Pentax *ist DL 6.1 megapixel DSLR reviewed

If you're looking for a relatively cheap way to enter the world of digital SLR photography, the UK's DigiCam Review thinks you could do a lot worse than the Pentax *ist DL, which despite its unpronouncable name, came out a clear winner in their testing. Successor cheaper alternative to the company's *ist DS, the 6.1 megapixel DL impresses on many fronts, including image quality, response times, ergonomics, and, perhaps most importantly to a DSLR newbie, ease-of-use. Specifically, the DL -- which was tested with the optional 15-55mm Pentax DA lens -- captured pictures with good contrast, detail and color, low noise except at the highest ISO setting, and a general lack of purple-fringing or red-eye, while providing a lot of features, such as RAW support, auto ISO, and a 2.5-inch display, for its $740 price tag. The only real knocks here seem to be the lack of image stabilization or CF card support -- meaning storage is limited to the most capacious SD card available -- but since this model is certainly not targeted at pros, those issues may not even matter to most.

[NeoteriX @ May 7th 2006 1:51PM]

I don't get it. Why are site still reviewing a camera that is essentially the same dSLR released by Pentax years ago?

Actually with the current crop of entry-level dSLRs out there today, you really can't do that much worse then this 2+ year old Pentax.

[jony @ May 7th 2006 3:36PM]

This camera from Pentax is really nice. The zoom is very big and clear. I like the camera very much.

http://cheap-cameras-review.blogspot.com/2006/02/fuji-finepix-s20-pro-fuji-finepix-s20.html

[John @ May 7th 2006 3:43PM]

This ain't a new camera and certainly not the successor of the DS, how wrong can this article be?!

This is an 'old' camera!

The DL is next (under) the DS. Just like the NEWER DL2 is for the DS2.

[Chris @ May 7th 2006 4:42PM]

Image stabilization is a feature of the lens. Not the DSLR itself.

[K @ May 7th 2006 6:03PM]

I am a lifelong point-and-shooter looking to get my first dSLR. What's my best bet without emptying my wallet?

I hear that the Rebel XT is pretty sweet (seen it for < $700 on dell after rebates at the right times...). Is this Pentax better?

[Jeff @ May 7th 2006 6:26PM]

"Image stabilization is a feature of the lens. Not the DSLR itself."

Ummm: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/konicaminolta7d/

Too bad those guys are out of the SLR biz at this point.

IS is only a feature of the lens if the camera manufacturer tells you it is. And if you're Canon or Nikon (you know, one of the big guys), it's in their interests to keep IS on the lens because it allows them to sell more lenses for higher prices.

But it doesn't have to be that way, as Minolta showed us. It's just a question of marketing. You put the IS on the camera and it becomes a selling point of the camera... but you sell fewer (and cheaper) lenses. You put it on the lens and you can't market the cameras as easily but you can sell more (and more expensive) lenses.

Obviously, if you've basically got a stranglehold on the market already, then it's better business to keep IS a function of the lens.

[Jess @ May 7th 2006 6:49PM]

I love my *ist DL!

Fantastic way to immerse myself into the SLR market.

The reason this is a new article is cause the price of this badboy went down a couple hundred bucks!

[Max @ May 7th 2006 7:16PM]

A better option than the *ist DL is the Nikon D50... and it can be had for

[Yem @ May 7th 2006 7:27PM]

Not so - KM pioneered in-body stabilisation and the next Pentax D-SLR will have it. Canon & Nikon put it in the lens but that is not the only possible approach.

[yuppicide @ May 8th 2006 2:05PM]

Crap I say. I'd rather buy the Digital Rebel XT with almost same lens. Right now you can get it for $675 brand new.

[kevin Burns @ Aug 13th 2006 10:16AM]

first off, I own a D50, and rebel.
the rebel has a cmos and has a default ISO of 400. Canon says this is to brighten up the BG's but in reality the high ISO is to speed up the shutter and limit noise. the cmos is a cheep sensor that is noise prone, flat less contrasty image quality. CCD's are much better for image quality. Think about it, why is a 8MP camera the price of most 6MP CCD cameras. Could it be that the CMOS is cheep?


Digital cameras have become extremely common as the prices have come
down. One of the drivers behind the falling prices has been the
introduction of CMOS image sensors. CMOS sensors are much less
expensive to manufacture than CCD sensors.

Both CCD (charge-coupled device) and CMOS (complimentary metal-oxide
semiconductor) image sensors start at the same point -- they have to
convert light into electrons. If you have read the article How Solar
Cells Work, you understand one technology that is used to perform the
conversion. One simplified way to think about the sensor used in a
digital camera (or camcorder) is to think of it as having a 2-D array
of thousands or millions of tiny solar cells, each of which transforms
the light from one small portion of the image into electrons. Both CCD
and CMOS devices perform this task using a variety of technologies.

The next step is to read the value (accumulated charge) of each cell
in the image. In a CCD device, the charge is actually transported
across the chip and read at one corner of the array. An
analog-to-digital converter turns each pixel's value into a digital
value. In most CMOS devices, there are several transistors at each
pixel that amplify and move the charge using more traditional wires.
The CMOS approach is more flexible because each pixel can be read
individually.

CCDs use a special manufacturing process to create the ability to
transport charge across the chip without distortion. This process
leads to very high-quality sensors in terms of fidelity and light
sensitivity. CMOS chips, on the other hand, use traditional
manufacturing processes to create the chip -- the same processes used
to make most microprocessors. Because of the manufacturing
differences, there have been some noticeable differences between CCD
and CMOS sensors.

* CCD sensors, as mentioned above, create high-quality, low-noise
images. CMOS sensors, traditionally, are more susceptible to noise.
* Because each pixel on a CMOS sensor has several transistors
located next to it, the light sensitivity of a CMOS chip tends to be
lower. Many of the photons hitting the chip hit the transistors
instead of the photodiode.
* CMOS traditionally consumes little power. Implementing a sensor
in CMOS yields a low-power sensor.
* CCDs use a process that consumes lots of power. CCDs consume as
much as 100 times more power than an equivalent CMOS sensor.
* CMOS chips can be fabricated on just about any standard silicon
production line, so they tend to be extremely inexpensive compared to
CCD sensors.
* CCD sensors have been mass produced for a longer period of time,
so they are more mature. They tend to have higher quality and more
pixels.

Based on these differences, you can see that CCDs tend to be used in
cameras that focus on high-quality images with lots of pixels and
excellent light sensitivity. CMOS sensors traditionally have lower
quality, lower resolution and lower sensitivity. CMOS sensors are just
now improving to the point where they reach near parity with CCD
devices in some applications. CMOS cameras are usually less expensive
and have great battery life.--- In

The D50 images have a blue/purple cast of color around the subject. "Fringing" Not what I consider a quality image by far. Pentax ist's don't have this problem.

[AA @ Mar 10th 2008 5:15PM]

First off, I own a DL with 10,000+ shots in the last 6 months.

'you really can't do that much worse then this 2+ year old Pentax.'

The camera was released less than a year ago. Have you ever actually used the pentax *istDL seriously? no? then shut up.

'A better option than the *ist DL is the Nikon D50... and it can be had for'

The DS, DL, DS2, DL2, Nikon D70, and the D50 ALL use the same CCD sensor therefore in RAW mode, the cameras will essentially take the same image, so what lens you use matters for image quality - pentax makes some of the BEST lenses in the world, and their SMC coating is second to none!

You can use Any pentax lens ever made on the DL, including screwmount lenses with an adaptor.


Pentax does not focus on marketing like Nikon and Canon.

The upcoming 10MP In body IS dSLR, which will use the same sensor as the nikon D200, should prove popular if pentax withholds it's promise of delivering low noise and high ISO, which nikon has failed to do with the D200.

[igorfrontier @ May 2nd 2008 8:44PM]

I have Pentax ist dl model, Excellent camera,perfect quality!!!