Pentax K-01 Pro Reviews

We found the Pentax K-01 camera to provide excellent images but its boxy design and uncomfortable weight lets it down when set against other compact mirrorless cameras. The K-mount, while handy if you already own compatible lenses, ultimately leads to its downfall as it necessitates a larger camera. If you're in the market for a camera with the capability of DSLR quality but without the bulk, there may be better options for you.

Despite these few niggles, the Pentax K-01 is a superb shooter for the price. Any other camera combining this level of image quality and features will cost you hundreds of pounds more. Any, that is, with the possible exception of the Pentax K-5 that can be found highly discounted at present – a highly desirable alternative for K-mount afficionados who can’t live without a viewfinder, but for those who can, the Pentax K-01 takes some beating.

We’ll give Pentax K-01 a passing grade — but just barely. Given the right circumstances, it grabs very nice stills. However, there are just too many negative issues. You have far better options at more palatable prices.

The Pentax K-01 is a bravely different but ultimately flawed entry into the mirrorless compact system camera market. Love it or hate it looks aside, the main issue with the K-01 is its sheer size - it's not that much smaller than a regular DSLR and is much larger than any other CSC currently available, prompting the question Why? Pentax have removed the mirror to make the camera smaller in terms of height, but otherwise the K-01 closely resembles a DSLR in size forgoing one of that format's main advantages, an optical viewfinder. Commissioning a non-camera designer to think outside the box has led to a refreshingly innovative look, but we can't help thinking that Pentax should have implemented a new, smaller lens mount and let Marc Newson design something that can compete on a more equal footing with the likes of the Sony NEX and Samsung NX APS-C systems.

The Pentax K-01 is a bit of an odd duck. It's a mirrorless camera that's as big as digital SLRs, which sort of defeats the purpose of being mirrorless in the first place. Photo quality is among the best out there, but other cameras offer better AF performance and more compact/usable designs.

Image quality on the Pentax K-01 is excellent, with the camera yielding sharp, colourful images, with low noise at high sensitivities. Plus, it has the features to please both beginners and experienced photographers alike. The Pentax K-01 is certainly capable of producing excellent quality images, but unless you already own Pentax optics, it may not be the best value mirrorless camera available with current prices. Having said that, it may be worth keeping an eye on the street price of the Pentax K-01. If it were to fall, it could become a champion of good value, especially for existing Pentax lens owners, or those willing to sniff out a good lens bargain second-hand. It appears the ability to use any K-mount lens is this camera's main asset.

The Pentax K-01 isn't like anything else on the market. Its unusual exterior may appeal to design aficionados associated with the world of Marc Newson and other designers, but for most average camera users it's too bulky and, on account of its small grip alone, won't appeal to hardened photographers. The use of the K-mount may appeal, particularly to existing Pentax users, yet it's hard to see what the K-01 offers that the far superior K-5 doesn't. Image quality and the quirky Focus Peaking feature are the model's high point, though the lacklustre performance, again, is problematic. Overall the K-01 feels like a bloated Compact System Camera without the associated size benefits of its competitors, or otherwise a lobotomised DSLR. It straddles the two categories but, and ultimately, fails to deliver anything new or innovative enough to inspire.

Oh, Pentax. From the outset the K-01 looked like an oddity and, sadly, our “weird” view remains unchanged. Super-designer or not, the K-01 is boxy, big and has less - not more - than the competition to offer prospective buyers. It’s sandwiched somewhere between smaller compact system cameras and more advanced DSLR systems, albeit without the key benefits of either type. Autofocus isn’t up to scratch in terms of speed or ability, plus it’s far too loud in use. The teeny grip won’t be deep enough for use with more serious lenses either - which seems a total mismatch to the K-mount’s presence. Image quality is great though, and by far the camera’s strong point. Yet for just a little more cash - and the £679 outlay that the K-01 demands is already pricey - the far superior K-5 would make a much keener purchase. Pentax’s website proclaims that the K-01 is "the first K-mount mirror less camera". We can only hope it’s the last too.

If you've got a stable of Pentax lenses -- especially good ones that can properly resolve to the sensor -- and feel like doing some creative shooting, especially with manual focus, then the K-01 is a great choice. For that, the benefits of lovely photo quality definitely outweigh the other drawbacks. But if you're looking for an all-purpose ILC under $1,000, you may get frustrated with the K-01's slow performance and large, quirky design, and it's probably worth trading off a little on the photo quality for a better all-around camera, and likely a less expensive one.

Larger than its peers, but interestingly designed, the Pentax K-01 can capture sharp photos in all types of light and delivers full compatibility with every Pentax K-mount lens ever produced.

From a purely aesthetic standpoint, reactions to the Pentax K-01 are mixed here in our Seattle office. We've no doubt that the camera will attract its share of ardent admirers and passionate detractors. Yet these are secondary concerns when evaluating a camera as a photographic tool, rather than an avatar of modern design. And there's no escaping that fact that the K-01 is a heavy camera that is not particularly comfortable to hold without using a second hand supporting the lens. We certainly applaud Pentax's rather bold decision to develop a camera that is natively compatible with its vast range of K-mount lenses. Yet the potential downside of using a camera with a contrast-detect AF system on legacy lenses designed to work with a phase-detection AF gives us pause. One would reasonably expect relatively slow AF performance. And in our relatively limited handling with an admittedly pre-production model, we find nothing to suggest AF times are going to be very rapid. For exisiting Pentax users the trump card of the K-01 may very well lie in its from-the-ground-up live view implementation. With its mirrorless design and MF peaking capability, the K-01 has the potential to offer significantly better shooting experience with legacy manual focus lenses than the K-5. Of course,we await the chance to put a production model through our studio tests and thoroughly evaluate operational speed and image quality.

The decision to give an internationally acclaimed designer free reign over the styling and design of the K-01 is unquestionably a bold move by Pentax, not to mention a risky one. While a niche of design enthusiasts will undoubtedly champion what Marc Newson has created, it remains to be seen whether the average consumer will be quite so keen. This is especially so given how the K-01 flies in the face of the current trend – especially within compact system circles – for ever smaller camera bodies. That said, we very much look forward to testing a full-review sample to see if the image quality matches the same high quality attained by recent Pentax DSLR releases.