Pentax *ist DS Digital Camera

Pros: Small, light, intuitive controls, good ergo, non-proprietary batteries.

Cons: Slower than some in its class, low light focus could be better.

The Bottom Line: This is a tough, high quality digital camera that has enough features to satisfy anyone less than a pro... at a good price.

Review: I have been a film SLR user for many years and the *ist DS is my first entry into the realm of digital photography. I’ve had the *ist DS for about nine months and have taken thousands of pictures - many of which I would not have attempted, because of ...

Pros: Image quality, use of AA batteries, competitive pricing, lens compatibility

Cons: No PC sync terminal, flimsy doors

The Bottom Line: I would recommend the *ist DS to any person (excluding professionals) in the market for a digital camera. It's easy to use, provides excellent image quality and is affordable.

Review: When shopping for a DSLR I honestly had the Nikon D70 in mind because of all the hype I've seen and heard regarding it. I was fully prepared to buy it when I walked into the camera shop. The salesperson talked me into giving the *ist DS a chance ...

Pros: Small size, SD memory, AA batteries, price, PENTAX lenses!

Cons: a little underexposed on certain shots

The Bottom Line: Good price, excellent quality, and great performance. IF you are ready for a DSLR and are a serious amateur or semi pro, consider this.

Review: I have been an amateur photographer for over 30 years and have mostly worked with film for my "good" photography efforts. I have been using digital Point and Shoot cameras for the past several years, but recently decided to replace my 35mm SLR with a ...

Pros: Pentax backward-compatibility for lenses, good build quality, intuitive and easy to use.

Cons: Manual is poorly written, supplied software is useless.

The Bottom Line: An excellent tool for serious photography. Very good AF and 3fps performance, super clear/bright viewfinder, intuitive in use, and all old Pentax mount lenses (even screw mounts) work great.

Review: Pentax has always gone about the business of quietly making excellent quality cameras and lenses at reasonable prices, without marketing hype, for decades. Their long-standing philosophy of insuring that all of their older lenses work on all of their ...

Pros: Looks professional, light and smaller than competition, price, quality of images and feel.

Cons: Canon XT has 8 megapixels compared to Pentax's 6.1.

The Bottom Line: I recommend it to anybody who wants to move into digital SLR.

Review: I started photographing with a Nikon 35mm pocket camera, then to a Canon A-1 Professional SLR. SLR is truely better than pocket cameras, when it comes to quality and depth of a picture. I'm not a professional photographer, but I do enjoy taking great ...

Pros: Solid construction Easy to use. Excellent results. Accurate Auto Focus. Great image quality.

Cons: AF a little slower than previous Pentax film SLRs. Underexposes by 0.5 EV or less.

The Bottom Line: I highly recommend this DSLR. It has excellent construction and ease of use. Pentax 35mm enthusiasts will love it.

Review: The Pentax DS is well constructed. It inspires confidence when handled. It is intuitive and easy to learn. Auto Focus is accurate and exposures are consistant. I bought the Pentax DS because I had come to trust Pentax according to my very good ...

Pros: compactness, viewfinder, use of old lenses, picture quality, large LCD, well balanced, flash compatibility

Cons: slower AF, "crippled" K-mount

The Bottom Line: Overall, very good camera, not only for Pentaxians ...

Review: Been using this camera for about one year. I had already a few Pentax lenses and this was the first "affordable" DSLR form Pentax, so my decision was clear. This camera was a must for serious amateurs who came from analog Pentax world and wanted to go ...

Pros: Small, lightweight, large bright viewfinder, great value, compatibility with existing Pentax lenses

Cons: Aperture-priority metering not fully supported with K lenses. Incompatibility with some non-Pentax K-mount lenses.

The Bottom Line: Great value. Recommended - especially for those already having a bag full of Pentax lenses

Review: I bought the Pentax *ist DS wanting a digital SLR compatible with my existing selection of K, KA and KAF lenses. With this model now discontinued in the USA, it can be bought for around $500 with the 18-55 mm kit lens - I paid about $530. Overall I ...

Pros: Excellent image quality, mirror lock up, backwards compatability, Well built. Priced well.

Cons: light weight (the heaver the camera the less camera shake with hand held shots).

Review: The Pentax *istds is a wonderful camera and produces photographs equal in quality if not better than Nikon's D70 and Canon's 10D and 20D. It has mirror lock up for getting those perfect shots when using a tripod. Works great with my othr Pentax ...

Pros: Excellent pictures, use of AA batteries and power consumption, price

Cons: Omission of Pentax lens powerzoom feature,lack of a single button to change metering modes

Review: Really smallish, well built, metal bayonet and very easy to use. One can utilize the of powerzoom feature on older 330 flash unit. Excellent TFT screen which gives very informative directions for ...