Forgot Password
Pentax Camera Forums Home
 

Reply
Show Printable Version Search this Thread
12-11-2008, 07:53 AM   #1
Veteran Member
Buddha Jones's Avatar

Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Charlotte, NC
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 2,587
Optio A40 Users....

Voice your opinion on this camera please... I am considering a P&S yet again.

12-11-2008, 12:13 PM   #2
Veteran Member
Buddha Jones's Avatar

Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Charlotte, NC
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 2,587
Original Poster
Please, not all of you at once...
12-11-2008, 12:59 PM   #3
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
smigol's Avatar

Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Menlo Park, CA
Photos: Albums
Posts: 422
I picked up this camera as a primary system for my girlfriend and as a backup for me when I don't want to carry my K10D. It replaced an aging 3 megapixel camera that she had been using for several years.

I've been impressed with the depth of features on it and really haven't had the chance to play with it as much as I'd like.

Is there a particular question that you have in mind on it and I can do a test shot?
12-13-2008, 10:01 PM   #4
Inactive Account




Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Canada
Posts: 292
the IQ is amazing, especially in landscape shots, the spot beam for low ligh is very handy as well. In fact since I started to share some pictures to my friends, they wanted to get it too, so far at least 5 of them bought it already and more are thinking of getting it, if not only for short supply.

rene









Last edited by Buddha Jones; 12-17-2008 at 07:38 PM.
12-14-2008, 12:19 AM   #5
Pentaxian
SpecialK's Avatar

Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: So California
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 16,479
Steves-digicams was not too impressed.
Steves Digicams - Pentax Optio A40 - Hands on Review

Amazon reviewers like it.
Amazon.com: Pentax Optio A40 12MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Shake Reduction Zoom: Camera & Photo
12-14-2008, 04:15 PM   #6
Inactive Account




Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Canada
Posts: 292
if I were to believe the camera "gurus" or "critques" I would have not bought a K100 and a K20, same thing goes for the A40. The fact is when we compare shots with my friends who were using different P & S, they like the Pentax images than the others, no wonder at least 5 of them bought the A40. Oh well, what do I know, I just happen to like photography and I am not into the most technical aspect of the cameras.
12-14-2008, 07:15 PM   #7
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
ManuH's Avatar

Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Montreal
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 1,249
QuoteOriginally posted by OPTMEKX& Quote
if I were to believe the camera "gurus" or "critques" I would have not bought a K100 and a K20, same thing goes for the A40. The fact is when we compare shots with my friends who were using different P & S, they like the Pentax images than the others, no wonder at least 5 of them bought the A40. Oh well, what do I know, I just happen to like photography and I am not into the most technical aspect of the cameras.
On paper at least, the A40 has a rather uninspiring set of features, particularly the lens with no real wide end and slow at the long end. I think in general Canon and Panasonic P&S are the best.

12-17-2008, 07:40 PM   #8
Veteran Member
Buddha Jones's Avatar

Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Charlotte, NC
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 2,587
Original Poster
It came in tonight!! I am at work though so I can play with it as far as tkaing pictures but I cant check them out on a PC and see the details and quality of the images. I like the build, and I like the weight of it, I like the features. I just wanna see the pics now!
12-18-2008, 03:29 AM   #9
Forum Member




Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Rotterdam
Posts: 61
I have the A30 (because the A40 was sadly not there yet...) and I like this camera. Good landscape photos and also good at concerts when you manual control it!
12-21-2008, 02:16 AM   #10
Inactive Account




Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Singapore
Posts: 11
Hi
I just got the A30 today too! I targetted this one because it seemed to be the exact same camera as the A40 (less the expanded dynamic range mode) with lesser pixels, so lesser noise.
I already have the S10 but the optical stabilisation is a plus pont for me here.

Just checked it out a while ago while the battery was charging.
I noticed that the stabilisation circuit can be heard at the point when you press the shutter button halfway but after that the sound stops. Is this normal? Its as if the stabilisation only active during the iniitial press and subsequently it does not work. Appreciate any A30 and A40 users can check on their set and revert. For my K100D/K200D, the sound of the SR continues until the shutter is released.

Checking out the photos, the images does not appear any clearer than those taken by the S10 without SR.

Appreciate your feedback. Need to know if I have to send my new set for repair
12-21-2008, 09:32 AM   #11
Inactive Account




Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Singapore
Posts: 11
Hi
I did more tests and confirmed the SR did work! Images with the SR definitely reduced motion blur when taking photos indoors without a flash.

But now I have discovered a bug with these series of cameras.
It seems both the S10 and A30 have a software bug when using night scene mode without flash. The camera hangs or the LCD viewer no longer works. I checked the pentax website and there does not seem to be a software patch for this. I do not use that mode and I doubt many will use it though. I only dicovered my S10 has this problem, having owned it for a few months now.
It was my testing of the A30 that lead me to this.
Can anyone with an S10, A30 or A40 confirm yours is ok or have the same symptom?
Thanks
12-22-2008, 02:00 AM   #12
Inactive Account




Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Singapore
Posts: 11
mm. Looks like only me here ...

Anyway, good news. I went to the service centre today and apparently, there is a firmware update to resolve it and it works fine now.
I took the opportunity to flash my S10 to. Seems there is no official firmware updates for these 2 cameras but Pentax has one version that is supposed to solve some of these problems but only if we encounter them.
Now both works..yeah!
12-22-2008, 06:52 AM   #13
Site Supporter
Site Supporter




Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: midwest, United States
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 5,711
Airconvent, interesting that they have a firmware update that isn't "public". May be they haven't gotten around to posting it yet. Glad your camera works better now.

Buddah Jones, can't wait to hear what you think about the A40 IQ. Considering one myself. Have a friend with A30. It needs a charger that Pentax is out of. Don't think its the same as A40. So there could be major differences between the two models construction wise.
thanks
barondla

Check out POINT & SHOOT CONTEST #13 WINNERS in P&S forum. Enter #14. Any brand camera. Enter now!
12-22-2008, 09:51 AM   #14
Inactive Account




Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Singapore
Posts: 11
Hi Baronda
Thanks! I was under the impression that the service technician himself has made some of his own tweaking to the software although I could not confirm this as he was vague on this. All I know he updated the firmware, the night mode no longer hangs.

As for my 2 cameras, I was curious as to what was the differences between the A30 and S10 which are essentially the same camera but in different packaging.
I am not very technical so expect a layman comparison here.

The A30 - Earlier launch than the S10 with optical stabilisation. Portrait mode has "Portrait" and "Kids" mode. Has manual mode as well as shutter priority (no aperture priority though)
The S10 - Most compact 10 MP camera. It feels so nice and small in your hand and slips into your pouch or pocket discretely. Adds date imprint function (i wanted this on the A30...sigh) . Portrait mode includes a "Half Body Portrait" mode although its use is dubious.

Having done a comparison under a variety of conditions, I concluded that the S10/A30 represents the maximum pixels that is acceptable with the 1/1.8" CCD size. I suspect the noise on the A40/S12 would be more noticeable (12MP on 1/1.7" CCD).

Summary of my findings :
1. The A30 SR rocks! I try not to use flash to lock in the natural colours although the camera seems to perform better with it. Without flash, the images were clearly sharper under lower light conditions than those of the S10.
2. Under outdoor daylight conditions, it is possible to get DSLR-like quality images although the quality drops quickly the moment the level of lighting drops.
3. Noise reduction on the S10 is more aggressive. That means for the same indoor shot, the A30 shows noticebly more noise but I do detect there were a little more details, so the improvement on the S10 was due to NR but I do have to admit the NR was done quite pleasantly. If only the A30 was as aggressive.

Conclusion : I really love the small sexy compactness of the S10 but the SR of the A30 has won me over and its not that much bigger, only less sexy. :-) Hence I am willing to overlook the higher noise and opt to keep the A30 if I had to choose between the 2. Will carry out more tests before I confirm. The battery life probably sucks with the SR though but I have not done any tests on this.

12-22-2008, 10:37 AM   #15
Veteran Member
Buddha Jones's Avatar

Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Charlotte, NC
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 2,587
Original Poster
Hey Guys, I have the camera and have taken pics with it but havent had a moments free breathe to move them from camera to PC yet to see how I am liking them, plus I am still getting used to the controls so I dont wanna prematurely say I love or hate it until I know how to use it. This is afterall my first P&S camera so I am kind of a newb in that area. But I will get more than my fair share of opts to use it over the Holidays!
Reply

Bookmarks
  • Submit Thread to Facebook Facebook
  • Submit Thread to Twitter Twitter
  • Submit Thread to Digg Digg
Tags - Make this thread easier to find by adding keywords to it!
digital camera, optio a40, pentax cameras, point and shoot
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Optio A40 reliability Q pfdude Pentax Compact Cameras 1 09-22-2009 11:23 AM
Canon SX 110 IS vs. Pentax Optio A40 unixrevolution Pentax Compact Cameras 12 06-24-2009 08:22 AM
Optio A40 on sale... smigol Pentax Compact Cameras 1 01-13-2009 09:41 PM
For Sale - Sold: 12MP Pentax Optio A40 kenyee Sold Items 7 01-07-2009 09:22 PM
Pentax Optio S10 vs Optio A40 airconvent Pentax Compact Cameras 5 12-08-2008 07:30 AM



All times are GMT -7. The time now is 11:10 AM. | See also: NikonForums.com, CanonForums.com part of our network of photo forums!
  • Red (Default)
  • Green
  • Gray
  • Dark
  • Dark Yellow
  • Dark Blue
  • Old Red
  • Old Green
  • Old Gray
  • Dial-Up Style
Hello! It's great to see you back on the forum! Have you considered joining the community?
register
Creating a FREE ACCOUNT takes under a minute, removes ads, and lets you post! [Dismiss]
Top