Pentax Optio 550 5MP Digital Camera w/ 5x Optical Zoom

Rating:
Summary: The Pentax Optio 550, 5 megapixels is a winner
Review: As a person that loves photography, I longed for the day that digital would rival 35mm. That day is here! I received the Pentax Optio 550 and took it for a field test. I took images of nature and did several macro exposures of different plants and flowers. To my amazement, the photos were razor sharp, with an incredible sense of depth. The color saturation was superb. The camera is compact, the body is sleek and made of aluminum alloy, perfect for travel. Above all, it is easy to use. Pentax you have a winner and you deserve your five stars!

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Summary: Incredible Imagemaker
Review: As a photographer since 1971, I have seen many stunning changes in the art, business and technology of photographic imaging. Now these achievements are celebrated in this perfect tool, the Pentax Optio 550 5MP. The design and features are exceptional. My first hand-held expedition produced beautiful landscapes, the color and clarity rendering the best images I have ever seen. I now appeal to the industry...how about inventing printer and paper technology to match the image creations of these cameras?

Rating:
Summary: good by conventional photography...
Review: As someone who strted taking photographs 40 years ago with a Box Brownie, worked his way up through various SLRs, and basically lives & dies in public presentations on the basis of slides, I confess that I was VERY sceptical about going digital. The Pentax Optio has changed all that. I have been using this camera for about a month now, and my poor Canon F1 has stayed in its case. I am simply STUNNED with the quality of the image, the ease & accuracy of the "point and shoot" features, and the impressive array of options that Pentax offers me. Battery life seems excellent, the camera has survived a tough month in the field in high humidity/salt air being jostled and banged (and dropped at least once) in transfers from boats to dories to shore, and the 5x optical zoom lets me get reasonably close to my birds (it still isn't a "real" telephoto, don't be confused, but it beats the heck out of other digital cameras that I have played with). Downsides are that the enclosed 16mb card is a joke, I didn't even bother with it, get at least a 64mb & start shooting. The lens DOES take a while to extend, and there is a slight-but-noticeable delay between pressing shutter release & the actual image. This is annoying in an "action" setting. In addition, the viewscreen, while brighter than I expected, is invisible in bright sunlight. The biggest problem with this (the optical viewfnder is just fine for actually taking photos) is that messages like "memory card full" may not be conveyed to you unless you look really closely -I lost half a dozen pictures from not paying attention. Overall I am VERY impressed with this camera, it is light, portable, versatile, gives me very high quality pictures, and seems tough enough to stand up to a demanding life on off-shore seabird colonies. Go for it.

Rating:
Summary: good by conventional photography...
Review: As someone who strted taking photographs 40 years ago with a Box Brownie, worked his way up through various SLRs, and basically lives & dies in public presentations on the basis of slides, I confess that I was VERY sceptical about going digital. The Pentax Optio has changed all that. I have been using this camera for about a month now, and my poor Canon F1 has stayed in its case. I am simply STUNNED with the quality of the image, the ease & accuracy of the "point and shoot" features, and the impressive array of options that Pentax offers me. Battery life seems excellent, the camera has survived a tough month in the field in high humidity/salt air being jostled and banged (and dropped at least once) in transfers from boats to dories to shore, and the 5x optical zoom lets me get reasonably close to my birds (it still isn't a "real" telephoto, don't be confused, but it beats the heck out of other digital cameras that I have played with). Downsides are that the enclosed 16mb card is a joke, I didn't even bother with it, get at least a 64mb & start shooting. The lens DOES take a while to extend, and there is a slight-but-noticeable delay between pressing shutter release & the actual image. This is annoying in an "action" setting. In addition, the viewscreen, while brighter than I expected, is invisible in bright sunlight. The biggest problem with this (the optical viewfnder is just fine for actually taking photos) is that messages like "memory card full" may not be conveyed to you unless you look really closely -I lost half a dozen pictures from not paying attention. Overall I am VERY impressed with this camera, it is light, portable, versatile, gives me very high quality pictures, and seems tough enough to stand up to a demanding life on off-shore seabird colonies. Go for it.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent quality pics! Software is old though...
Review: I am excited and very happy with the quality of these pictures and the size of the camera! 5x zoom is great! 5 MP is great! My only 2 issues are once it was shutting down (low battery) and battery went dead and camera lens cover jammed and left lens exposed. Had to force it closed with newly charged battery. But my biggest complaint is that I thought I was getting a $70 piece of software along with this camera in ACDSee, but found out it's a version a few years old! It's version 3.x!!! 5.x is out! What a bummer, so I emailed Pentax and got no reply...

Rating:
Summary: Excellent quality pics! Software is old though...
Review: I am excited and very happy with the quality of these pictures and the size of the camera! 5x zoom is great! 5 MP is great! My only 2 issues are once it was shutting down (low battery) and battery went dead and camera lens cover jammed and left lens exposed. Had to force it closed with newly charged battery. But my biggest complaint is that I thought I was getting a $70 piece of software along with this camera in ACDSee, but found out it's a version a few years old! It's version 3.x!!! 5.x is out! What a bummer, so I emailed Pentax and got no reply...

Rating:
Summary: Small is beautiful
Review: I bought my first digital camera (a Kodak DC 280, 1 MP) three years ago. It's worked fine, but I've wanted something that could fit in my shirt pocket and had good optical zoom capability. As of last winter, these were mutually exclusive requirements. When the Pentax Optio 550 was announced in February, it seemed to be what I was looking for. I bought one last month, and it's been just about everything I could ask for. The pictures are excellent, the size and features are terrific, and the battery life is great. As some of the published reviews have pointed out, the lens is a bit slow to emerge, so it's not the best camera for an impulse shot of some fleeting phenomenon like a car crash or hummingbird. Learning all the features may take an hour or two. Unlike the Kodak and some other competitors, the Pentax didn't come bundled with any software. And some standard accessories (like an A/C power adaptor or extra battery) are somewhat difficult to find. But overall, this is a terrific little machine that so far has no real competitors.

Rating:
Summary: Compact Digital Camera with very good Macro function
Review: I have used optical and digital camera for some years. Optio 550 might be one of the best compact digital camera with load of featuers. Personally, I especially like the Marco and Super Marco function for flower and other close up shoots. The quality is superb. It does have some difficulty in lower light, but you just need to make several adjustments to overcome them. Of course, you can not compare this compact with Professional ones. They are blonging to different categories. I take this one in my pocket or computer bag every day, and shoot everything happening around. Much easier than bring a bulky professional ones. (P.S. Battery life is really great, seems never ending.)

Rating:
Summary: Optio 550 gets a great review
Review: I love the Optio 550. It takes great pictures, with lots of options for the more technical person. I haven't figured out how to use the 3D function yet (but I'm not sure I ever would) and the flap to the PC/AV card is a little flimsy (but it hasn't broken yet). The zoom is awesome. I love to be able to blow up a picture and have it maintain its resolution. The pictures are clear. I am still trying it out, but so far it works great.

Rating:
Summary: Optio 550 gets a great review
Review: I love the Optio 550. It takes great pictures, with lots of options for the more technical person. I haven't figured out how to use the 3D function yet (but I'm not sure I ever would) and the flap to the PC/AV card is a little flimsy (but it hasn't broken yet). The zoom is awesome. I love to be able to blow up a picture and have it maintain its resolution. The pictures are clear. I am still trying it out, but so far it works great.