Pentax Optio A10 Performance


Timing and Performance

Slow to average speed for a consumer camera.

Startup/Shutdown
Power on
to first shot
4.7 seconds
Time it takes for LCD to turn on and lens to deploy
Shutdown
2.0 seconds
How long it takes to retract lens
Buffer clearing time
3 seconds
(3 seconds buffer clearing in LF JPEG)
Worst case buffer clearing time. -- This is the delay after a set of shots before you can remove the card. Some cameras won't retract their lenses and shut down until the buffer is cleared.
Mode switching
Play to Record,
first shot
1.4 seconds
Time until first shot is captured
Record to play
3.5 seconds
Time to display a large/fine file immediately after capture
Display
recorded image
0.2 second
Time to display a large/fine file already on the memory card.
Shutter response (Lag Time):
Full Autofocus Wide
1.36 second
Time from fully pressing shutter button to image capture, zoom lens at wide angle position.
Full Autofocus Tele
1.64 second
Time from fully pressing shutter button to image capture, zoom lens at telephoto position.
Prefocused
0.30 second
Time to capture, after half-pressing and holding shutter button.
Continuous AF
1.60 second
This mode usually shows no speed increase with our static subject; we have no way to measure performance with moving subjects
Manual focus
0.47 second
For most cameras, shutter lag is less in manual focus than autofocus, but usually not as fast as when the camera is "prefocused"
Cycle time (shot to shot)
Single Shot mode
Large Fine JPEG
2.80 seconds
Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots
Single Shot mode
640x480 JPEG
2.09 seconds
Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots
Early shutter
penalty?
YES
Some cameras refuse to snap another shot if you release and press the shutter too quickly in Single Shot mode, making "No" the preferred answer
Continuous mode
Large Fine JPEG
2.11 second (0.47 frames per second);
3 seconds to clear
Time per shot, averaged over buffer length or 20 shots, whichever came first
Continuous mode
640x480 JPEG
1.11 second (0.90 frames per second);
2 seconds to clear
Time per shot, averaged over buffer length or 20 shots, whichever came first
Flash recycling
6 seconds
Flash at maximum output
Download speed
Windows Computer, USB 2.0
1,925 KBytes/sec
Typical Values:
Less than 600=USB 1.1;
600-770=USB 2.0 Low;
Above 770=USB 2.0 High

*Note: Buffer clearing and continuous-shooting times measured with a Kingston Ultimate 133x SD memory card. Slower cards will produce correspondingly slower clearing times. Slow cards may also limit length of bursts in continuous mode.

The Pentax Optio A10's performance ranges from average to quite slow, beginning with a sluggish start-up time for an average zoom-equipped camera. Shutter response at wide angle and telephoto zoom settings is quite slow, with lag times of 1.36 and 1.64 seconds respectively. (1.64 seconds can seem like an eternity if that's how long your camera takes to snap a shot after you've pressed the shutter button.) "Prefocus" times (half-pressing and holding down the shutter button before the final exposure) are better at 0.30 second, though still not as fast as many competing cameras. Shot-to-shot cycle times are also slow, at about 2.8 seconds for large/fine JPEGs, though the camera can capture frames continuously at this rate without pausing, with a sufficiently fast card. Continuous-mode speed isn't stellar either, at only 0.47 frame/second, but again, the camera captures frames at this rate without having to slow down to wait for the memory card. Flash recycling time is about average, at about six seconds. Download speeds are where the camera's performance picks back up, with fast enough speeds to eliminate the need for a separate card reader. Bottom line, the Pentax A10 is sluggish overall, and not a good choice for action shots or photographing small children. But if you're purposes are mainly travel shots and family pictures (of the posed variety), then the A10 will perform just fine.

Battery and Storage Capacity

Battery
Modest battery life with the LiIon battery pack.

Operating Mode Number of Shots
LiIon rechargeable battery 150

The Pentax Optio A10 uses a single LiIon battery for power, and comes with a battery and charger.

The table above shows the number of shots the camera is capable of (on a fully-charged rechargeable battery), based on CIPA battery-life and/or manufacturer standard test conditions. This is a very modest battery life by current standards: We strongly recommend picking up a spare battery and keeping it freshly charged and on-hand for extended outings.

(Interested readers can find an English translation of the CIPA DC-002 standards document here. (180K PDF document))

Storage
The Pentax Optio A10 accepts SD/MMC cards, though no card is included; 24MB RAM is built into the camera.

Image Capacity with
24MB Internal Memory
Fine Normal Basic
3,264 x 2,448 Images 8 12 17
File Size 3.0 MB 2.0 MB 1.4 MB
2,592 x 1,944 Images 13 19 27
File Size 1.9 MB 1.3 MB 928 KB
2,304 x 1,728 Images 17 24 34
File Size 1.5 MB 1.0 MB 732 KB
2,048 x 1,536 Images 20 29 41
File Size 1.2 MB 849 KB 613 KB
1,600 x 1,200 Images 28 41 57
File Size 876 KB 606 KB 438 KB
1,024 x 768 Images 52 75 104
File Size 481 KB 333 KB 241 KB
640 x 480 Images 96 141 195
File Size 262 KB 179 KB 129 KB

We strongly recommend buying large capacity SD/MMC memory card, to give yourself extra space for extended outings. (These days, 256 MB is a good trade-off between cost and capacity.)

 

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