath it’s got real appeal for enthusiasts.

Performance: 4/5

Great image quality, weak lens. With no illumination and noisy motors, the slick AF system is wasted.

Handling:  4/5

The K-x is laid out like an old-school camera, so will please beginners and experienced photographers.

Build quality: 4/5

The body is good; the controls have been rethought and reworked, and it’s really helped.

Value for money: 4/5

If you look at it as a starter camera, the K-x is expensive, but you certainly get your money’s worth.

Other makers concentrate on smooth, slick, electronic inesse before hands-on photographic tools. Pentax does it the other way round. First impressions can be negative as a result, but the K-x reafirms Pentax’s forte: making gutsy, old-style SLRs.
 
Pentax K-x Review: Overview
Pentax K-x Review:  Image Quality
Pentax K-x Review:  Verdict
Pentax K-x Review: Price, Specifications and Product Images

Pentax K-x Specifications, Price and Product Images
 

Pentax K-x Review: Overview
Pentax K-x Review:  Image Quality
Pentax K-x Review:  Verdict
Pentax K-x Review: Price, Specifications and Product Images

‘Just a hold a Pentax’ – so the advertising slogan went over 30 years ago. To be honest, it could be used to promote the K-7, its new flagship DSLR. The K-7 is a 14.6-megapixel camera body aimed at photographers of all levels, with a guide price of £1,230 – including the 18-55mm AL zoom lens. At this price, it’s pitched near popular models such as the Canon EOS 50D, Nikon D300 and Olympus E-30, as well as newcomers including the Panasonic GH1.

Pentax K-7 Review: Overview

With the K-7’s long features list, it’s worth spending a little time with the instruction manual to set the camera up properly to suit your needs. Press the Menu button and you’re into the first of 15 different pages. The default opening page is the first of four that covers key camera options including image quality, D-range setting and selecting filters. The latter gives such options as toy camera, starburst and fisheye, and effects can be previewed by using the depth-of-field preview facility.

It takes a few seconds and if you like the preview, the image can be saved which also takes a few seconds. To tailor camera controls and engage features such as EV Steps, Noise Reduction and ISO Sensitivity Steps, you have to navigate to the ‘C’ menu, where there are no fewer than six pages for the 37 custom functions. The menu system is usable but slow and not the K-7’s inest hour. It’s annoying that it always goes back to the default page and not the one last-used, which would seem more sensible.

Side-stepping the menu, there’s plenty to enjoy, including digital filters, multiple exposure and HDR Capture. The latter has two strengths, standard and strong, and when the shutter release is pressed, the mirror lips up and three different exposures are made. About 15 seconds later you see the merged result. It’s worth noting  that the digital filter and HDR features only work with JPEG format. Much better in terms of functionality are the four buttons around the OK switch that control White Balance, Flash and Drive. The fourth control is the Custom Image function, which enables you to pick one of 7 modes that fine-tune colour reproduction to your taste. Among the options are Vibrant, Muted, Landscape and Monochrome settings. In each Colour mode you can further adjust the parameters of Saturation, Hue, High/Low Key, Contrast and Sharpness. In Monochrome, toning and filter effects can be applied.

Pentax K-7 Review: Overview

Pentax K-7 Review: Handling and Image quality

Pentax K-7 Review: Test shots

Pentax K-7 Review: Verdict

Pentax K-7 Review: Price, specification and product images

Pentax K-7 Review: Handling and Image quality

Once set up, using the K-7 can begin in earnest and it’s here that the camera shows its class. The compact body its the hands well, the shutter and drive mechanism are quiet and discreet, while the autofocus is responsive, although it emits a slight whine. Pentax does have ultrasonic focusing technology, but it hasn’t found its way onto its cheaper lenses yet.

Look through the viewinder and you’re rewarded with an image that shows 100 per cent of what will be recorded by the sensor; you get 100 per cent coverage in Live View too. Speaking of Live View, this works with Contrast Autofocusing and also has a Face Detection AF mode. We found focusing in Live View was twitchy in anything other than perfect conditions, so it pays to check that the image is sharp before moving on.

The K-7’s 77-segment exposure meter does a good job in demanding conditions and it was only in extreme contrast that it needed help by using Compensation or the Autoexposure Lock. Complementing the quiet shutter is the motordrive that zips along at just over 5fps in its Continuous High mode. In the best JPEG mode, we got 23 images at this rate using a SanDisk Extreme III SD card before the camera slowed to about one shot per second. In RAW only (DNG setting) we got 14 frames at top speed before the camera slowed to one shot every two seconds. Shooting RAW and JPEG, the camera gave ten shots at top shooting speed. We shot RAW and JPEG simultaneously for most of our test shots. Pentax has its own RAW format but the processing software wasn’t available at the time of testing, so we used the DNG format that can be processed in Adobe Photoshop.

Image quality is great. Comparing the JPEG with the converted RAW of the same image the JPEG is noticeably noisier. The difference between JPEG and RAW files is more marked as you ascend the ISO scale, until you hit ISO 6400, where the JPEG looks smoother than the RAW. At more usual ISO settings, such as ISO 100 and 200, images are very clean and colour reproduction is accurate and nicely saturated. All in all, The  K-7 showed itself to be a highly capable DSLR performer.

Pentax K-7 Review: Overview

Pentax K-7 Review: Handling and Image quality

Pentax K-7 Review: Test shots

Pentax K-7 Review: Verdict

Pentax K-7 Review: Price, specification and product images

Pentax K-7 Review: Test shots

Click to see full-sized versions of the images.

Pentax K-7 Review: Overview

Pentax K-7 Review: Handling and Image quality

Pentax K-7 Review: Test shots

Pentax K-7 Review: Verdict

Pentax K-7 Review: Price, specification and product images

Pentax K-7 Review: Verdict

There is much to like and enjoy on the Pentax K-7. It’s a quality product with great handling, plenty of features and it delivers image files that are capable of big prints. Its price could put off the uncommitted but existing Pentax owners should form a queue.

Features: 5/5
The K-7 has an impressive list of useful features that will satisfy all but the most demanding photographer.

Performance: 4/5
This is a DSLR capable of very high quality images and noise is only an issue at ISO 3200 and above.

Handling: 4/5
Overall handling is very good but Pentax needs to look at the menu, which could be so much better.

Build Quality: 4/5
The body might be compact but it has a robust, solid feel that instils confidence.

Value for Money: 4/5
It’s pricey given the quality of its opposition. Nevertheless, you get a lot of camera for the money.

Pentax K-7 Review: Overview

Pentax K-7 Review: Handling and Image quality

Pentax K-7 Review: Test shots

Pentax K-7 Review: Verdict

Pentax K-7 Review: Price, specification and product images

Pentax K-7 Review: Price, specification and product images

Pentax K-7 Review: Overview

Pentax K-7 Review: Handling and Image quality

Pentax K-7 Review: Test shots

Pentax K-7 Review: Verdict

Pentax K-7 Review: Price, specification and product images

It features impressive underwater credentials and copes well in the cold, but the Pentax Optio W60 lets itself down with a lack of shockproofing and fiddly, poorly thought-out controls.

The Pentax W60 may look and feel cheaper than many other rugged cameras, but it can go to a fairly impressive 4m underwater, albeit for only two hours.

It’s not shockproof, though, and while it will work at -10 degrees, the battery indicator goes down to empty. Our W60 did carry on working, mind, so that’s not to say the battery was about to give up.

Controls are this camera’s weak point. Buttons are sloppy and tightly packed, so the only way to press them reliably is with your thumbnail – not ideal with gloves on. Plus to adjust settings, you have to plod through the main menu system.

Having said that, the W60 is good for the money. You get a 5x zoom range, and pictures are crisp, though it does tend to underexpose.