The Optio 30 is equipped with a Pentax power zoom 5.8mm-17.4mm (equivalent to 38mm-114mm in 35mm format) f/2.9 - f/5.0, 7 elements in 6 groups (2 aspherical elements). When powered down the lens will automatically retract into the camera and is protected by a built-in lens cap.

Featuring a 5-point, TTL contrast detection autofocus system with selectable Spot and Infinity/Landscape focus options. The AF range is from 1.64 ft. to infinity in normal mode and from 0.79 in. to 1.97 ft. in macro mode. Manual focusing is available from 0.79 in. to infinity.

The built-in flash offers modes for Auto, Flash-Off, Flash-On, Auto + red- eye reduction, Flash-On + red-eye reduction. The flash working range in Wide Angle is approx. 0.7 ft. - 9.5 ft. (ISO Auto) and Tele approx. 1.7 ft. - 5.6 ft. (ISO Auto).

The Optio 30 features an optical viefinder with a field of view of approx. 80-85% of the captured image. This is a useful tool when trying to conserve battery power. There is no dioptric adjustment, and the LED to the left indicates flash ready, focus lock, and image processing.

On the top is the power On/Off button and the shutter release.

On the left side you'll find the I/O ports: the DC IN port for an optional AC power supply or external battery pack.

There is a Mini-B connector to facilitate the USB 1.1 data cable. There is no audio/video output on this camera.

Contorts starting at the top: The zoom control buttons, which also functions as the image Index and Magnify buttons in play mode. There are dedicated buttons for the Flash mode (functions as the Protect button in play mode) and Focus mode (Macro, Landscape, Manual Focus), in play mode it functions as the image Delete button. Under the LCD you'll find the Menu and Play mode buttons. The Menu button calls up or dismisses the onscreen menu system. Press the Play mode button to review images and tap the shutter release to quickly go back to record mode again.

The 4-way selector switch is used for navigating menu options, press the OK button in the center to accept selections. The OK button also controls the amount of overlay information displayed on the LCD, as well as turns the LCD on or off. Press "Up" to change Drive modes in record or to set DPOF printing info in play mode. Press "Down" to change the recording mode (see the next page for the various modes available).

On the bottom you'll find the Battery/SD compartment. Images and movie clips are stored on the internal 16MB flash memory, or you can use any capacity SD card. You will only be able to capture about 7 images on the internal memory when using "Superior" image size/quality. We highly recommend the purchase of a larger (128 - 512MB) SD card.

The Optio 30 is powered by either two AA-size batteries or one of the CR-V3 type batteries. As always, we recommend the use of NiMH rechargeable batteries, they're reusable, carry more power than alkalines and they'll save you money in the long run.

Pentax claims a battery life of up to 600 shots (LCD on, Flash used for 50% of the shots) when using a CR-V3 type battery.