Pentax Optio S40 - Expert Reviews

Review summary: - Graphics card companies have been doing it for ages. Take a successful top of the range model, pare it down and then sell it as a "lite" version to people who can't afford your top of the range model and in a nutshell that's what Pentax has done ...

Pros: Small, metal case, AA batteries,

Cons: AA batteries, no memory card in box

Verdict: Pentax has taken its polished S4 model and offered a "lite" version to newcomers

Pros: Small, metal case, AA batteries,

Cons: AA batteries, no memory card in box

Verdict: Pentax has taken its polished S4 model and offered a "lite" version to newcomers

Review summary: About the size of a deck of cards, the $250 Optio S40 is a nice size if you're looking for a camera to keep with you, no matter what the event--say, light-and-fast business travel, a night out to the opera, or a day at the beach. But aside from its ...

Verdict: The S40 uses AA batteries--great for travel, but in this case terrible for battery life. The camera lasted only 90 shots on a fresh set of AAs. You'll most likely want to switch to a single CR-3V battery, which is more expensive but typically lasts ...

Review summary: The new Optio S40 is a compact camera that packs a 4 megapixel imager and a 3X optical zoom lens in a sleek aluminum design. It featuring a smc Pentax lens coupled with their Sliding Lens system that allows the lens to fully retract inside the camera ...

Verdict: The Optio S40 is an entry-level camera that provides users with the ease of fully-automatic operation, an extremely durable compact design and one of the first camera help menus I've seen. The 4-megapixel images yield more than enough resolution to ...

Pros: Compact. Good lens. Good help features. Real-time histogram

Cons: Small LCD. Mediocre indoor photos. Slow boot and recycle times ; drains standard double-A batteries very quickly