Pentax Optio W80 Waterproof 12.1MP Digital Camera with

Great and rugged little camera!
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I would have given it 5 stars, but I have to agree that there is some noise in average, everyday shots on this camera when taken with the automatic default settings.

The camera feels small and tough, and I haven’t had the short battery life that others have commented on (seems like I get about 15 hours or so of off and on use per charge). It can take AMAZING shots if you take a little time to learn the settings. Manual macro shots of up-close items look terrific, and the panorama feature on this camera stitches separate pictures together better than my old Kodak 1063 did.

The underwater shots look pretty good, especially if taken on days with sufficient sunlight, and I’m not seeing any signs of the camera leaking.

Overall I’m really pleased with this little camera. It has a lot of neat features if you just take the time to learn about them. Originally I was deciding between this camera and an Olympus 1050sw, but my friend with the Olympus can’t take shots that look nearly as good as what I’ve been able to take with my camera, so I’m very happy overall.

Need better battery
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
The quality of the battery is the mian concern. Which also affects the picture qaulity when flash is need.

Very Disappointed..Would have been excellent for this Hawaii weather!
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
After doing extensive research of waterproof/underwater cameras and reading just a handful of reviews that have said what I have experienced..I still went ahead and purchased the camera hoping it would work for me. I was so excited to receive it. After receiving and taking many photos at Christmas time…very disappointed with photos especially with distance views (even at 20-30 feet), I was super excited about the 5x optical zoom..its the worst i have ever seen. Photos appear to come from a 2 MP camera rather than a 12MP. Even if taking photo from afar and then zooming in on the photo after taking it did not make the graininess any better. This camera did take magnificant macro and super macro photos! My ideal purpose was to take photos of my kids while surfing/boogie boarding,just being at the beach and distant range photos. Maybe the main purpose was for underwater use but it would have been wonderful if underwater and out of water photos could be taken with great quality. All photos also appear washed out/faded. I tried all the different setting and nothing changed. Photos taken in between ranges other than close ups were still grainy so I purchase another one to just make sure I didn’t receive a defective one and no luck, still the same. Both have been returned. My husband’s $80 Samsung is much more impressive in all aspects. Aloha! Hope this help ;0)

Pentax Optio W-series is falling
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I have been using this Pentax series of camera since the very beginning with the Optio43WR and sometimes i think that is still the best one to use.

Pentax is trying to cram too many options into one instead of focusing on a quick start and quick focus to shutter ratio. I find that the camera often is trying to think for me instead of just taking the picture.

The quality above 200ISO on this camera is not good and if you take on at night, make sure your lens glass is clean, otherwise the dust specs show up as little white freckles all over the place.

While i still prefer this waterproof camera over the Olympus and Samsung models, I am excited to see Canon in the portable waterproof game (still waiting for them to slim it down some though Canon PowerShot D10 12.1 MP Waterproof Digital Camera with 3x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.5-inch LCD) and I hope that Nikon gets in the game real soon too.

Net-net, if you want a camera that is good for drinking with and getting random shots, this is a good one, just make sure your battery is charged or you have an extra because the battery life sucks on this camera.

I hope that this helps some.

Tim

[...]

Terrible Camera
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
Tried two of these cameras and had the worst pictures every taken particularly indoors. We have Option W10 which still performs better than this camera. Pictures on W80 are extremely grainy/noisy and are generally not clear. Would suggest looking for another camera rather than this one. I have been a fan of the Pentax waterproof cameras however this one is not up to par.

Rugged? Broke after 2 days.
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I just purchased this camera for a vacation to Disney World, I tried it out for a few days before we left, I was a little surprised at how grainy the pictures looked, especially inside, they were dark, even with the flash and the video was dark and not very clear, not what I was expecting. We have a w10 that we have had for years and it takes wonderful pictures, so we were expecting more of the same, it was to late to do anything so we took it anyway, along with our old w10. the first day in florida it was working ok, pictures looked a little better outside in the bright sun, but not great. the next morning I go to take a picture and poof, half of the screen is black, this camera was supposed to be rugged, it was never dropped, hadn’t even been in the water yet, apparently it’s not pocket proof, needless to say it was useless after that. I had thought maybe I had a lemon but after reading some of the other reviews here i decided to just keep mu refund and look for another camera.

very good camera for the proposal…
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Yes, it is a very good camera. not a professional one, but i am not a professional anyway. The pictures are very good several options of settings, and easy commands. at night the picture are a little blur (just a little, depending on your firm hands). I recommend this for any one who wants a portable waterproof camera, not a professional but a very, very good one. No regrets for my buying.

My new camera
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I purchased this camera to replace my Canon SD 450. I recently took it on a trip to San Francisco and to Monterey and I am very pleased with all of my pictures taken with it. The zoom is very nice and I especially liked the 28mm wide angle. The battery does run down, but I carried a spare and had no problems. The digital zoom is very good. I haven’t tried it under water yet, but am looking forward to using to see my 4 yr old grandson swim underwater. The movies I did take were very good also. Overall a much better camera than some of the reviews have talked about.

This thing is Great.
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I am was Looking for a 2nd Camera to use everyday other than my DSLR K20D. This camera will not be like the k20 but the abilty to not worry about this thing getting wet is great. It is Built rugged and does take good photos, Just a warning dont think this camera is not going to have the qualities of a bigger camera and it is only a point and shoot. Just so you know. All that aside I love this thing and look foward to many good shots with this camera.

If you want a versatile small camera
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I have a Pentax digital SLR and also a Panasonic Lumix. I bought this for water resistance and toughness and use around water as a previous trip blew out the main board on my digital SLR due to dampness.

I just returned from the Galapagos and used this daily when on Zodiac boats and hiking and photographing birds and sea lions etc. In some cases, I also used the Lumix which is also 12mp.

The results were so close in all details that I had to recall which camera I had that day while I looked at the pictures. The Optio colors were slightly more saturated but all pictures are good. Some were taken in showers and on the beach and light correction for brightness on the equator was accurate.

My only issue with these point and shoot cameras is the small size. I cannot take as good a shot holding this as I can with a larger SLR body. I recently learned of a way to cradle my wrists to steady these and it seems to work well.

Awful camera.
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
Bought this camera, and returned this camera. Its waterproof, but trust me, it takes horrible pictures everywhere. From grainy-ness, to softness, and washed out colors everywhere. Pentax makes decent cameras in general, but skip the W80 in my opinion.

Don’t hate it – but don’t like it
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
The best digital camera my husband and I ever owned was a Pentax W10 – it lasted for years and took great photos.. very resilient. We figured that if a W10 is this great that a W80 would be even better but we were sadly mistaken after receiving our W80 and taking a few photos. At first, when all the photos we took turned out grainy I figured it was the settings that needed to be changed.

As a military photojournalist, I shoot daily with a Nikon D3, I know how to change settings and reduce the ISO to make the photo less grainy – and even after I exhausted all changes to the settings, the photos were still unimpressive. We went outside thinking that more lighting would mean better focus and better photos – but even they were a little soft and not that great.

I might recommend this for the outdoorsy type but for someone like my husband and I who are looking for a point-and-shoot camera that takes impressive photos (without fumbling through settings all the time) it was not for us. We are in the process of returning it.

Pentax never fails me
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I think some people buying this rugged, point and shoot camera are expecting the quality of a dslr which is not the case. If you want one of the most rugged, portable cameras that take great pictures and video, this is your camera. If you want a DSLR, I HIGHLY recommend the Pentax K20D!

I just love Pentax. Doesn’t get much better.

Great camera, indestructible, but not easy to use right
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I have now had the camera for five months and really like it. Here are the best things about it:

1. Durability: I destroyed my previous sony digital at my cousins wedding and have done far worse to this Pentax with no damage. I have have had this on two water-ski trips, a day trip to Tipi Hedron’s wild cat sanctuary, and a trip to DisneyWorld and SeaWorld, and an ocean beach day. It survived all without a hitch, including taking pictures and video on rollercoasters and while getting ejected from tube behind a boat into river (hard skip and landing in water). It did just fine in the pouring rain at SeaWorld.

2. Pictures: Some people have had problems with pictures, that has not been my experience. I was able to get good pictures and decent video. I’m an amateur and used firework mode at DisneyWorld and got great pictures.

3. Timer: The timer feature worked great for group shots at Christmas, plenty of time for the person taking to get into the picture and good warning that it is about to take.

4. SD Card: It does not seem to have any problems with any SD cards. I have put in small slow ones and a new high capacity (16GB) Transcend 16 GB Class 6 SDHC Flash Memory Card TS16GSDHC6E [Amazon Frustration-Free Packaging] and not had any problems.

Here are the things that are difficult with this camera:

1. Redeye: This is the most common problem. There is a full flash then a very long pause so people always start moving. This also can cause the camera person will start moving. It’s more of an annoyance, because you end up retaking the picture.

2. Video: This is Not a video camera. It does decent on the full HD videos up to a point. If there is a lot of movement or you want a long video, you probably need a real video camera.

3. Battery: The Battery is reversible 180 degrees, but only works in one orientation, so if you put the battery in and it is backward, you will think the battery is dead. I also recommend a second battery.

4. Settings: There are a lot of settings, so you have to pay attention if somebody else used the camera before you.

5. Audible shutter click: There may be a way to change this, but the shutter sound is quiet, so it is not always obvious when/if the picture took.

6. Flash reset: It can take a few seconds before another picture can use the flash and the camera will often take the picture without the flash without warning. This is probably better than not taking the picture if the flash isn’t ready since one can delete it, but it was different.

Great cam for the outdoors and for everyday!
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I was looking for a camera that would withstand the tropical weather and some hits/drops once in a while. Also, a camera I could use anytime (I play ultimate frisbee, go outdoors for trails and geocaching and like hanging around the city).

While I have not dropped the camera or gone into water/rain yet, I like the quality of the pictures and the different modes available. I have used it so far to take sport pics, landscapes, portraits/people at different times of day, party pics, closeups of text, food and other stuff and a few videos. So far very good. I really like the weight/dimensions/finish of the camera and its “vintage” look too. It was a pleasant surprise to find out that the battery charges fast.

The P mode (automatic programming of settings) works very well in most of the shots. Menus are user-friendly but not the easiest I have used and the preview in the LCD could be better/sharper too.

I bought this camera to replace my 7MP Nikon Coolpix of 6+ years.

Poor quality pictures
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I purchased the W80 camera to replace my Pentax Optio WP 5 MP camera that is over 4 years old. I was so disappointed in the picture quality of the W80, especially when I did the side by side comparisons of the pictures taken by the 12 MP W80 and the 5 MP WP and found the WP took much crisper photos (which was even more obvious when I enlarged the pictures). I took a variety of pictures with the W80 using different modes both indoors and outdoors. Oddly, the best picture was taken inside using flash (the weak point of the WP) and the worst was outside in bright light. The camera had a very difficult time with reds and anything red was very pixelated and off color. I have spoken so highly of my WP that I had 3 friends purchase Pentax waterproof cameras because of my recommendations and I even purchased the W60 for my Father as a gift this year. I returned this camera within 24 hours and purchased a Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS1 which has taken fantastic pictures and video.

Pentax Optio W80 less than expected
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I preordered this directly from Pentax, and I’ve had it for less than a week. I know someone with a W30 who is very happy with his, so I figured this would be much better. So far, I’m very disappointed. I’m comparing it to my Canon SD850 by shooting macro, interior and exterior scenes. I have left the settings in auto mode and set it to record highest quality. The W80 produces very noisy images. Flash results seem to be a bit erratic. Very poor image quality in low-light. Side-by-side photo comparisons on-screen show better images with my Canon.

I also figured that since there is no moving lens, the W80 would have excellent battery life. Canon battery is 1120-mAh and W80 is only 680-mAh. The actual battery life is commensurately poor. I can get by on a weekend trip with lots of photos with only a single battery in my Canon, but I’m sure I would need to take two or three with the Pentax.

I really wanted this camera to work out, but I’m about to send it back. Anybody else have some feedback on this camera??

Worst Camera I have ever owned
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
We previously had a Sony W170 that took great pictures, unfortunately we got sand in it and it quit working. We then bought the Pentax Optio W80 looking for durability. It is durable but it doesn’t matter, the picture quality is horrible. Regardless of the setting they turn out grainy, 12.1 mega pixels doesn’t mean anything if all 12.1 of them are grainy. We kept it too long to send back but we are going to buy another sony.

Poor image quality, lots of Noise
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
Don’t buy it. It is waterproof and easy to carry in a pocket. But it takes awful pictures and that can’t be forgiven. Don’t buy it

It’s waterproof, cold-resistant & has decent shutter speed
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Bought this as an upgrade to an older Optio WP 5-megapixel. Very happy. W80′s shutter response is good, battery resting retention impressive, photo quality fine for me. Still need to play with the settings, read manual, and truly test it out in multiple environments, but 100% satisfied at this point. Nice design touch is the battery compartment “lock by default”.

The selling point for me with the W80 is weather resistance. That is why I bought my other Optio.

When I researched that one, it was for my first digital camera (latecomer). Could see other digital cameras might provide better picture quality/performance/etc but just seemed dumb (for me) to spend money on a camera I couldn’t safely use in the rain, on a boat, in the snow, etc. Out of the water-resistant choices available, I risked it on the Optio. Not cheap. Especially compared to non-weatherproof choices. But, turned out to be a good choice for me. See no reason to change brands now. Bought two batteries, extra SD cards, & have never had a problem during casual/general use. (My point & shoot 35mm before digital was the weather-resistant Olympus.)

My older Optio is still working fine & taking great pictures (to my level of discernment) as long as I account for the slow shutter response. Shutter lag has been my only complaint with the older Optio. A pain, especially for action shots, but balanced out by the positive features, especially weather resistance. (And it caught some beautiful picture detail, really.)

On the W80 I was sucked in by newer technology & more than twice the megapixels, with the security of known manufacturer/model line. The W80′s shutter speed & other features seem good to me. Looking forward to getting to know its capabilities over time. From the some of the other reviews, sounds like this camera hasn’t made everyone happy; taking those comments under consideration but not worrying about it. So far my pictures look fine to me & no issues with performance. Don’t expect to submerge it often, but great to have that capability too. I have no doubt the W80 will be excellent as my new standard camera. For whatever it’s worth…

Best pocket camera since 2002
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Almost ten years ago I bought a Nikon CoolPix 950. This Pentax Optio W80 is the first pocket-sized camera I have owned since then which is of higher quality than the Nikon.

Let’s face it, when DSLRs became affordable every camera manufacturer abandoned the notion of quality in their point and shoot line under the assumption that anyone who wanted quality was going to buy a DSLR. The end result is their factories pumped out steaming piles of…junk that they masqueraded as cameras.

Not so for this one. I love it for it’s quality. Does it take as good of pictures as my Canon 1D series DLSR? No, not at all. Does it take good pictures? I think so. The lens is protected inside the camera, like that old CoolPix 950 was. That means the lens doesn’t break. Every camera I’ve owned with a lens that emerges from the body has only lasted a few weeks before the lens failed. This W80 is rock solid.

And it’s waterproof. And waterproof means dustproof too. I can shoot anywhere, at any time. My Pentax SLR stopped working correctly the first time it met sand. My most recent Nikon branded point and shoot wasn’t durable enough to sit in the seat of my car for a week before it’s lens assembly failed. When my W80 was so crusted with mud that I couldn’t use it I just walked into the waterfall until it was clean again! And it still works.

This camera does have too many pixels. Way too many pixels. The lens and the sensor are not up to the specs they tried to squeeze into it. Reducing each picture in size by half or more makes all the difference.

It’s small, and the battery life is good for such a small battery. I find it easy to carry anywhere, and I’m never worried about dropping it or getting it wet.

I made a terrible mistake selling my Nikon CoolPix 950. I won’t make that mistake again. I’m keeping this camera forever out of fear that they will never make another camera this good again.

What do I hate about it? The menu system sucks. Too many picture modes.

Wouldn’t buy this camera again!!
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I bought this camera because it is water-proof, shake-proof and has a high quality pixal. Although the quality is there, there is also two flashes before the shutter is activated and usually the subject has moved…..this cannot be changed…….it is not the easiest camera to operate either. Read the booklet entirely and always have it on hand…..one more thing, the shutter doen’t have a lens cover….it’s open for damage. NOT the best buy.

I really like this camera
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
On a recent trip to the Mediterranean, my trusty old Nikon L11 died (the LCD screen cracked).

So, when I got home, I wanted to look for something a bit more rugged, and [...]

I figured I’d wait until Labor Day sales, but when I found this advertised in an Amazon email, and after reading the review at [...]I went for it.

The Pentax was [...] over my budget. So I bought it in gray. It’s totally worth it.

It’s easy to learn, fairly straightforward, and takes nice pictures.

I even got to use the old Nikon’s measly 1 gig SD card.

I said it takes nice pictures. If you want great pictures, save your money for an SLR.

I am very satisfied with my purchase, which, by the way, got here in two days.

Buyer beware
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
The Pentax Optio series is a less than average quality camera. The photos are much grainier and the battery life is far less then a comparable Olympus or Casio. The worst part for me however is the poor customer service provided by Pentax. I purchased this camera with an extended warranty and when the lens failed after 2 months without being dropped, I was informed they could do nothing to help me, even the local dealer I purchased it from says the support is pathetic. Save yourself some grief and purchase a good quality camera.

¡Muy buena compra!.
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Pese a que en Venezuela no es una marca muy conocida, debo reconocer que la cámara es excelente, la calidad de las imágenes nada tiene que envidiar a una Kodak o Casio. Otro aspecto a resaltar es su precio, el cual está muy por debajo de los que nuestros usureros comerciantes venezolanos suelen colocar a sus mercancías bajo la engañifa del control de cambios.

Saludos,

Fidias Pérez A.

Caracas, Venezuela.

So far, so good.
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
The camera seems to be very sturdy. The book of instructions is very thick and to take the time to learn about it calls for you to set aside time to do that. I’ve always been a Kodak Easy Share digital camera owner so for me, getting to know this camera has been hard. It’s not as easy to work but I’m still learning. I will update this as I get better at it but I can say, this camera you will need to LEARN to use all it’s aspects if you are not already familiar with Pentax digitals. I do like it so far and it is very easy to stuff in my pocket. So far, so good.

I really wanted to like this camera
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I was looking into buying a sturdy/waterproof camera, as my family tends to be butterhands and our last came to its end from one drop to many.

The final 2 cameras that made my cut were the Canon D10 and the Pentax w80. I was undecided since they tended to have the same features, but the Pentax beating the Canon by shooting 720p video. Still, I preferred the Canon as my previous Camera was a Canon and I was greatly satisfied by the pictures it took.

But, come a few weeks before Christmas, a great deal comes on Amazon.com that pushed me to buy the Pentax, I was really excited and upon receiving the camera I read the instruction manual from the first page to the last, took some daytime photos and was impressed by the results, vivid color, no grain.

Then, came christmas eve and I took some lowlight/nightime photos…I was shocked, I tried the lowlight settings, the nighttime settings, shooting with a tripod, and the manual settings, playing with the ISO settings, light sensitivity, etc. but the results were similar, either the shots came out pale with people looking like ghosts, or the came overly saturated, almost as if people were wearing clown makeup, automatic/night settings came out grainy as heck and the shake reduction option turned out pictures that were surreally blurred. I was so dissatisfied with the camera, that I decided to take the rest of the pictures with my Iphone camera, with shockingly better pictures!

I thought to myself, maybe it’s me, so I read the manual again, figured out some things that could be improved, and tried it out on new years eve…the flash is too strong, the images come out blurred, all and all I was disappointed.

I really wanted to like this camera, and it takes beautiful outside daytime photos, but if you happen to wish to take any sort of indoor/night time photos, you’ll get better results with your cell phone camera, even the god awful Iphone 3g camera.

Pentax, I am very dissapointed, and I would sell this camera back if I thought I wasn’t ripping people off.

So, all and all if your main objective is to take outside daytime/underwater photos this is is your camera, any thing else than that, you’ll be greatly disappointed.

Good Camera for Activities
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I pre-ordered this camera to replacing an aging Canon. My main criteria was to have a camera that can be brought on ski trips; on the boat; canoe trips; and hiking. Used at the Grand Canyon and was very pleased with the quality of the pictures. (I am a casual user not a photographer). If you purchase this camera be sure to buy an additional battery! Would recommend spending about 15-20 minutes getting used to the camera before using in activities. Based on the reviews, the Canon is a better unit, but this one is slim and fits into ski jackets and life preservers.

Fuzzy pics
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
Being that the camera is supposed to be 12.1MP very dissapointed I’m sending it back with all the stuff that came along with it. The pics were fuzzy on the LCD screen then they were fuzzy when they came out. I cannot get a crystal clear picture on this thing. The only good thing about the camera was the accessories. If there is a way to get a clear picture let me know. Too much money for this product.

I want the free memory card I was supposed to get.
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I really like this camera, this is not the first Pentax Waterproof I own, but it is way better than the one I got 5 yeras ago.

I do have a problem with the delivery since I paid an extra $20 to get it on the next day but got it 5 days later.

I also did not get the free gadgets it was supposed to come with like the camera’s case, memory card, etc.

When I bought it on line the package was made of plastic with the camera and all the gadgets at view, when I got it the camera came on a box without any extra gadgets.

Luisa Salazar

don’t buy this camera if you take regular pictures with it
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
Just bought this camera given anticipated buzz.

Admittedly, I have not tried it underwater, or tested its ruggedness. But I am sending it back because it won’t even take normal pictures accurately without graininess, blurriness and movement. Also, the delay is far too long, and image stabilization does not work accurately. Additionally, if subjects are moving, it’s quite difficult to get a reasonable picture in low-ish light. To be fair, I tried a variety of mode settings including auto and a variety of manual settings, and frankly my iPhone took better pictures (without a flash!). In fact, the best pictures I took were in “green mode”, and these were not really comparable to a generic 3-5 year old digital camera.

Maybe this camera has a niche use for underwater/etc only, but I had planned on taking “normal” pictures of reasonable quality with it as well, and I just couldn’t find a way for this to work, so this is a non-starter for me.

I should have waited for the reviews to come out before taking the plunge:

see http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/Q209waterproofgroup/ for comparisons to D10 and TS1. Of note, even the W60 performed better in this review!!!

Go everywhere camera with great macro
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
This is the third Pentax waterproof camera I have owned, and the best by far. I pre-ordered and have taken thousands of pictures with it since purchase and literally take it everywhere. It fits in the change pocket of my jeans. I love that a 2 second timer is included, which helps with tripod shots since no external shutter release is available.

The only complaint I have is the software requires intervention to get the best photos. You have to pay attention to the focus spot, or adjust metering area to get ideal pictures. Still, having had Pentax for years I’m used to this. Many point-and-shoot will take better pictures when you adjust options to situations, and this is no different. Since I am a camera geek, I play with setting anyway, but someone who hates this or doesn’t understand photography might complain about photo quality — to them, I recommend a less complex (i.e. cheaper, simpler) camera designed for that demographic.

PROS: Portability. Battery life. Unuually good macro mode that surpasses $900 SLR lenses! Color rendition. 2&10 second timer. Great video quality.

CONS: Mediocre auto-mode select. Low-power flash. Inconsistent facial focus (pay attention)

Not as good as the original WP version
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I had bought the original Optio WP version back in 2004 & it had lasted 5 years & over probably 30000 pics. It even still works, by I decided to give the 3rd version the W80 model a try – not even close to the quality of the original version – Buyer Beware. Much cheaper made, pics not as clear. Sent it back for refund !!!!!

WTF
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I bought this camera in Aug 09 because i wanted a durable quality camera that could withstand getting a little wet due to my last camera being ruined by an ocean wave catching me off gaurd last summer. At the time I bought it, it was a brand new product and had no consumer reviews to reveal just how inferior this camera actually is. I am surprised that this camera actually made it into the market place because the photo quality is just horrific! In just about any lighting, this camera manages to get it all wrong. Too much light comes in, over exposing some photos, some pictures don’t allow enough light, other photos are too grainy, fuzzy and if that is not enough to dissuade a consumer, there is problem of the battery going weak after just a few short uses. It’s a camera that needs to go back to the drawing board to be totally engineered from sqaure one. It Sucks and I am returning it for a refund.

Horrible picture quality
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I was really excited about this camera. I figured we were past the days when you had too worry too much about a digital camera giving you decent pictures. Wrong-o. The picture quality is really poor. Like other reviewers, I tried playing with the settings to no avail. Lots of noise and artifacts in the pictures regardless of the settings.

This camera has all the right specs for my needs but the picture quality was so bad it went back after a day of playing with it.

BUY SOMETHING ELSE.

Terrible picture quality–it is going back
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I bought this to replace a W30 that gave up the ghost. I could not be more disappointed. While it is a little easier to use and hold on to than the W30, the picture quality is absolutely terrible. I am not a camera snob or anything but I found that any picture in less than bright light or even in good light but with movement was extremely grainy. They look like scans from a photo that has been blown up too large.

I’m sending it back.

A Fun Camera to have
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I bought this camera as a second one to compliment me DSLR, and it has proved to be very useful. It is very small and compact and can go anywhere you want. I took it down a water park slide, into the pool, on a roller coaster and it was great. I got shots I don’t think I could have taken with any other camera. It has a boat load of automatic features and settings which as useful. It days great pictures in the daylight, ie low ISO pictures. Like many camera’s this size as you increase the ISO the amount of digital noise increases. It is very noisy when used at higher ISO settings. But I bought this to use outdoors in the daytime so I am happy with that.

Preetham

Author of “A Circle of Souls”

A Circle of Souls

Pentax Optio W80 – Successful cruise pictures!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
While researching waterproof and underwater cameras for our cruise, I was not very impressed by any of the options available. All the options in my price range had issues. I selected the Pentax Optio W80 because of the feature set, including using standard SD and SDHC cards and the overall reviews I found. I noticed that most people either loved or hated their choice, regardless of which choice they made, but this camera had more positive reviews than negative.

Having said that, I found that the speed of the capture was delayed a bit as expected, but not as bad as I had feared. Most reviews stated this and every professional review confirmed that underwater cameras are slower to accommodate the underwater image processing. I did not have any issues with leaking or damage to the camera after using it in the ocean. The camera did not descend more than 5 feet underwater.

The colors were better than my wife’s $1,500 DSLR and most of the images were as good or better quality. I found a few low-light situations with the automatic setting where the images were grainy or blurry, but a combination of manual settings and/or a tripod overcame these issues. This really comes down to knowing how to use the camera. Of course, the lens flexibility and detailed settings of the DSLR is where the comparison is lost.

The battery lasted for nearly a full day excursion (8+ hours) with frequent playback and minimal video. I tried to turn off the camera whenever I was not using it so the self-timed shutoff did not activate and the camera was not on for the full time. I cannot even guess as to the total length of “on” time, but it met my needs and the battery recharged within an hour. A second batter is recommended for long days.

did all that I expected….
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I bought this camera for one purpose only and that was to take some windsurfing action shots (see my uploaded photo). The little camera performed its job admirably. Small, light and tough, I was able to mount it easily on the mast or on a 20′ telescopic pole secured in shallow water. Best of all, the W80 has an interval shooting feature (time lapse) which allows continuous shooting as often as every 10 seconds. Despite what other reviewers have stated, the picture quality appears fine. I am sure that I will be getting a lot of use out of this camera.