I bought this camera as a treat for myself two years ago already being a proud owner of a Pentax SLR. I bought this for two proposed reasons; I needed a digital camera to take candids and quick shots and also that it represented value for money with the exclusion of development costs.
The Pentax S50 is a lightweight, stylish 5Mp digital camera with 3x optical zoom that is easy to use yet is prone to damage (as I found out after wrestling with my brother) and can be unreliable depending on the AA battery used. My recommendation is to use quality rechargeable long life. This extra cost (£15) is worth it in the long run as it saves you the frustration of missing out on some photo opportunities. I also recommend upgrading the flash memory card to at least 256 Mb (the default memory is 16 Mb). I found that it is tiresome to run out of space when using the highest quality image settings on the very simple to follow menus. It is also worth investing in a flash card as you can remove it for quick processing should any of your snaps be worth publishing!
Picture, sound and video quality are all very good but not of the highest quality.
My advice is that this is a very good starter digital camera that is inexpensive and easy to use. I would not however recommend this camera to any serious photographer for obvious reasons but that shnould not discourage potential buyers from finding a bargain second hand.
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Hi and welcome to Ciao! I agree that it needs a little more info added to it to make it more helpful. let me know if you add anymore to it, or would like any help by dropping a message in my guestbook. Lisa x
MAFARRIMOND 14.04.2006 14:44
My son has one and is very pleased with it. Maureen
catrinaf 14.04.2006 13:31
Hi and welcome to Ciao – A good first review although more info would have been useful. If you want any help or want me to re rate, leave me a message in my guestbook - Cat x x
Advantages: Solid, light, reliable, good-looking, easy to use, a name you can trust Disadvantages: Guzzles batteries (as they all do), a bit slow to start up
moo-cow 06.11.2005 (06.11.2005)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Pentax Optio S50