14 DAY TRIAL // Pentax has come up with quite a few interesting surprises back at CES 2011, and now, the company's back with yet another addition to their line of Optio compact digital cameras, namely the S1 model.
The Optio S1 is what we'd like to call a fully-packed, yet fairly affordable point and shoot digital camera, that comes equipped with a 14-megapixel sensor, as well as a 5X optical zoom lens, a combo that will allow users to take good quality photos in almost all conditions.
Furthermore, in order to ensure the fact that the resulting photos are as blur-free as possible, the new camera also sports a sensor-shift PENTAX Shake Reduction (SR) system, as well as an 1/2.3-inch interline transfer CCD with primary color filter.
Naturally, taking still shots is the main area of expertise of the new Optio S1, but, similar to most other compact digital cameras to arrive on the market lately, the S1 also delivers video shooting capabilities, easily recording widescreen 720p HD video.
The new Optio S1 also lets less-experienced photographers take good-quality shots via the PENTAX Auto Picture mode, and, as expected, comes pre-loaded with a variety of scene modes and in-camera effects.
Plus, it also leverages the advantages provided by such technologies as Fast Face Detection, Smile Capture and even Blink Detection, not to mention a High Dynamic Range (HDR) mode.
It's also interesting to mention that the camera supports both SDHC and SDXC memory cards, while in the same time being quite easy to carry around, given the fact that it measures 3.6 x 2.1 x 0.8 inches and weighs around 3.9 ounces.
According to Pentax, their new Optio S1 compact digital camera should become available later this month in Chrome, glossy Black or Green, with the pricing being set at around $199.95 USD, which is actually pretty OK, given the overall features the camera has in store.