Pentax’s Optio W60: Ultimate Summertime Camera
Last month I wrote about the Olympus Stylus 1050 SW, a sharp looking compact that can take a beating. Now I want to give mention to the Pentax Optio W60, which has one main asset that is bound to interest anyone who loves fun in the summer–it’s a waterproof digital camera.
Yes, the Pentax Optio W60 digital camera is one of those few compact offerings on the market that can stand being wet. This 10-megapixel camera can be submerged up to 13 feet or 4 meters under water. It can also withstand the cold, as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit, or 10 degrees below zero Celsius. Oh, did you just get sand all over the camera? No problem, rinse it under the tap. Did you by any chance while grabbing an ice cream from the freezer accidentally put your camera in its place (I did something similar to this once, don’t laugh)? No problem. So long as it turns on (and it should), shoot away.
OK, what else does it have? For starters, how about a 5x optical zoom, which isn’t so bad for a camera that’s smaller than a deck of cards. At the highest quality image setting shots are saved as 3.5 MB JPEG files. You can also shoot HD compatible video footage with 1280 x 720 pixel resolution at 15 frames per second, or else 640 x 480 resolution at 30 fps. And if you can’t keep your hands steady while shooting video, there’s shake reduction technology built-in which will solve that problem for you nicely. Files are stored on SD/SDHC memory cards.
Things get even more interesting. The Optio W60 has a face detection feature, 14 digital filters for special effects, exposure compensation settings and even a voice recorder. I don’t necessarily know why someone would need that in a digital camera but I guess it would come in handy eventually, perhaps while sun bathing on the beach when you think of a stock you want to purchase and don’t have pen and paper handy to write your thoughts down, who knows? Someone reading this might just be interested in a waterproof camera/voice recorder that also shoots shake-free video.
The Optio W60 slim digital camera can take shots within the full gamut of ISO settings, from 50 to as high as 6400. Obviously you shouldn’t expect much at the highest setting. But you cannot go wrong with the shots taken at 50 or 100 ISO. Check out some samples here.
You have two colors to choose from: silver or blue. Online shopping sites are selling the Pentax Optio W60 from $200 to $329. The price could come down even more by summer.
