Pentax Optio WG-1 Review

Review posted 5/23/2011

Quick Take

Pros

Sturdy feel, rugged design Bright backlight in direct sunlight, viewing angle of 170° Face detection excellent, even on faces in photographs and profile shots up to 80° Easy to understand, and cartoon like menu icons for preprogrammed exposure settings Short descriptions of each exposure setting Good outdoor image quality Detachable stand works great for macro shots Great ergonomic shape that feels comfortable holding camera steady for shots Nice 5x optical zoom is more continuous than discrete, for more accurate framing

Cons

Weak Flash Recessed power button, difficult turning on/off Weak macro LED lamps Confusion between menu and playback buttons Detachable stand is useful for macro shots, but unrealistic to actually have it when you need it, or it could easily be lost Pictures can be grainy/noisy Dirt/debris was able to get under the seals, but did not enter the I/O and battery compartments

Bottom Line

The Pentax WG-1 is offer some nice improvements over its predecessors, with tougher "lifeproof" specifications, longer battery life, and additional LED macro lamps. At $349 or less, it offers a good bang for your buck in a competitive market niche. Read more in our Full Conclusion.

Building off the success of their past "Lifeproof" W-series models, like the Optio W90, Pentax has created their most rugger camera yet with the introduction of the Optio WG-1 and WG-1 GPS. These models offer identical specifications, with the latter camera offering GPS functionality and different color options.

Waterproof down to 33 feet, crushproof up to 220 pounds (100kgf kilogram-force), Coldproof to sub-freezing temps of 14°F (10° C), dustproof, and shockproof up to a 5 foot fall, the WG-1 is as tough as they come. Many of its other features have been carried over from the W90, including a 5x optical zoom lens, 2.7-inch LCD screen, and 720p HD video recording. Pentax has upped the resolution to 14-megapixels (from 12), and added two additional LED macro lights around the lens, giving you a total of five.

Pentax Optio WG-1 features:

• 14-megapixels of resolution for large prints
  
• 5X optical zoom (28-140mm equivalent)
• 2.7 inch LCD screen with 16:9 wide-screen aspect ratio and anti-reflective coating
  
• Enhanced Digital Microscope mode
• Detachable Macro stand
  
• 5 LED macro lights mounted around the lens bezel
  
• Waterproof to depths of up to 33 feet
• Shockproof from drops as high as 5 feet from the ground
• Crushproof ti withstand up to 220 pounds of force
  
• Coldproof/Freezeproof down to 14ºF/-10ºC 
• Dustproof
  
• 720p HD video at 30 frames per second
  
• Pixel Track and Digital Shake Reduction
• Face Detection, Smile Capture, Blink Detection
• Autofocus assist lamp
• Infrared remote control capabilities
• Rechargeable Li-Ion battery
• HDMI port for playing back HD videos and still images on you HDTV
• SD/SDHC/SDXC card slot; Eye-fi compliant
• GPS functionality for geo-tagging (WG-1 GPS model only)
  

The Pentax Optio WG-1 is available in Black or Purple with a suggested retail price of $349.95 US, while the WG-1 GPS is offered in Black or Green/Yellow for about $399.95 US. See our buy boxes below for more accurate online pricing.

 

Visitors of Steves can visit the stores below for real-time pricing and availability. You can also find hot, soon to expire online offers on a variety of cameras and accessories at our very own Camera Deals page.