Review: Samsung WP10 vs Pentax Qptio WS80

2010-6-29 17.44

I planned to do a thorough comparison between these both since they are in the same very cheap price range, Samsung WP10 149€ vs Pentax Optio WS80 155€.
With underwater shots and videos etc, the full works.

After one day I stopped the tests, since the WS80 was a true OPTIO.
You do not know what OPTIO stands for?
Want to see for your self? OK enter at your own risk.

All shots were taken in full auto mode, several shots were taken and the best selected. The 5 x zoom got from both cameras more miss than hit pictures.

a reflection of my notebook screen

WS80 macro

The Optio captures well the subtle shades of red

WP10 macro

 Optio WS80

Samsung WP10

Sony HX5

easy to spot the difference between the two 35 mm cameras and the 25 mm Sony

full zoom WS80

full zoom WP10

beginning twilight WS80

beginning twilight WP10

jadda

WS80

WP10


HX5


WS80


WP10


HX5



Here a copy from the video test post

How good is the digital video stabilisation compared to the Active Mode from the HX5?

The result quite astonished me, it comes close to the normal stabilisation from the Hx1 or the HX5.
The 10 times more effective Active Mode of the HX5 is naturally much better but for just digital, not bad at all.

the WP10


I could watch this clip without getting motion sickness and the quality of the cropped and then resized video (the way most digital video stabilisation works) is still acceptable.


the Pentax Optio WS80


Too much shake and not a good quality makes the Optio a no go for my taste

and the HX5



While the WP10 uses the newer and more effective AVCHD the WS80 uses MJPEG in an AVI container what results in 3 times as big files and worse compression quality.

To properly  see the difference, adjust the angle of your screen and concentrate on the white to blue sky area

WS80

The video clarity is not too bad from the WS80 if the camera is on a tripod.

WP10

Here in short some differences

The WS10 has a wide angle and a panorama mode. Sounds good, but the results are disappointing. In wide angle you take the WS80 in portrait mode, shoot the first frame, and align the second shot to a ghost image form the first shot what occupies a part of the screen.
The result is a less than 6 MP picture with some stitching errors and some smearing.
The panorama is shot the same way just in landscape mode and you take 3 shots what result in a less than 4 MP picture.

The access doors from the WP10 are more easy to open while the WS80 needs some more fingernail action. To remove the memory card Samsung goofed since the card is flush with the casing you need you thumbnail to poke the card in, to get it out.

The WP80 not only has the less than stellar video codec, they also disabled the optical zoom but you got 5 x digital zoom, the results are horrible. Samsung has no problem, good codec, optical zoom clear video and a not too bad image stabilisation with some loss of quality because of cropping and resizing.

The full horror of the Pentax "digital zoom only" at 5.7 x

As you the on the top foto, the box sizes are quite different. That is because Samsung just went for the absolute minimum. The camera with battery, a short usb cable a usb charger and a wrist strap. The manual is on CD and the quick start is printed.

I could go on, but even if the Qptio would be half the price from the Samsung, there would be no way I would prefer her even then.
But what really impressed me with the Pentax Optio WP80 was the absence of a focus assist light. Now normally that would mean that in low light situations the WP80 would be bad to find the focus, but quite on the contrary. The Pentax has the most effective low light focusing I have ever seen and outperforms the Samsung and even the Sony.