Pentax MX-1 Review

General Performance

The MX-1 offers acceptable general performance and speed.  The good news is that it has virtually no shutter lag (less than 20 milliseconds according to Pentax) and the startup time is just over a second.  Apart form this, however, we aren't particularly impressed with the MX-1 simply because it has the same quirks that are found in earlier Pentax cameras: in other words, general performance hasn't been streamlined or improved.  On this page, we list those quirks.

For example, when deleting a file, a "deleting" message is shown, which locks up the camera for about a second for each file you delete.  While this isn't a major inconvenience, it would be much better if the camera could simply display the next photo, and process the deletion in the background.

Data Being RecordedThe message that plagued us while shooting in RAW

Similarly, whenever the MX-1 writes a file to its memory card, if you attempt to enter the menu or access playback mode, the camera locks up and does not allow you to do anything else until it's done.  A "data being recorded" message is shown during this time. While this isn't particularly bad in JPEG mode, you will notice it a lot when shooting in RAW.  Waiting times are summarized in the table below; the times below is the delay between the moment the photo is taken at the moment the camera enters playback mode after the playback button is pressed:

Delay before menu/playback can be accessed
Single RAW+ 2 seconds
Single RAW 1 second
Single JPEG 0.75 seconds
Burst of 5 RAW+ 9 seconds
Burst of 6 RAW 9 seconds
Burst of 10 JPEG 4 seconds
Burst of 36 JPEG 14 seconds

In continuous mode, it appeared to us that the MX-1 didn't even try to flush out files from the buffer to the memory card while capturing images.  The camera either has a very slow CPU, or the firmware has some poor programming.  This also suggests that the buffer size is about 150 megabytes. Note that in RAW+ mode, the continuous frame rate is a mere 1FPS, rather than the specified 1.57FPS.

There is also a slight delay right after taking a photo and right after focusing during which all buttons on the camera are dead.  This combined with the delay described above results in a very annoying effect; you push buttons and nothing happens, then you push the button again, only to see a "data being recorded message".  Similarly, if you focus and then let go to the shutter release button, live view freezes for a fraction of a second, though this is a very minor issue in comparison.

We performed our test with a professional 95Mb/s SD card from SanDisk, and thus we are confident in our conclusion that the camera's hardware and firmware is the limiting factor when it comes to speed.  While no one of these quirks is a major issue, together they make the camera seem rather sluggish, especially if you chose to shoot in RAW.

The MX-1 makes up for this somewhat by offering quick access to key shooting settings through the info screen and easy multi-file deletion/browsing in playback mode.  In playback mode, JPEGs load quickly, and there is only very slight delay for RAW files.  The MX-1 produces JPEGs around 5 megabytes and RAW files around 22 megabytes.

Battery Life

The MX-1's battery life is rather short.  Very active shooters may wish to keep a spare battery charged at all times, as a single charge will suffice for just over 200 exposures during normal use.  The MX-1 includes power-saving features including screen dimming and auto power off; we recommend making good use of these features.

Memory

The camera has some 78 megabytes of built-in memory which doesn't serve much of a practical purpose.  It otherwise accepts SD, SDHC, and SDXC memory cards in the card slot, which is located beside the battery.

Performance Verdict

The MX-1 is fast enough in JPEG mode for its sometimes-slow performance to be a non-issue.  However, its sluggishness in RAW mode greatly discouraged us from recommending it for enthusiasts.  At least there's no shutter lag, though!


facebook.com/PentaxForums PentaxForums @PentaxForums News | Reviews | Forum

Support Pentax Forums Donate to Pentax Forums Support Pentax Forums