easy to use, compact, light meter works ok in all situations, good lens choice (old pentaxes too)

no double exposures
no mirror lock-up

The best choice for the beginner who want to become an expert! High value technology and a classical layout-perfect. I'm enthusiast with it.

Customer Service

good in italy

Similar Products Used:

pentax mz7
nikon f65

Incredibly light and easy to use with retro style knobs on top of body. Steel lens mount.

Hunts for focus in low light. Now low light focus assist. Doesn't do well in complicated light situations.

A fantastic value for performance and features. I researched SLR bodies for weeks before deciding on this one. The Elan 7 is a better and more expensive camera but you will have much better lens selection in Canon than you will in Pentax. Don't get me wrong I don't lament my purchase its great for what it costs and it takes excellent pictures. Its just that Pentax is struggling to make its presence felt against the Nikon and Canon giants. My main gripe is that the metering system may not handle situations as advertised.

Customer Service

Pentax responds usually in 24 hours to my e-mails.

Similar Products Used:

None

Logical layout.
It works clearly

No external display of information provided in viewfinder.
Gimmicky panorama button.
Easy to lose external flash socket cover.
Autofocus/manual switch is on the body (easy to forget to switch when changing lenses)
No mirror lock

An excellent camera. Light, compact and does everything the heaview competition does. If it is more reliable than some of the Pentax compacts, then this is a brilliant camera for amateur to intermediate user.

Customer Service

Not required

Similar Products Used:

Nikon F1

Logical layout of controls
Sensible choice of features
Excellent price
Depth of field preview button
Accurate metering
Excellent shutter/mirror mechanism

No major weakness except
no mirror lockup

I bought this camera just a couple weeks ago in preparation for a wedding of a relative. It was bought along with a Sunpak 555 and a Bogen monopod. This setup replaced the P30 and Vivitar 285HV.

Being a photographer for relative's wedding is not always a smart thing to do. There were a few other people taking pictures, one of them was a semi-pro whose occupation was photographer for a newspaper. Equipment used by these people ranged from Nikon F65/F80 with the standard zoom lens to a Olympus OM-1 with a 50mm f/1.4. I was surprised to see that most people spent money on camera bodies but very little on lenses or light source (ie flash and accesories). The semi-pro did have a good lens but used a wimppy flash.

The results were greeted with praises. My photos were more natural, evenly lighted and apparently sharper than other people's. I attributed a significant percent of that to this setup. I used the flash in TTL mode both as the primary source and as fill in. Exposure was correct in every case. I think the monopod helped quite a bit also.

I only have one autofocuse lens, a 100 mm macro which I only used a few times during the whole wedding event. Majority of the photos were taken with a Tamron 28-200 f/3.5 manual. Focusing was easier than I thought. I am used to split image and microsprism. But the lack of those focusing aid not only did not hurt but in fact helped. This is because the relatively slow zoom lens blackens these focusing aids.

The shutter / mirror mechanism is something I never experienced before. It is very smooth and quite, relative to all other SLRs I used as listed above. For those who are still holding on to older equipment, this is an excellent reason to buy a new body. For a long time, I thought there was no good reason to buy a new body. The need to have TTL flash capability forced me to buy a new body and I am pleasantly surprised by the added benefit of excellent quality, almost vibration free shutter/mirror.

Similar Products Used:

Pentax MX, P30
Nikon EL
Minolta 101b, X370

Lightweight camera with a very good metering system.

Lack of a mirror lock-up feature. Camera does not allow you to rewind the film midroll and leave the film-leader out.

A good camera that lacks only a couple features I would like. Pentax professional lenses cost a fortune, however.

Customer Service

-

Similar Products Used:

Canon

light yet packed with features. Lots of choice yet the dials enable intuitive control.

No.

Unlike previous Pentax models with obscurely designed electronic switches, requiring tedious searching, the 5N uses clear dials. So, there's lots of choice yet efficiently accessible. The camera is light, yet packed with all the current features.

Customer Service

No need for yet.

Similar Products Used:

Canon AE-1, Canon A-1, Pentax SFX

Full compatibility with any K mount lens ever built. Good features no nonses interface (no need to open the instruction manual ever). Very reliable. AF is fast and accurate.

None so far.

Great camera for begginers or advanced amateurs. No nonsense interface. I'd wish it had double exposure and mirror lock up, but I guess those are a couple of trade offs. Great value. it can use AA batteries via battery grip Fg.

Customer Service

Never needed

Similar Products Used:

Other Pentax bodies. Bought as back up for my Pentax PZ1P body

It has lots of modern features but easy and obvious analog controls. Works extremely well with my old K lenses as well as a recent AF zoom. Very light weight.

None

Highly recommended.

Customer Service

Not needed.

Similar Products Used:

Canon Elan. Nice camera, but not worth the money to switch systems for.

User friendly design, traditional controls, small size, light weight

None.

This is an excellent SLR for beginners as well as advanced photographers. It has all of the features that I need and they are easily accessible. One can use any of the FA, F, or K mount Pentax lenses. It is also reasonably priced.

Customer Service

Haven't used it.

Similar Products Used:

Cannon, Minolta