[Mike Cash]

The quirks of the menu and trying to figure them out yesterday used up probably 2/3 of the battery I went through. I am tempted to think the X10 part of an elaborate ruse for selling spare batteries. My K-5 stays turned on all day long and I go a week on a battery. I turned on the X10 only while actively using it and burned through one in one day.

I am learning that AFS and AFC don't work as I am used to on DSLR cameras. In AFC, pressing and holding the focus button doesn't cause the camera to continuously focus as you move the camera. What it does is to have the camera continuously focus while you're NOT pressing and holding the shutter. Presumably this results in quicker focus, at the expense of battery life.
In AFS the camera remains focused at whatever distance you last focused on. Pressing the shutter causes the camera to then acquire focus. Presumably this is somewhat slower and helps preserve battery life. If shooting still subjects, AFS with the rear display turned off is probably the best choice for battery life. For moving subjects, use AFC, follow your subject, and don't press the shutter for focus lock until you're ready to shoot. Pressing and holding while following the subject is likely to guarantee missed focus shots unless the distance is the same. Auto-exposure seems to follow the same protocol, so pressing and following is a no-no if the lighting is different while following your subject.

All shooting settings are mode-specific. In other words, the ISO, film simulation, etc that you have selected with the camera in one mode will NOT affect settings in another mode. If you switch modes it is essential to keep that in mind. I'm sure that once I get used to it I will find it a tremendously beneficial system, but since that is unlike anything else I've ever used it will take a little while to adapt to it and work out strategies for settings on the various modes.

Maybe I just have roomy pockets, but with the hood removed the X10 fits nicely into my front pants pocket.

Last night I was going nuts trying to figure out why I had lost the option to have the rear screen turned off (AFS) or set to info only (AFC....without video from the sensor showing). After quite a bit of time I figured out it was because I had enabled Macro, which apparently disables those options. Turn Macro off when you're done with it.

It seems that the continuous shooting modes also operate a bit differently than on a DSLR. A single shutter press captures a set number of frames, as best I can figure it. No doubt RTFM would clear this up for me.

I haven't had a chance to actually use it yet, but the "track focus" option looks very interesting. You enable it, point the camera at whatever object you want in focus, and it remains locked not on that point in the viewfinder, but on that particular object no matter how you move the framing around. You have to shoot using the rear screen instead of with the OVF, though.

I used to carry in the truck with me a DC->AC power converter for running battery chargers. I can see right now I'm going to have to put it back in the truck again. Either that or buy three or four more batteries. Does anyone know if there is a USB charger for these batteries? That would save me a lot of trouble.

[Rupert]

Yes, the settings and modes are radically different from my K5.....and it takes some time to learn them...I'm still finding new stuff every day. As for batteries, they are dirt cheap and small, grab a handful and you're set...... they hold their charge a long time, just drop a few in your shirt pocket.

Give the Digital Zoom a try just for the heck of it.......there are times when you might need it, and it is amazing how well it works....another thing I have noticed is that it gives more background blur in the DZ setting.
Regards!