Very feW 8 plus mega pixel camera come so cheap; and this one from Pentax is one of them. Encased in a plastic body, th is ca mera looks more expensive than it actually is.The Pentax Optio E40 is an entry¬level compact digital camera featuring Face Recognition technology and Digital Shake Reduction functions for high-resolution photographyThe plastic body is hard and sturdy and provides a slim look with a comfortable holding grip.Optio E40 comes with the conventional 4 plus Ok button pad including conventional metering modes, exposure compensation and editing features .It includes a two- orten¬second self timer, continuous shooting, 1 -shot burst mode, several focus modes including macro, landscape, pan focus and even manual focus, and the usual selection offlash modes.

The Optio E40 features a 3X optical zoom lens and combined with 4X digital zoom, it achieves a total of 1 2X zoom. The battery and card slot is provided at the base of the body with a sturdy spring loaded metal hinged cover.The pC/AV cable slot is provided on the side panel. It is essentially a beginners camera. It is designed for simple and intuitive operation so that even beginners can enjoy photography effortlessly. Face Recognition AF & AE technology automatically detects and focus on faces for better portraits. It has the useful Auto Picture mode, which automatically selects the appropriate scene mode for the type of picture being taken,as well as manual selection of program exposure, night scene and ten other scene modes, including the inevitable frame composite mode, panorama stitching and a high-ISO anti-shake mode for faster shutter speeds.

The Green mode automates camera setup when shooting still images and allow digital camera beginners to enjoy effortless photography.A single button press automatically sets the exposure, sensitivity, white balance, and other parameters according to the shooting conditions.This function is useful when asking someone else to take your picture or when you lose track of the settings. The monitor screen is a bit of a weak point with grainy resolution It's a bit dim and lacking in contrast by recent standards, and the refresh rate could be a bit quicker. Performance wise, this camera disappoints.The start up time is pretty long taking nearly 5 seconds to start up.The shut down time is pretty quick though. In between shot time is also slow as the camera takes timeto write down on its memory as the image buffer fills up. It takes nearly 4 to 5 seconds for subsequent shots to register and annoyingly the screen remains blank till then. Even the continuous shooting mode is quick. Auto focusing take nearly 2 second to fix in good light and longer in dim conditions. Even though slow, they work reliably.

Exposure and colour rendition are better,but image noise appears to be a major problem at higher ISO settings. In dark conditions, images are robbed of a lot offine detail and introduced colour irregularities. The E40 accepts SD and SDHC memory cards and has approximately 10MB of internal storage. Images are stored as lPEG and movies as AVI. At such an economical price, it offers good build quality, elegant design and a surprisingly complete set of features. Performance is annoyingly on the slow side,but it will reliably take usable pictures in most lighting conditionsWhere it falls down however is on final image quality, with noise problems.


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SPECS
Megapixel: 8.1
Optical zoom: 3X
Digital zoom:4X, Movie recording:Yes
Self-Timer: Yes, Interface: USB 2.0
Memory storage:Yes, Viewfinder: No
lCD monitor :2.4in
Weight: 1 30g,without battery Battery: AA x 2
OS Supported:Windows 98, Me, 2000,Xp, Mac OS