Manage updates with the Download AppPentax K-x (with 18-55mm and 50-300mm DA lens, Black)
Manufacturer: Pentax Part number: 15801
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Product series
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- A fast, inexpensive dSLR with better-than-average low-light quality, the Pentax K-x nevertheless has some flaws, such as unreliable image stabilization, to watch out for.
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Where to buy
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CNET editors' review
Pentax K-x (with 18-55mm and 50-300mm DA lens, Black) price range: $849.99
- Reviewed by: Lori Grunin
- Reviewed on: 03/10/2010
- Released on: 10/15/2009
The good: Very good noise profile; nice-size viewfinder for its class; relatively speedy.
The bad: Doesn't display AF points in viewfinder; no HDMI connector; slow Live View autofocus; mediocre LCD; unreliable image stabilization.
The bottom line: A fast, inexpensive dSLR with better-than-average low-light quality, the Pentax K-x nevertheless has some flaws, such as unreliable image stabilization, to watch out for.
User reviews
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Its been a great camera to use.
by tcwilson1 on March 12, 2010
Pros: The layout is very intuitive and the camera handles well. The best aspect of the "low light" ability is that it effectively makes all my lenses 1 -2 stops faster. Situations that required a flash can now be shot with ambient light.
Cons: There is not a lot of margin for error on the highlights in high contrast scenes with lots of highlights. I lower the EV by 1/3 stop and that gives me a little extra headroom.
Summary: I bought the camera because I was looking for value in my first dslr. I spent a lot of time considering other brands, but the Pentax caught my eye because ...
Summary: I bought the camera because I was looking for value in my first dslr. I spent a lot of time considering other brands, but the Pentax caught my eye because of the low-noise/low light abilities and I have not been disappointed. Its made the camera a very flexible tool and given me more options when considering the lighting of an exposure. The use of AA batteries has proven to be a plus. Rechargeable batteries are serving me very well. When I've used lithium batteries, they seem to have lasted forever.
The live view focus is slow, but when I tried other cameras, none seemed to be a speed demon. The TTL focus is very quick and has been accurate. I wish the camera had a HDMI output. But it has not been a big deal to just pull the SD card and plug that into computer or monitor.
Overall, I have been very satisfied with the camera and look forward to using it for a very long time. I would recommend it to any of my friends who were considering a dslr.1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Great camera, would have bought it for twice the price!
by surgedesign on July 14, 2010
Pros: Good low light shooting
Fast focus (viewfinder)
Good quality 720p HD video
Image quality comparable to Canon t1i
Live view for macro and studio workCons: No auto focus in movie mode (due to noise I would assume)
Slow contrast based focus in live view mode
Image stabilization could be better but really not that bad at allSummary: Great camera for the hobbyist who wants to take their photography further/the professional looking for a good backup. Thoroughly enjoyed the image quality and variety of features includes such ...
Summary: Great camera for the hobbyist who wants to take their photography further/the professional looking for a good backup. Thoroughly enjoyed the image quality and variety of features includes such as cross processing and digital filters among others. For action photography there isn't anything better, at 4.7 fps it is one of the fastest on the market. Image quality overall is great but where this camera excels is in low light conditions. I feel live view could have been made better with a pentaprism design but still to have the feature alone is great. All in all a great camera, Highly recommend. Believe it should have gotten a higher CNET rating as the issues they discuss really aren't much of an issue at all in my experience.
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low price ... high quality pictures/videos
by NiK_REVIEW on March 28, 2010
Pros: High picture quality, HD quality videos, price, no need to buy expensive vibration reduction or auto focus lenses - as these features are built in (body features)
Cons: I would say overall built quality or material used to manufacture this product (though it doesn't affect its performance at all)
Summary: Initially I was planning to buy Nikon D5000 (and fortunately it was in my budget). Thanks to Google/Bing. When I searched for comparison between entry level DSRLs and their ...
Summary: Initially I was planning to buy Nikon D5000 (and fortunately it was in my budget). Thanks to Google/Bing. When I searched for comparison between entry level DSRLs and their reviews I found that Pentax K-X is far better than its competitors (and it is very small ? lightweight). First of all, it has every feature at par with its competitors (I compared it with D5000, D3000, Canon Rebel) e.g. 720p HD movie recording, RGB primary color filter etc. In fact many features are quite new in entry level DSLR market considering its price. After doing lot of research I bought my K-x for less than 700$ with two kit lens (18-55mm and 50-200mm). I personally tested this camera with d5000 (used my friend?s camera) and results were astonishing. If I rate 4 star to D5000, I will give 4.5 star to K-x (yeh, 700$ with two kit zoom lens). Only thing I didn?t like about this camera is its build or material. It?s not that fancy or shiny like d5000, but its performance is awesome, just superb. If you are really into serious photography then I would suggest you to go for D90, it is the Boss else go for K-x. FYI I read about its video capture auto exposure problem. Frankly speaking it is not the problem but default factory setting. So all you need to do change auto exposure setting using camera menu.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Pentax
- Part number: 15801
- Description: The K-x combines a variety of advanced features and user-friendly functions to ensure an outstanding level of photographic performance within a compact, lightweight body. The K-x design is based on the award winning Pentax K-m, an entry-class digital SLR camera launched in October 2008 that gained popularity for its compact, lightweight body and simple, user-friendly operation. The K-x features a high performance CMOS image sensor and an upgraded filter function. It also features a whole host of advanced features and such as live view shooting and movie recording, approximately 12.4 megapixels and high-speed continuous shooting. The K-x is the perfect camera for first-time digital SLR camera users, as well as an ideal backup camera for more experienced photographers.
General
- Packaged Quantity 1
- Product Type Digital camera - SLR with Live View mode,
with Movie recording - Enclosure Color Black
- Resolution 12.4 megapixels
- Optical Sensor Type CMOS
- Total Pixels 12,900,000 pixels
- Effective Sensor Resolution 12,400,000 pixels
- Optical Sensor Size 15.8 x 23.6mm
- Sensor Dust Reduction Yes
- Sensor Features Special Protect (SP) coating,
Dust Reduction (image sensor vibration) - Optical Zoom 3 x
- Image Processor PRIME II
- Image Stabilizer Optical (image sensor shift mechanism)
- Auto Focus TTL contrast and phase detection
- Auto Focus Points (Zones) Qty 11
- Digital Video Format AVI,
MJPEG - Image Recording Format JPEG,
RAW,
RAW + JPEG - AV Interfaces Composite video/audio
Exposure & White Balance
- Light Sensitivity ISO 200-6400,
ISO 100,
ISO 12800,
ISO auto (200-6400) - Exposure Metering Multi-segment,
Center-weighted,
Spot - Exposure Metering Zones 16
- Exposure Modes ISO priority,
Program,
Bulb,
Shutter-priority,
Manual,
Aperture-priority - Shooting Programs Candle,
Action,
Night snapshot,
Night scene with portrait,
Sunset,
Stage,
Museum,
Night scene,
Surf & snow,
Food,
Pet,
Macro,
Kids,
Portrait mode,
Landscape - Special Effects Color Extract,
Starburst,
High contrast,
Toy camera,
Fisheye,
Soft,
Black & White,
Monochrome,
Retro - White Balance Automatic,
Presets,
Custom - White Balance Presets Daylight,
Tungsten light,
Shade,
Cloudy,
Fluorescent light (daylight),
Fluorescent light (warm white),
Fluorescent light (cool white),
Flash - Max Shutter Speed 1/6000 sec
- Min Shutter Speed 30 sec
- Exposure Compensation ±3 EV range, in 1/2 or 1/3 EV steps
- Auto Exposure Bracketing 3 steps in 1/2 or 1/3 EV steps
- X-sync Speed 1/180 sec
- Exposure Range EV 0-20 ( ISO 100 )
Lens System
- Type 3 x x Zoom lens - 18 mm - 55 mm - F/3.5-5.6 DA L AL Pentax KAF
- Focal Length Equivalent to 35mm Camera 27 - 82.5 mm
- Focus Adjustment Manual,
Automatic - Min Focus Range 9.8 in
- Max View Angle 76 degrees
- Zoom Adjustment Manual
- Lens Construction 8 groups / 11 elements
- Filter Size 52 mm
- Lens System Mounting Pentax KAF2
- Features Aspherical lens
Lens System (2nd)
- Type 5.5 x x Telephoto zoom lens - 55 mm - 300 mm - F/4.0-5.8 DA ED Pentax KAF
- Focal Length Equivalent to 35mm Camera 82.5 - 450mm
- Min Focus Range 4.6 ft
- Focus Adjustment Automatic,
Manual - Lens Construction 8 groups / 12 elements
- Filter Size 58 mm
- Features ED glass
Camera Flash
- Camera Flash Pop-up flash
- Guide Number (m / ISO 100) 12
- Flash Modes Fill-in mode,
Slow synchro,
Auto mode,
Flash OFF mode - Features Wireless off-camera control,
Flash +/- compensation,
AF illuminator Additional Features
- Continuous Shooting Speed 2 frames per second,
4.7 frames per second - Self Timer Delay 2 sec,
12 sec - Flash Terminal Hot shoe
- Additional Features Digital image rotation,
Display brightness control,
Depth-of-field preview button,
PRINT Image Matching,
Automatic Pixel Mapping (APM),
Cropping an image,
Dust Alert,
Date/time stamp,
720p HD movie recording,
AF lock,
DPOF support,
Dynamic Range Enlargement (DRE),
RGB primary color filter,
AE lock,
Digital noise reduction,
Histogram display,
Highlight point display,
Shadow point display,
Sharpness control,
USB 2.0 compatibility Viewfinder
- Viewfinder Type Optical - Eye-level mirror pentaprism
- Field Coverage 96%
- Magnification 0.85x
- Dioptric Correction Range -2.5 to +1.5
Display
- Type 2.7 in LCD display
- Display Features Built-in
Microphone
- Microphone Operation Mode Mono
Connections
- Connector Type 1 x USB,
1 x Composite video/audio output,
1 x DC power input Software
- Software Pentax Photo Browser,
Pentax Photo Laboratory,
Drivers & Utilities System Requirements for PC Connection
- Operating System Support MS Windows XP,
MS Windows 7,
Apple Mac OS X 10.3 - 10.5,
MS Windows Vista - Peripheral Devices USB port,
CD-ROM drive Miscellaneous
- Microsoft Certifications Certified for Windows Vista
- Included Accessories Carrying strap,
USB cable,
Lens cap,
Eyecup,
Body cap,
Shoe cap - Body Material Fiber-reinforced plastic polymer,
Stainless steel Battery
- Supported Battery AA
- Supported Battery 4 x AA Lithium battery ( Included )
Memory / Storage
- Memory Card Slot SD card
- Supported Memory Cards SDHC Memory Card,
SD Memory Card - Internal Storage None
- Image Storage JPEG 4288 x 2848,
JPEG 3936 x 2624,
JPEG 3072 x 2048,
JPEG 1728 x 1152,
RAW 4288 x 2848 - Video Capture AVI - 1280 x 720
Dimensions & Weight
- Width 4.8 in
- Depth 2.7 in
- Height 3.6 in
- Weight 1.1 lbs
Environmental Parameters
- Min Operating Temperature 32 °F
- Max Operating Temperature 104 °F
Product series
-
Pentax K-x (with 18-55mm and 50-300mm DA lens, Black)
Manufacturer: Pentax
Specs: SLR,
12.4 megapixels,
3 x,
27 - 82.5mm F/3.5,
15.8 x 23.6mm,
CMOS,
Optical (image sensor shift mechanism) -
Pentax K-x (with 18-55mm DA lens, Red)
Manufacturer: Pentax
Specs: SLR,
12.4 megapixels,
3 x,
27 - 82.5mm F/3.5,
15.8 x 23.6mm,
CMOS,
Optical (image sensor shift mechanism)
Manufacturer info
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Pentax products on Shopper.com
-
- Manufacturer:Pentax
- Address:
600 12th Street, Golden, CO 80401 - Phone: 1-800-877-0155
- Fax: 1-303-799-9213
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