Review posted 6/08/2011

Quick Take

Pros

Lightweight, and compact in size Fashionable/pleasing to the eye Smooth and won't snag on your pocket Easy to understand button layout, and a lot of easy to understand cartoon menu icons for preprogrammed exposure settings Short descriptions of each exposure setting Button to quickly take you to video capture In camera photo editing Different colored side panels on optical lens add to it's stylish nature Captures very nice 14-megapixel photos outdoors, with a surprising amount of fine details

Cons

Weak Flash can cause some headaches indoors Sometimes produced strong exposures with blown out highlights Zoom has less steps, making precise framing difficult Default setting of backlight time-out is too short Poor battery life Battery charges in-camera via USB; no external battery charger No LCD protective cover; LCD is easily damaged Below average shooting performance when compared to other Optio models in this price range

Bottom Line

The Optio S1 is a "cute" little camera, that offers some pretty standard features for a 14-megapixel camera; all of which are stuffed in a petite and stylish shell. However, we feel you'd be better off looking at other Optio models for the price; like the RS1500 which is about $50 less. Read more in our Full Conclusion.

The letter "S" stands for stylish, at least that's what we believe with the Optio S1. This is an ultra-compact digicam that has three major offerings: compact size, stylish looks, and ease of use.

Once you understand those, the S1 is a pretty standard 14-megapixel digicam in the sub $200 digital camera markets. Other important features include a 2.7-inch LCD screen, 720p HD video recording, intelligent "Auto Picture" mode, and in-camera HDR; to name a few.

Pentax Optio S1 Major Features:

• 14-megapixel image sensor
• 5x zoom lens with 28 - 140mm wide-angle coverage
• Intelligent Auto Picture mode
• Face and Smile detection
• In-camera
  
• 720p High-Definition Video recording with Movie Shake Reduction mode
• 2.7-inch, 230K dot display
• Auto-tracking AF mode
• SD/SDHC/SDXC memory card slot (21.6MB of internal storage)
• Li-ion battery pack (capture up to 210 photos per charge)
  

The Pentax Optio S1 is available now with a MSRP of $199.95 US. You can choose a Black, Green, and Chrome.

What's in the box?:

• Pentax Optio S1 camera body
  
• USB Cable I-USB116
• AV Cable I-AVC116
• Rechargeable Li-Ion Battery D-LI78
  
• USB Power Adapter Kit D-PA116
  
• Strap O-ST116
• Software CD-ROM S-SW116