Amateur Photographer verdict
It beats the average point and shoot with its drop, shock and waterproof capability, and proves to be a great tool in conditions where you wouldn’t risk your phone or pricey camera.- Waterproof down to 15 metres depth for one hour’s continuous use
- Dustproof and shockproof against a drop from two metres in height
- Straightforward point and shoot operation delivers colour rich images
- Reasonable asking price for its feature set and performance
- Slight premium over non rugged compacts with similar image quality
- Focus falls off towards the corners of the frame
- Small 1/2.3-inch sensor
While most digital camera manufacturers have withdrawn from making compact cameras in favour of enthusiast pleasing mirrorless models, Pentax has kept the faith, intermittently releasing a new compact model every now and then, though admittedly with far less, if any, fanfare than it used to.
The reason for it bothering at all is that its compacts offer something different than your average smartphone. They are ruggedized, meaning they can be dropped, covered in sand or grit, washed off or even taken for a swim, and they’ll still be able to function. Sitting in the middle of its range, the Pentax WG-1000 is its latest updated offering. This is once again a simple to operate point and shoot camera, its basic feature set and simple operation disguised by a more sophisticated, trendy-looking outer armour. We were sent an all-grey example for testing, though an olive green version is alternatively available, marking a sea change – no pun intended – from the brightly coloured oranges and yellows of previous iterations of waterproof cameras.
Muted colour scheme aside, does the Pentax WG-1000 do enough to justify its existence and your possible purchase? Read on to find out…
Pentax WG-1000 Key Features:
- 16MP 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor
- 4x optical zoom lens, f/3.0-f/6.6, 27-108mm equivalent
- 1m to infinity focusing range, or 0.05m macro at widest setting
- 2.7-inch LCD screen, 230K dots resolution
- Electronic Shake Reduction
- Full HD 1920×1080 pixels at 30fps video recording
- Powered by D-LI96 rechargeable lithium ion battery, provided
- 116×68.5×50.5mm in size
- 200g weight without battery or SD card
As we could pick up a basic, non-waterproof digital compact camera for a pocket money price, the features worth focusing on here are the ones that help separate the Pentax WG-1000 from the crowd. As with all cameras of its toughened ilk, this 16-megapixel stills option features an internally stacked 4x optical zoom mechanism that ensures at no point does the lens barrel protrude from the body and potentially into harm’s way. Unsurprisingly then, the focal range remains a modest 27-108mm equivalent in 35mm film camera terms, being best suited to the most common photographic subjects of landscapes and portraits. Lens brightness is similarly modest, with the camera sporting an f/3 maximum aperture.
The WG-1000 is a camera we can afford to get wet, so also unsurprisingly a dedicated underwater mode features among the selectable scene modes, while the white balance can also be adjusted for shooting beneath the waves.
Unusually, the Pentax features a built-in memory as well as the ability to add a necessary removable media card – here regular SD/SDHC/SDXC – though as the internal cache is a miniscule 29MB, you wonder why its manufacturer bothered.
This isn’t a camera to weigh us down should we take it snorkelling, as it’s a lightweight feeling 220g even with card and battery inserted. The rechargeable lithium ion battery provided out of the box is good for around 300 shots according to CIPA testing, which is fairly average for this class of camera and should be sufficient for the average beach holiday. If we want to shoot video rather than stills with this camera, then the maximum duration for a single Full HD quality clip is an equally standard 29 minutes.
How does the Pentax WG-1000 compare to its WG-8?
Despite the higher numerical number in the product name, when comparing specifications the 16MP WG-1000 actually comes across as the baby brother to the 20MP WG-8, which sits just beneath the flagship WG-6 in its maker’s toughened camera lineup. The WG-8 is also slightly physically larger while featuring a metallic faceplate as opposed to the soft plastic surface of the WG-1000. That said, going by current online prices, the WG-8 is almost twice the price of the WG-1000. For this we get 4K video clips, the ability to go slightly deeper with the camera to waterproofed depths of 20 metres and just a slightly better drop proofing capability, with the WG-8 theoretically able to fall from 2.1 metres in height, hit the ground, and still come back for more. It can likewise be used in temperatures as low as -10 degrees.
As well as being slightly more heavy duty, like previous generations the WG-8 features a ring light set up encircling its lens, which can act as an aid for close up macro photography. The slightly more basic WG-1000 doesn’t have this feature – just a standard built-in flash directly above its lens. So is it worth paying a fair chunk of change more for the WG-8 over the WG-1000? If the above extras don’t actually make a lot of difference for you, then probably not. Viewed as a standalone device, the WG-1000 already appears quite capable and tough enough.
What are the other features of the Pentax WG-1000?
Shooting JPEG format-only when it comes to stills, there are three compression quality settings selectable equivalent to Best, Fine and Normal. Otherwise for videographers the camera can deliver up to a Full HD 1920×1080 pixels resolution at 30fps.
We also get quite a lot of gimmicky user-selectable digital colour effects on board. As well as the default Normal, Vivid, B&W and Sepia options, we can opt for such eccentric choices as Japan Style, Italian Style, Film Negative, Dreamy, Vignetting, Salon, Fisheye, Reflection and Sketch. Optimised auto everything capture modes additionally include an Underwater mode alongside the standard scene settings for subjects as diverse as shooting the sunset or snowy conditions. A ski holiday is another environment in which this camera could be usefully and capably deployed.
This being first and foremost a point-and-shoot camera, there is a small flash built in, though we’ll want to disable that if actually shooting underwater to avoid backscatter.
How is the Pentax WG-1000’s handling and design?
The design of the WG-1000 hasn’t changed massively from Pentax’s predecessors. It resembles a pocket-sized point and shooter on steroids. Unusually, our review sample also came with a sheath-like additional rubber housing that can envelop the existing body as well as a carabiner style strap which may prove useful for thrill seekers or action photographers wanting to tether the camera to avoid accidental loss.
In lieu of an actual mains charger, the lithium ion rechargeable battery required for power is charged within the camera itself, with a cable and mains plug thoughtfully provided for the purpose. This is generous on Pentax’s part in the present climate, as many manufacturers don’t tend to bother providing a USB equipped plug, reasoning most of us probably already have the exact same connection for charging our smartphones.
Since the largest buttons on the camera are also the most important ones, being the on/off button a raised shutter release button with a bulb that glows green when the camera is active, handling is as straightforward as we’d want. While both these buttons can be operated with cold or wet hands, the backplate buttons are as small as we’d expect to find on any non-toughened point and shoot. Thus these need to be operated with thumbnail precision. Best choose our settings in advance then, before taking any underwater plunge or embarking on our ski run with thick padded gloves.
Pentax WG-1000 Performance
With, for the most part, operation here being child’s play, the WG-1000 is a suitable camera for family use. Images are composed and reviewed via the 2.7-inch fixed LCD screen on the backplate, as expectedly there is no eye level viewfinder as an alternative.
Boasting a modest 230K dot resolution, the quality of the screen is nothing to write home about and indeed reviewed images can appear a little low res and edge detail pixelated when scrutinized using on said screen. In strong sunlight, using the LCD for composition is more a case of guess and point than point and shoot, screen visibility noticeably suffering. That said, the above has always been a criticism of fixed screen point and shoot compacts, so we weren’t surprised to have to squint and cup a hand around the screen here.
More positively, even on its Normal default settings, with maximum resolution selected the WG-1000 delivers colour rich, well saturated images. If we’re being picky, they do occasionally suffer from blown highlights in stronger lighting conditions, plus focus noticeably falls off towards the edges of the frame if shooting at maximum wide-angle setting. Lens flare can also be an issue, though equally it can add to the mood, while pixel fringing when shooting high contrast subjects is kept respectably under control.
Is the Pentax WG-1000 Value for money?
While plenty of point and shoot compacts can be found on the secondhand market, these have been steadily rising in price, leading us to conclude that for its destruction-proof extras the Pentax WG-1000 is indeed reasonable value for money. It seems especially so when compared to the 20 megapixel WG-8, which is almost twice the price while essentially just allowing us to achieve very similar results from its same sized 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor.
Final verdict on the Pentax WG-1000
The Pentax WG-1000 does not seek to break any new ground in terms of the technology utilised, or overall performance, and therefore appears to have been released purely to have something new to market. That being said, if you want a reasonably priced device that will allow stills and video capture of subjects and places where you’d not normally risk using a camera, and are happy with images resembling point and shoot snaps or smartphone pictures, then purchasing this camera is a bit of a no brainer. If we want a little more resolution still and a few more fancy features, then also check out the WG-8 model released alongside it as an alternative. Otherwise the Pentax WG-1000 looks the part, does the job and should satisfy the casual snapper.
Related reading:
