in image quality was a bit of a surprise. Compared to the T4 film option I'm used to, I think I'm still bringing my film camera for those more difficult situations because there's just more info on the film and the lens is still better on that camera. Also, it lacks an AF-assist light which would really help in dim situations.

However, and this is important, I realize that most of the images I take with this camera are only going to be viewed online or will not be printed larger than 4x6. I have not yet printed images from this camera, but I think for that print size it will probably be fine. For web purposes, it's more than good. The many options in image size is very handy when you know you're going to web with an image. The sunset shots I took out the airplane window, while noisy, still have good gradation from black to white.

Getting back to the reason I bought this camera in the first place, I'm very pleased with its ability to function in wet conditions. I haven't taken it underwater yet, but I did shoot video with it while snowboarding and found out my skills definitely go down while trying to shoot video. But the camera kept going after being dunked in snow repeatedly. It was also snowing/raining so there was more than dry powder to deal with. The buttons, while small, are spaced far enough apart that I could activate them with gloves on. The screen was plenty big and legible from oblique angles while heading downhill with goggles on. Be aware, however, that the battery is physically not very big and therefore low temps have a noticable affect on battery life.

One of the best features is the green button- it can be changed to access up to four different options/settings. I use mine for 1.exposure compensation; 2. white balance; 3. ISO setting; and 4. green (dummy) mode. So easy to set up and very useful if you still want some manual overrides (since there's no actual manual or priority modes, just different program modes). Without the green button, using the exposure compensation requires going into the menus and changing it but not seeing results until it's set- with the green button, it operates like every other camera, ie allowing you to see the changes as you make them.

Basically, foul weather functionality was the priority and I was pleasantly surprised by the easy and customizable interface (you can change the order of the program modes and the camera remembers certain custom settings, too). I was not impressed with the image quality and it's not replacing my film p+s or dSLRs anytime soon, but it's good for what I need it to do which is largely surviving being on the outside of my backpack or in my pocket in the rain, snow and dirt and still be ready to take a decent image when I turn it on.
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SIZE Matters!! ... with digital cameras that is., March 5, 2006
Reviewer: R. A Gibson

I own this little guy's older brother, pentax's first Waterproof Optio. And while I love that I can take in the lake or pool, the reality is that it will only take average pictures (I've seen some of your frustrations on this site). Why? Because size matters! Sensor Size that is. The optios use a very small sensor ([1/2.5]). Consequently, this camera can only record so much info when the shutter opens. The larger the sensor size, the better image capture you will get (the digital SLRs sensors are 2 to 3 times larger than the point and shoots). So, bottom line, if you are looking for a general point and shoot, this is not what you want (and yes to the yahoo who posted about shooting at the highest image quality... I do on every camera I own, but again the sensor size in this camera is just too small see dpreview.com for more details). Go buy one of the Canon Digital Elphs... same small size, but better sensors (read bigger), consequently better pictures. However, if your goal is to have something to shoot in and around the pool, or to have a camera a bit more 'peanut butter' proof for your little ones to use, this camera will fit that bill nicely. And remember this. SIZE MATTERS... when it comes to your digital camera's sensor.
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A Great All Around Outdoor and Sport Camera, April 28, 2006
Reviewer: CT Yankee "In Emperor Norton's Court"
I agree with a lot of what has already been said about this camera. The waterproof feature is very cool. My six year old nephew loved the picture of his legs underwater and it is nice not to worry in wet weather.

Most of the time the pictures are really good indoors and out. The mode settings are very intuitive but not always the right choice. I find candlelight often works best indoors both at night and in daylight.

Again this is an easy to use durable little camera. I do recommend an extra battery or that you charge it completely. The battery doesn't last as long as the one on my Casio for example.
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 Great little camera for outdoor enthusiasts, March 24, 2006
Reviewer: Jason Turgeon "visit textbookrevolution.org for free books!"
I picked this camera up about a month ago at samys.com (much better price than Amazon) and took it on a week-long trip to the Bahamas. Since I forgot to bring a decent memory card, I was limited to a 256 mb card that I had in the camera, so I took all of my pix at 4mp under the medium quality setting. I found the image quality to be perfectly acceptable and got about 300 pictures and a few very short videos on the card.

Many other people have left great reviews of the camera, so I'll concentrate on the waterproof aspects. I had the camera in the water for an hour or more on each snorkel, typically twice a day, and never had any problems with water getting inside. This is about twice the recommended length of 30 minutes in the water. I don't dive, so never had the camera below 5 feet. I attached a floating key ring (available at any marine store for a couple of dollars) to the strap so that I wouldn't have to worry about letting the camera go and having it sink to the bottom. The camera is light enough that the key ring would actually keep it at the surface--I'd expected that it would simply slow it down on the trip to the bottom. This was a nice bonus, since I could just leave the camera floating while I dove to the bottom to get shells. I'd recommend a closed-cell foam float instead of the hollow plastic kind, as the plastic will eventually fill up with water and lose buoyancy.

In the water, I found the camera quite easy to use, although the buttons could have been a little bigger. The camera seemed to struggle to focus in areas where I was shooting fish from a distance or fish that blended in with the water (like a barracuda), but the pictures came out pretty well at the end. Snorkelers will note that it takes some practice to get a picture of a fish as the camera moves around with the smallest waves and there is just enough shutter delay to make things difficult. I found that by prefocusing (press shutter halfway and hold, with a green box indicating the focused area) and then waiting for the right moment, I got much better results. I couldn't tell a difference in photo quality between the camera's underwater setting and the normal setting. I used the macro setting for some close ups on land and was quite impressed with that.

If you'd like to see some underwater pictures for yourself, here is a link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/turgeon/sets/72057594083368500/ Remember that I used the 4 Mpixel setting and 2 star quality setting to save space.

I rinsed the camera off at the end of each day but did not soak it as recommended and I haven't had any trouble or seen any signs of salt in the battery compartment. Speaking of the battery, I was a little disappointed here. I didn't like that I had to bring a bulky battery charger on my vacation--would much prefer that the camera ran on AAA batteries. I found battery life to be so-so. I could go about one full day, taking lots of pictures, then editing out all the bad ones, shooting videos, and keeping the camera on for hours at a time. But if I didn't charge it that night, it would quickly die on the second day. The battery level indicator is useless--it goes from full to half to dead in a matter of minutes, so keep the battery charged and if you're going to use it a lot, buy a spare. One other note about the battery--since you have to charge it every night (out of the camera), you can't use the camera's alarm clock feature. This was an issue for me, since I don't wear a watch, wasn't able to use my cell phone in the Bahamas, and had planned on using the alarm. The alarm isn't really loud enough to wake a heavy sleeper, by the way.

All in all, this camera does what it sets out to excellently. This is a camera for active people who want to take good quality snapshots while snorkeling, playing in the rain, kayaking, etc. It's not a camera for professional photographers or divers, but it doesn't claim to be.
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