Introduction

Design & Appearance

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SkinIt.

Tour

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Ease of Use

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The RS1000 is a simple, straightforward camera to use, which pretty much anyone could pick up and use without having to read the manual. All of the buttons are clearly labeled, and the more complex features (such as changing scene modes) don't require much thought: to change scene mode, you press the button marked mode and navigate the menu to the appropriate mode.

The menu of the RS1000 is straightforward, with the options arranged into two tabs for rec mode and setup. Each of these tabs holds a couple of screens of options, so nothing is ever too far away.

Size & Handling

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The RS1000 is a small, compact camera that is about the size of a pack of cards at just 0.8 inches thick. So, it will fit easily into a shirt pocket or small bag, and at just over 4.5 ounces, it won't weigh you down. It fits well into the hand despite the size, but the smooth plastic coating might get a little slippery on a hot day. One neat handling trick is a small indentation in the top left corner of the body, which makes it easier for the left hand to grip the camera and hold it steady when shooting with both hands.

Auto Mode

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In the Green (auto) mode, the RS1000 becomes a true point and shoot camera, with the camera itself deciding how to handle shutter speed, exposure, etc. The only thing the user gets to determine is the size of the images and if the flash is enabled or not.

Movie Mode

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Movies can be recorded at up to 720p resolution (1280 by 720 pixels) at either 30 or 15 frames per second (FPS). That puts it on a par with many SLR cameras, but we would not expect this one to capture as high quality video as a more expensive camera. An option to capture standard definition (640 by 480 pixel) and QVGA (320 by 240 pixel) video is also available. Mono sound is recorded from the built-in microphone, and there is no way to attach an external microphone.

Playback Mode

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Playback features include the ability to view single files and up to 16 thumbnails and some editing tools, such as the ability to make faces smaller, rotate images, apply filter effects and remove red eye. The list of filter effects include black & white, a toy camera filter that makes it look like an old camera, and a fish-eye effect that distorts the image to look like it was shot with a fish-eye lens.

Custom Image Presets

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21 scene modes are on offer for the user, including the usual (portrait, landscape, etc) and a few unusual ones, such as candlelight, half-length portrait and a frame composite mode that puts one of 20 preset frames around the image.

Drive/Burst Mode

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Pentax did not specify a speed for the RS1000 in shooting mode, but based on our informal tests, we would be surprised if it managed more than 2 or 3 frames a second. If you don't mind sacrificing resolution, there is a multi-shot mode, which takes 16 VGA images in two seconds and puts them together as one image.

Manual Controls

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No manual controls are on offer from this camera: there is no way to set the aperture or shutter speed directly. That's not unusual for a point & shoot camera, though, and we doubt that many users of this camera will miss it.

Focus

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The RS1000 offers a 3-point AF system that can be used in spot AF mode (where it focuses once, then stops) or a tracking AF mode, where the camera will try and keep an object in the frame in focus as it moves.

ISO

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The ISO range of the RS1000 starts at 1000 and goes up to 6400. The sensitivity can be set manually to a particular level, or automatically set by the camera.

Aperture & Shutter Speed

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The 4x lens built into the RS1000 offers a widest aperture range of f/3.9 at the wide setting to f/5.9 at the telephoto end of the zoom range.

White Balance

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As well as the usual auto setting, the RS1000 offers 4 presets (Daylight, Shade, Tungsten light, Fluorescent light) and a manual setting where you enter the value directly.

Exposure & Metering

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Only one metering mode is offered: evaluative. There is no center weighted or spot metering on offer.

Image Stabilization

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The RS1000 does not include an image stabilization system, but there are two modes that can reduce blur in images: Digital Blur Removal takes a number of photos and picks the sharpest, while High-sensitivity Anti-shake mode boosts the ISO to allow for a faster shutter speed.

Picture Quality & Size Options

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5 image size options are on offer, ranging from the 14 megapixel maximum down to 640 by 480 pixels. The RS1000 cannot save RAW images, or alter the compression that is applied to images

Picture Effects

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A number of digital filters are available that apply special effects to images, including a toy camera effect, which simulates a cheap camera, and a fish-eye effect, which distorts the image to look like it was captured by a fish-eye lens.

LCD & Viewfinder

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The LCD of the RS1000 is a 3-inch LCD with about 230k pixels. That is on the low side, but the model that we looked at produced good color, although the images were somewhat blocky.

There is no viewfinder on this camera: images are previewed and viewed on the LCD screen.

Flash

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The flash is a rather small one that sits on the front of the camera. Pentax quotes a range of 16 feet for this, but this seems somewhat optimistic.

Lens & Sensor

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The lens of the RS1000 is a small, telescoping 4x zoom with a focal length of 4.9 to 19.6mm. That is equivalent to a 27.5mm to 110mm zoom on a 35mm film camera, which is a decent zoom range for a compact camera.

Jacks, Ports & Plugs

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Only one port is on this camera: a combination A/V out and USB connection. This provides an analog video and audio output, but there is no digital video out for connecting to a HDTV. If you capture high definition video, it will be downscaled for viewing from this output.

Battery

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The battery of this camera is a D-L108 Li-Ion battery that Pentax claims will last for around 210 shots. That is definitely on the low side, but the battery can be charged from most USB ports.

Memory

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Images and video are stored on SD or SDHC cards, although there is also 18MB of internal memory that can be used to store photos.

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Conclusion

The RS1000 looks to be a cute, stylish camera that packs a lot into a very small space. About the size of a pack of cards, it shoots 14 megapixel images and 720p video. We'll have to wait to see how well this holds up to our battery of image and video quality tests, but the camera certainly looks cool, with a removable front plate that allows you to print your own face plates and personalize it.

Sample Photos

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Specs

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