Pentax Optio 330GS Digital Camera (Pentax-18102)

WHAT'S NOT: The Optio 330GS had no significant faults. A minor drawback is the camera's lack of sound recording to accompany with its movie mode. The manual focus seems marginally useful: A scale pops up in the LCD panel, but the only footage markings are those at each end of the scale.

WHAT ELSE: The Optio is small enough to fit in a coat pocket or small bag. Its overall design is uninspired but functional. The various buttons and mode dial are clearly labeled and work fairly smoothly. The camera has a four-way rocker navigation pad and center select button. The former felt a bit stiff, forcing us to press hard to move through the menus; the center button was a bit small for big fingers. Occasionally, pressing it did not set our chosen menu selection but instead triggered one of the navigation buttons, changing our selection.

The test photos we made with this camera were serviceable, though not exceptional. Most shots were slightly underexposed, and fine details didn't look especially sharp. The Optio did a nice job with flash, giving our model lifelike skin tone and her clothes bright colors. Shooting outdoors, the 330GS produced an accurate shade of blue sky and bright whites, and it did a moderately good job of bringing out details in shadows.

Pentax gave the Optio 330GS a handy (albeit limited) collection of advanced controls for intermediate photographers, including a spot focus option and spot, center-weighted, and averaging metering. For managing your photos once you've moved them to your PC, Pentax bundles ACDSee, a comprehensive, businesslike application.

UPSHOT: The Optio 330GS is a traditional point-and-shoot in form and function-suitable for the casual photographer who's looking for a moderately priced camera.