The Optio W10's sluggish performance incurs some painful waits between shots. Start-up to first shot takes about 3.5 seconds, and you can expect a 3.6-second shot-to-shot time after that, even in bright light. Shutter lag runs an acceptable 0.7 second in good lighting, though it quickly balloons to 1.6 seconds in dim environments. Burst mode is mediocre, cranking out a bit more than 1.1 frames per second for 7 frames.
The Optio W10's photo quality disappoints on a few fronts as well. Exposures are generally accurate, even in harsh afternoon lighting or under the gloom of monsoon rains. Colors that are generally difficult to capture correctly reproduce well; red tulips and lavender phlox rendered red and lavender, respectively. However, images suffer from a few serious postprocessing artifacts that not only soften the edges but obscure details and make the photos look out of focus.
The Pentax Optio W10 is a good camera for extreme shooting. Its design lets it shrug off water and dirt that would destroy other cameras. Its performance and image quality leave a lot to be desired, though, and you might want to look for another camera if you're not planning to go swimming with it.
February 16, 2006 PENTAX Corporation is pleased to introducethe new PENTAX Optio W10. Furnished with superior waterproofing and dustproofing,the Optio W10 is a 6.0 effective
megapixels compact digital camera that packs a 2.5-inch LCD monitor and a 3Xoptical zoom lens into a slim, newly designed body.
The Optio W10 was developed based on the PENTAX Optio WP series, whichrealizes the waterproof functionality for underwater photography withoutrequiring a waterproof case or other accessories. While continuing thedevelopment concepts of sportiness, elegance, and leisure and the waterproof anddustproof performance for reliable use outdoors or during water sports, theOptio W10 offers improved LCD monitoring and movie recording. This model hasbeen made more convenient and user-friendly with the addition of the new FaceRecognition AF/AE function, which detects people’s faces in the picture frameand adjusts the focus and exposure accordingly.
Major Features
High waterproof performance, without the need for a case
The Optio W10 complies with JIS class 8 waterproof performance, enabling itto withstand up to 30 minutes of continuous operation at an underwater depth of1.5 meters. Furthermore, the Optio W10 has also been proven to conform to Class5 dustproof performance of category 2 (machines produced to prevent internalchanges in atmospheric pressure). Such capabilities make it ideal for use whenskiing, taking part in marine sports, going fishing or enjoying other outdoorevents. Waterproof performance of this kind also means users can simply rinsethe camera off any time it becomes dirty.
2.5-inch LCD monitor with superb visibility outdoors
The Optio W10 comes with a new 2.5-inch low-reflection LCD monitor. The LCDcover is finished with a non-glare coating, making the screen easier to see evenoutside on a sunny day. The LCD backlighting mechanism features a brightnessadjustment as well as a Power Saving mode, which automatically reduces thebacklight intensity to preserve battery life.
High-quality movie recording
The Optio W10 smoothly captures movies at 30 fps (frames per second) at sizesup to 640 × 480 pixels with image quality rivaling camcorders. Furthermore,switching on the newly added movie anti-shake function*1 automaticallycompensates for camera shake while recording movies. (The anti-shake functioncan be switched on or off.)
*1 Using the movie Shake Reduction feature results in a narrower field of viewthan during normal recording.
Face Recognition AF/AE, a new technology that adjusts focus andexposure for people’s faces
The Optio W10 is equipped with Face Recognition AF/AE, a new technology thatdetects people’s faces and automatically adjusts the focus and corrects theexposure to suit. When the camera’s shooting mode is set to one of Portrait,Self-Portrait, or Natural Skin Tone, this feature will detect and focus on aperson’s face anywhere in the picture frame. This technology is particularlyeffective at preventing “dropout” photos, where the camera focuses on thebackground and not on the person when taking commemorative or other valuablephotos. At the same time, this feature automatically corrects the exposure sothe face is properly exposed even in lighting situations where the brightness ofthe person and the background are drastically different, such as when a personis under a spotlight or on a strongly backlit stage.
Continuous AF and tracking AF
Continuous AF*2 or tracking AF*3 are activated automatically upon selectionof Sport, Pet or Kids modes – allowing the camera to track a moving subjectwithin the frame and maintain accurate focus accordingly.
*2 For focus on stationary subjects, the shutter release button is depressedhalfway to drive the lens to focus lock. Continuous AF, on the other hand,allows the lens to be driven constantly to ensure swift, precise focus as soonas the shutter release button is depressed halfway.
*3 Tracking AF continually detects both horizontal and vertical movement of themain subject to ensure sharp focus at the desired moment. Confirmation of thefocus area can be done on the focus frame on the LCD monitor.
High-sensitivity shooting
The Optio W10 supports high-sensitivity shooting*4 at standard outputsensitivity 800 (sensitivity is selectable). This enables fast shutter speedsfor crisp, sharp shots with minimal blurring even in dark conditions or withmoving subjects.
*4 The camera supports sensitivities up to Standard output sensitivity 800 withsensitivity set to Auto and either Candlelight mode or Report mode selected. Therecording size with Report mode selected, however, is fixed at 1280 × 960pixels.
Super image quality from the 3X optical zoom lens and 6.0 effectivemegapixels
The Optio W10 includes a 3X optical zoom lens that covers focal lengths from6.3 to 18.9 mm (equivalent to 38 to 114 mm for 35mm film) and features a“folding” optical system so the lens never protrudes from the camera whilezooming. Optical components have been redesigned for higher resolution,delivering advanced image quality that takes full advantage of the raw power of6.0 effective megapixels.
Simplified operations with the Mode Palette
Selection of shooting and playback modes is made much easier with the ModePalette, PENTAX’s original mode selection function that lists mode icons onthe LCD monitor. By arranging 25 shooting modes and 15 playback modes, the ModePalette speeds up mode selection with its straightforward display. Pressing thegreen button while in the Mode Palette activates a guide function, whichdisplays explanations of each mode.
Green button for immediate setup screen access
The Option W10 includes a green button that immediately calls up the setupscreen for settings such as exposure correction and sensitivity. You can assignfrequently used functions to the green button to speed up setups when shooting.Up to four functions*5 can be assigned. Initially, the Green mode ispre-assigned to the green button (the three other functions are not assigned).
*5 Functions that can be assigned to the Green button: Green mode, recordingsize, image quality, white balance, AF area, focus limit, sensitivity, exposurecompensation, sharpness, saturation, contrast, and off.
Green mode for easy camera-controlled shooting
The camera features a Green mode, which simplifies picture taking by lettingthe camera control detailed settings. Since a simple press of the green buttonactivates the Green mode,*6 even beginning photographers can enjoy takingpictures with ease. The Green mode resets the shooting menu, setup menu, andother settings to their defaults and locks the menu and mode buttons and othercontrols so you don’t have to worry about unintentionally changing thesettings. This mode comes in handy when asking someone else to take your picture.
*6 Available when the Green mode is assigned to the green button.
Slim body with a flat design
The slim, flat body design of the Optio W10 allows it to be easily retrievedfrom pockets, bags, and cases. The camera’s grip is fashioned with afinger-rest in the shape of a water droplet for better portability. An aluminumalloy is employed for the front panel, producing a high-grade sensibility. Therounded form also gives the camera a friendly impression.
Other features
- Ready to shoot just 0.6 seconds after the power is turned on
- Real-time display of “washed out” and “blacked out” areas
- Image Recovery function lets you retrieve accidentally erased pictures
- Picture Voice function can record sounds before and after taking a picture
- Macro mode allows close-up photography as near as 1 cm
- Frame composite function allows you, either when shooting or aftershooting, to add
a decorative frame that is printed around the image - Soft flash function avoids overexposure during close-up flash photography
- Up to 4X digital zooming
- Three color modes (full-color, B&W, sepia) for versatile movierecording
- “Clock Mode” function displays the time even when the camera is off
- SD memory card compatible; approx. 10.5MB built-in memory
- Standard image viewer, ACDSee for PENTAX software
- FotoNation’s red-eye compensation function for flash shots
- DPOF, Exif Print, and PRINT Image Matching III compatibility
Product Description
Content Storage Capability The Sony® Reader offers a unique, on-the-go reading experience. With a very compact and light design you can take it almost anywhere. And with 64MB of internal memory3, and a slot for optional removable memory cards you can take many titles, user-selected Web content, or other supported documents for reading on the go. Will hold up to 80 electronic books in internal memory and hundreds more with Memory Stick® media or SD memory card4 (sold separately). 
Singapore, 12 November 2006 - The third SingTel SMS Shootout has successfully made an attempt on putting Singapore back on the map of the world’s fastest SMS thumbs. 
Over 300 participants showed up to pit their SMS skills against the clock in the SingTel SMS Shootout 2006. They had to type the set SMS text provided by Guinness as follows:
Here is a summary of the quite critical CNET editors' review: 6/10 - good, average user rating: 6.7/10 - good.