Pentax Q : Tests and Reviews

With a 24-720mm equivalent zoom and built-in electronic finder housed in a pocket-friendly body, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50 occupies what manufacturers call the “travel zoom” compact category. At first sight these models look promising, but the small body and large zoom range mean they house relatively small-sized image sensors that may compromise image quality. Read on to find out how well the sensor in this model performs.

Announced in September 2012, the Pentax Q10 is the second in the Pentax Q series and lays claim to being the smallest hybrid camera currently available, offering interchangeable lenses in a package barely larger than an advanced compact camera. However, is smaller really better, and how have Pentax progressed since the Pentax Q?

Following the hybrid camera trend and after the limited success of the Pentax Q, Pentax is announcing today a new compact camera with interchangeable lenses, the Pentax K-01.

With an overall DxOMark score of 47, the Pentax Q is well-placed among cameras with sensors smaller than 4/3. In fact, its results are equivalent to the best compacts in this line (e.g., Canon Powershot G12 and Powershot S95) — not bad at all for a sensor that is smaller than most compact sensors (4.6 x 6.2 mm for the Pentax Q vs 5.8 x 7.9 for the Olympus XZ1).

The long awaited and rumored mirrorless Nikon camera was finally announced today. And it’s not just one but a pair of new mirrorless compact “1 System” cameras that are coming to compete with the Sony NEX 7, the Pentax Q, the Olymps PEN EP3 or even the Fujifilm FinePix X10. These 2 first models in this new Nikon 1 series are the Nikon J1 and Nikon V1.