The Pentax MX-1 is an "extremely
compact" camera with a lens with a 4x f/1.8 optical zoom, a 3-inch tilting
screen and slightly larger than the usual backlit CMOS sensors. The MX-1 is characterized
by a classic design with a brass plate on the top and bottom with the available
color combination of silver and black or entire black.
Features
The design of the Pentax MX-1 is the Pentax
MX SLR film camera’s reminiscent model, and features a similar logo design, and
a rubber grip around the front of the camera, as well as a ring to attach the
strap loop located in the same place.
The
Pentax MX-1 is an "extremely compact" camera
Brassed
Off
The upper and lower copper plates are
covered with a layer of paint and any collision will reveal the cooper skin
beneath.
The lens with a 4x optical zoom is equivalent
to 28mm at wide angles and zoom at 112mm for telephoto angles, and has the
available aperture of f/1.8-f/2.5, with the similar specifications and design
as the lens on the Olympus XZ-2.
The remote sensors are on the front and
back, dual axes digital level for horizontal and vertical alignment accuracy, fifteen
digital filters, including Miniature and Toy Camera, adding touch sensors to
creative photography, a series of image processing tools including creative image
stretching mode, small face filter and cut and copy functions. This camera has
a RAW image processing mode obtained during the image playback conversion to
JPEG format.
The
product’s front
Key Features
·
1/1.7-inch 12.1 megapixel backlit sensor
·
Lens with 4x optical zoom, equivalent to f/1.8-f/2.5,
28-112mm
·
SR Shake Reduction - Sensor Shift Image Stabilization
·
3-inch tilting screen, 920k dots
·
Dual axis digital level
·
Exposure compensation dial
·
P/A/S/M Capture, Adobe DNG RAW
·
Full HD Video with stereo sound recording
·
High Speed and Time-Lapse Movie at VGA
resolution
·
ISO100 - ISO12800
·
Continuous Shooting 4.5fps
·
Electronic shutter available
·
1cm macro
·
HDR Capture
·
Black or Black and Silver
Manipulations
The
product when placed horizontally
Handling
When picking the camera up, the first thing
you will notice is the weight; weighing 391g with battery and memory card is a
significant figure. The copper plates feature above and below, but the rest of
the camera (in addition to the dome lens) is made from plastic and unfortunately,
the rest of the body is not metal. It almost seems to be unnecessarily vast
because if considered carefully, it is not typical for hot-shoe flash when that
is clearly not the space for it right from the start, and in fact, the Panasonic
Lumix LX7 is smaller and features a hot-shoe flash.
The process of turning on the camera with
the lens cap still generates a message asking you to check the lens cover. Then
you have to turn off the camera and turn it on again to start, instead of
simply pressing a button to continue as the other cameras with removable lens
hood.
The
screen of the camera
Menu
The menus are laid out clearly with 3 pages
for photo options, 1 page video option, 4 pages for setup options, followed by
two custom option pages, where you can find the WB options when using flash or
AWB in tungsten light, and the electronic shutter. By using the INFO button you
can quickly set up the options on the screen on the back without having to go
into the menu. The middle OK button acts as a "Display" button to
adjust how the image is displayed on the screen.
Battery
The battery life is rated at 290 shots
according to the test Pentax / CIPA results, we can take more than 250 shots
before the battery is fully discharged.
Battery
Speed
We have taken some photos to test the
response of the camera, from opening the first photo, turning over each one in
turn, focusing speed, etc. We had some photos and then used the average to
ensure the accuracy and consistency, which makes it easy to compare with other
cameras.
Comparison between the Pentax MX-1 and the
Sony RX100
The Pentax MX-1
·
Shutter Response: <0.05
·
Wide - Focus / Shutter Response: 0.2
·
Full zoom - Focus / Shutter Response: 0:45 *
·
Switch on Time to Taking a Photo: 2.1
·
Shot to Shot without Flash: 1.3
·
Shot to Shot with Flash: 2.0
·
Continuous Shooting - JPEG
·
(shots before slow down): 4.5fps (10 shots)
·
Continuous Shooting - Flash: N / A
·
Continuous Shooting - RAW: 4.5fps (10 shots)
The
Pentax MX-1
The Sony RX100
·
Shutter Response: 0.0
·
Wide - Focus / Shutter Response: 0.3
·
Full zoom - Focus / Shutter Response: 0.3
·
Switch on Time to Taking a Photo: 2.2
·
Shot to Shot without Flash: 0.9
·
Shot to Shot with Flash 2.1
·
Continuous Shooting - JPEG
·
(shots before slow down): 7fps (speed priority
mode, 15 shots)
·
Continuous Shooting - Flash: 1.6s
·
Continuous Shooting - RAW: 4fps (13 shots)
The
Sony RX100
The shutter responds excellently with the
quick focus on the wide-angle lens. It shoots continuously very fast, although
the recording time is quite slow with the camera giving a message repeatedly
showing that "the data is being processed" before you can continue
shooting. It will not focus a number of times, but it handles this process with
speed 0:45 seconds. This seems to be a problem with the test object bring used
as the outdoor shooting process.
