Nice little SLR

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 before deciding.

The decision didn't take long!

The key selling points for me were:

1. Lighter weight
2. SD cards, which meant I didn't have to invest more in memory.
3. Being able to use AA batteries.
4. The same sensor and metering system as the D70.
5. The price as compared to the D70.
6. Image quality
7. Lens compatibility
8. Easy learning curve for menu. Very comprehensive.

I've found that used Pentax lenses are readily available and very very affordable. The fact that I could use old Pentax lenses on this camera was very important as my grandfather left me many Pentax lenses- very impressive glass.

The Pentax suits my needs as an advanced amatuer.

Having owned two point and shoot digital cameras prior to this (Hewlett Packard 735 and Panasonic Lumix FZ20) I never cease to be amazed by the astounding difference in image quality. With the Pentax *ist DS having such a low price I never hesitate to recommend it to someone in the market for a digital camera.

The few things that really irk me is that this camera does not have a PC sync terminal and that the doors to the battery, storage and connections compartments seem somewhat flimsy. However this is forgivable in my opinion as the *ist DS is not rated a professional SLR.