Pentax K200D & 18-55mm lens review

Pentax's K200D is relatively bulky and heavy for an entry-level DSLR, but the dust- and splash-proof body is surprisingly robust.

The use of four AA batteries contributes to this bulk, but battery life is excellent at 1,100 shots. This is partly down to a dedicated passive LCD screen for displaying settings, which means the battery-draining colour screen is seldom used while shooting. Optical stabilisation is built into the camera body, but we found it less effective than other systems, keeping only half of our test shots sharp at a 1/15s shutter speed.

The ISO speed control can be adjusted in whole stops or thirds of a stop, and includes a couple of other useful options. One is the ability to define the maximum ISO speed available when Auto ISO is selected. The other, labelled D-Range 200%, increases the dynamic range of photos. Unlike similar technologies in the other cameras that simply boost shadows, this tapers down the ISO speed in bright areas of a photo to avoid burnt-out highlights. The result is subtler than other processes, but arguably more useful, as it's possible to recover gloomy shadows afterwards on a PC, but not burnt-out highlights.

Colour output can be tweaked using Custom Image presets with names such as Bright, Natural and Portrait. Each one includes contrast, sharpness, saturation and hue controls, with the last two settings represented by an oblique shape on a colour wheel. It's also possible to preview these settings by capturing a shot without saving, which is a smart touch.

The K200D is reasonably quick to use, with a function button presenting white balance, flash, ISO speed and Custom Image settings on the navigation pad buttons. It's a little disappointing that these aren't labelled directly on the buttons, though. Focus and metering areas are available only via the menu, but at least they're at the top of the list so they don't take long to locate.

Performance is a weak area, with a relatively slow autofocus, especially in low light. There was a 1.5-second gap on average between flash-lit shots. Continuous shooting commenced at 2.5fps, marginally the slowest result here, and even in JPEG mode it became slower and erratic after five frames. RAW continuous shooting lasted for just three shots at 2.5fps before it slumped to 0.5fps.

Our tests shots exhibited consistently sharp detail. Colours were mostly excellent, but the automatic exposure and white balance veered off course a little more often than elsewhere. There was some chroma noise in shadows at ISO 1600, and while this top setting was still perfectly usable, the photos weren't as smooth as they were from Nikon's and Canon's cameras.

There are lots of smart features in the K200D, but when you bear in mind its image quality and performance, it's a little below par. In the current climate of aggressive price-slashing, this DSLR also seems a bit expensive.