Design
The Pentax K2000 (K-m) features the familiar shapes and textures of the K200D albeit in a shrunk-down format. The new model is a fair bit more compact and has also lost its bigger brother's top-LCD, rubberized thumb-rest and a couple of buttons. The latter is made up for by a new interactive status screen that is displayed on the rear-LCD and gives you access to all important shooting settings.
The build quality is on par with the competition in the entry level bracket. The K2000's body is made out of reinforced ABS plastic and comes with a rubberized grip but lacks the K200D's weather-seals.
Side by side
Below you can see the K-m beside three of its direct competitors: the Olympus E-420, Nikon D60 and the Canon EOS 1000D. Even within this circle of the smallest DSLRs on the market the Pentax is one of the more compact ones. It's the heaviest of this quartet though. This is mainly due its use of AA batteries while most competitors use lighter and smaller Li-Ion cells.
Compared to its predecessor as the most junior member in the Pentax DSLR line-up, the K200D, the K2000 has shrunk in all dimensions. You'll still find some similarities from a control point of view though.
| Camera | Dimensions (W x H x D) |
Body weight (inc. battery & card) |
|---|---|---|
| Olympus E-420 | 129.5 x 91 x 53 mm (5.1 x 3.6 x 2.1 in) | 445 g (1.0 lb) |
| Nikon D60 | 126 x 94 x 64 mm (5.0 x 3.7 x 2.5 in) | 522 g (1.2 lb) |
| Canon EOS 100D | 129 x 98 x 62 mm (5.1 x 3.9 x 2.4 in) | 526 g (1.2 lb) |
| Pentax K200D | 133.5 x 95 x 74mm (5.2 x 3.7 x 2.9 in) | 700g (1.5 lb) |
| Pentax K2000 | 122.5 x 91.5 x 67.5mm (4.8 x 3.6 x 2.7 in) | 625g (1.4 lb) |
In your hand
The rubberized grip on the K2000 is comparatively thin, so if you have large hands try to handle one before you buy. Having said that the camera always feels safe in your hands and due to its small dimensions and the new control layout even one-handed operation is possible.
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LCD monitor
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The K2000's screen measures 2.7 inches and provides a resolution of 230,000 dots combined with a wide viewing-angle.The brightness of the screen is adjustable. |
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Viewfinder
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Like the K200D the K2000 comes with a pentamirror viewfinder that provides a relatively large view for a camera with an APS-C sized sensor (96% coverage, 0.85x magnification). It also offers diopter correction (-2.5 – +1.5). |
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Viewfinder view
When looking through the viewfinder you'll see the AF frame and the spot metering frame. Normally the AF areas are not visible, the image below is simulated to indicate the position of the AF points. You can choose from Auto AF-point selection or center point only.
