Pentax K200D Review
Review based on a production Pentax K200D
The K200D was announced in January 2008 as a straight replacement for the K100D (actually the K100D Super which itself was a minor upgrade of the K100D launched in June 2007). The new model is aimed at the entry level segment of the market where it will have to compete with the likes of the Nikon D60, Olympus E-520 and the Canon EOS 450D.
Despite of a fairly tempting price point the K200D certainly does not compromise on features. It comes with a CCD-shift type 'Shake Reduction' system, Dust Removal and Pentax' 11-point Safox VIII AF system. Very unusually for this class of camera it also sports a weather-sealed body and a relatively large viewfinder with 96% coverage and a magnification of 0.85. What you won't get though is a live view system.
Did Pentax get the feature mix right? What about image quality? Click through to the following pages and read our in-depth review which will give you an answer to all these questions.
Compared to K100D - key differences
The Pentax K200D replaces the K100D which was introduced back in May 2006. From a specifications point of view the most notable difference is, as usual, the increase in megapixels from 6.1 to 10.2 MP. But the new model also features a CCD cleaning system, Dynamic Range Optimization and a larger screen along with some more, rather minor, changes.
 Pentax K200D |
 Pentax K100D |
|
|---|---|---|
| Body material | Plastic, stainless steel chassis, weather-sealed | Plastic, stainless steel chassis |
| Sensor | • 23.5 x 15.7 mm CCD sensor • 10.7 million total pixels • 10.2 million effective pixels |
• 23.5 x 15.7 mm CCD sensor • 6.31 million total pixels • 6.1 million effective pixels |
| Image sizes | • 3872 x 2592 pixels • 3008 x 2000 pixels • 1824 x 1216 pixels |
• 3008 x 2000 pixels • 2400 x 1600 pixels • 1536 x 1024 pixels |
| Dust reduction | CCD-shake | No |
| Flash | • Built-in P-TTL electronic pop-up flash |
• Built-in P-TTL electronic pop-up flash |
| Shooting modes | • Auto Picture mode • Picture mode • Scene mode • Program AE • Sensitivity-Priority AE • Shutter-Priority AE • Aperture-Priority AE • Metered Manual • Bulb |
• Auto picture mode |
| Drive modes | • 2.8fps for 4 frames (JPEG and Continuous (Hi), RAW • 1.1fps until the memory card is full (JPEG and Continuous (Lo))or for 4 frames (RAW) |
• Single shot • Continuous (2.8 fps, up to 5 JPEG frames) |
| LCD monitor | • 2.7 " TF LCD • Approx. 230,000 pixels |
• 2.5" TFT LCD • 210,000 pixels |
| Custom functions | 23 functions | 18 functions |
| Dimensions | 133.5mm x 95mm x 74mm (5.2 x 3.7 x 2.9 in) | 129 x 93 x 70 mm (5.1 x 3.7 x 2.8 in) |
| Weight | With lithium batteries and SD card: 690g (24.3oz.) | 660 g (1.5 lb) (reduced by approx. 20 g if using CR-V3 batteries) |
Foreword / notes
If you're new to digital photography you may wish to read some of our Digital Photography Glossary before diving into this article (it may help you understand some of the terms used).
Conclusion / recommendation / ratings are based on the opinion of the author, we recommend that you read the entire review before making any decision. Images which can be viewed at a larger size have a small magnifying glass icon in the bottom right corner of them, click to display a larger image in a new window.
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Dpreview use calibrated monitors at the PC normal gamma 2.2, this means that on our monitors we can make out the difference between all of the grayscale blocks below. We recommend to make the most of this review you should be able to see the difference (at least) between X,Y and Z and ideally also A, B and C.
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