5-megapixel cameras seem to be everywhere nowadays, and Pentax has recently expanded its already strong family at this specification to include two new models, the Optio S5z and the Optio SVi.
The headline feature of our review choice, the Optio SVi, is probably its 5x optical zoom. While not unique, this amount of optical zoom means you can safely disable the 4x digital zoom (which we'd always advise anyway as digital zooming reduces image quality).
There are twelve pre-configured shooting modes for different types of shot. The range includes largely familiar settings for landscape, sport, portrait, sunset, autumn colours and so on and includes a panorama assist mode. More unusual is the 3D mode nestled among the twelve.
Choose this and the LCD splits into two sections and helps you take a pair of shots from slightly different angles. Pentax sells a simple 3D viewer as an add-on, but it is easy enough to make one - and the assembly diagram in the manual should give you enough clues about where to start.
You can apply filters like a 21-step sepia grading after shooting, overwriting the original image or saving a second tweaked version. You also have the opportunity to fiddle with things like the shutter speed and aperture setting using a relatively straightforward combination of menu buttons and the four-way control pad.
Shutter speeds range between 1/1000 to 4 seconds and aperture stops from F2.8 to F8. When it comes to shooting close-ups you can choose the macro mode which will cope with subjects between 12 and 70cm from the lens, or super macro which caters for those 3 to 14cm from the lens. You can also adjust the focus manually using the four-way controller. If you know what you are doing this combination of capabilities will be very useful.
The Optio SVi comes with a charging cradle that has a separate slot for battery charging. This means you can buy a spare and charge it separately from the camera, but the bad news is that you have to carry the cradle around or buy an optional charge cable that uses a proprietary connector at the camera end.
In terms of construction the Optio SVi feels a little less weighty than some cameras in the hand despite its aluminium bodywork, and the shutter button in particular had a bit of a tacky feel. But Pentax has done well to provide quick and easy access to many of the settings, with no fewer than four buttons, a zoom rocker, four-way controller and mode dial wheel ranged on the back of the casing. One of the four buttons takes you immediately to photo viewing mode, the other three to features like the flash, macro mode, self-timer and aperture and shutter speed settings.
Two further buttons embedded in the bottom of the LCD's black surround provide access to the camera's full set of options and settings respectively.
