5.0 MegaPixel CCD
Ultra lightweight aluminum alloy body - Weighs only 7.2 oz
Voice recording mode - audio capability that rivals stand alone audio recording devices
Unlimited recording in Movie mode with sound
LCD monitor bright enough for use in direct sunlight
This review is from: Pentax Optio 555 5MP Digital Camera w/ 5x Optical ZoomI was looking for a 5MP camera with maximum zoom in an small package. The Pentax Optio 555 satisfies all of these requirements and more. I had a 4MP 4X zoom but was having a hard time capturing action shots of the kids. With the Pentax, I now have a camera half the size, 5MP and 5X zoom and the flexibility to adjust shutter speed to capture the moment. It's no easy task getting the soccer shots of the kids as they're always moving and you need a decent zoom to get close enough. This camera is perfect for that purpose. So far the battery life seems excellent. I fill up my 256MB SD card long before the battery runs out. I'm very pleased with the quality of pictures. So far I've taken about 100 pictures. It seems to have some difficulty in low-light conditions but it's better than my previous camera so I'm not sure it's the camera's fault.My only complaint is the 16MB included card is a joke. It seems typical of all mfrs to include such inadequate storage so it's not unique to the Pentax but never the less frustrating. The battery lasts forever but it also seems to take forever (~3 hours) to charge. I'm not usually in a hurry to charge but thought it was worth noting.
This review is from: Pentax Optio 555 5MP Digital Camera w/ 5x Optical ZoomI bought the Pentax Optio 555 on 2 November 2003 in Hong Kong.My number one reason for choosing the 555 was: The longer battery life. My second reason was the 5x zoom, followed by stronger flash and additional features to learn now to use. Saying that, there will be times I wish I had the smaller, lighter, faster Minolta G500... So it was a serious compromise that was not an easy choice - they are BOTH excellent options for a small light 'everyday' camera! Very basic - but my very first photos are here - nothing special, just really posting them so you can see the image quality - almost all done in P mode... and straight from the camera! http://www.pbase.com/jaqatac/optio555_firstshots_hongkong (this expires 5 Dec 2003)OK - I have never owned a digital camera before, but I have owned most recently a Nikon F100 and do know a little about film cameras...I bought it, battery took exactly 3 hours to charge... While I waited, I read the manual Oh - and the first thing I did was stop all the annoying sounds by turning them all off in the user menu.The second thing I did was turn the digital zoom off I also turned the start up picture offI do not have a stop-watch - but here are some approximate times. NOT ACCURATE TIMES, NO STOP WATCH! Sunlight/brightly lit room - I found the shot to shot time to be incredibly good - even with the flash and the pictures again were in focus with excellent lighting...Dimly lit room - wide angle - 1-3 seconds Dimly lit room - full Optical zoom - 1.5 - 3 seconds Totally DARK room - wide angle - 3-5 seconds Totally DARK room - full Optical zoom - 3-6 seconds I mean TOTALLY DARK! But saying that - the photos look great, are well lit by the flash and in focus...With the zoom, it takes a bit longer to focus BUT once it gets it, it is perfect. (how, I do not know)Here are more accurate times from another review:Auto Focus LAG Wide angle: 0.8 - 1.4 Auto Focus LAG Telephoto 0.8 - 1.5 Shutter Release LAG Viewfinder 0.1 Shutter Release LAG LCD V1: 0.1 0.1 - 0.2 Shot to Shot Wide angle 1.8 Frames per second 1.1 I am using the P mode and I quickly set up the User Mode as Gordon (see DP Review Pentax Forum) suggested: ISO 200 AWB Low Contrast Spot Focus I have a 256 Panasonic SD card (10Mb/Second) MAX Resolution of 2592 x 1944 At 1 * it is 243 picturesAt 3 *** it is 75 picturesI am switching between * and *** depending on the subject.I am looking forward to Panasonic coming out with a 2 Gig card!!! The user mode with these settings is faster than the P mode by about 1 second in the dimly lit and dark rooms.continuous mode with no flash - that was really fast too - I did not time this. PIC - Night Scene Mode - I went out at night on the streets of HK and took three pictures of the same things - P Mode, User Mode, Night Scene Mode. What the Night Scene Mode does is really light up the whole area - I don't know how it does this, but the same photo in P mode was bright lights from the signs, and a bit dark everything else. While with Night Scene the whole photo lights up as if with a flood light - really amazing. At different times I would opt for P, User or Night Mode depending on my desired outcome.Physical - the case seems sturdy, the buttons are well placed, it is easy to hold and shoot. I like the way it is easy to change what the LCD displays and to turn it off... It is not as [nice] as the G500, ...
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