Low, low, low

K110D front (stock photo)

Low-light, low-weight, low-cost, low-profile.

I think everything about the K110D except the quality of the shots is low. I got it off eBay as a backup when my K10D went AWOL, but due to an unfortunate mixup in shipping it only arrived the other day. I'll still use it as a complimentary body as it's quite a competent little bugger. It lacks the Shake Reduction system of the K100D (identical otherwise) and K10D, but I expect to manage without in one of my bodies, even if I really like having it. A K100D would have cost me perhaps another hundred bucks and since I already had the K10D, I didn't feel it was worth it. If I was shopping for a main camera, I would definitely have gotten the K100D instead.

It feels pretty solid in the hand, even though I'm used to the K10D which is solid like a brick factory. I'd rate it somewhere between the Canon EOS 400D/Digital Rebel XTi and the Nikon D80, probably closer to the D80. But as I have only handled those for about 15 minutes each over a month ago, take that with a grain of salt. It's just my lasting first impression of them.

Some numbers comparisons with the K10D:

Specification K10D K110D
ISO 100-1600 200-3200
Resolution 10MP 6MP
Weight 793g 660g
Price (what I paid) $995 $350
Size 142 x 101 x 70 mm 129 x 93 x 70 mm

The size and weight differences really become noticeable when you take into account that I (almost) never remove my battery grip from the K10D (there is no grip available for the K110D.) I expect to bring it with me more (if possible) than the K10D, simply due to the fact that it's smaller, lighter and cheaper.

The ISO 3200 mode coupled with the FA 50 1.4 lens means it can take pictures in natural light even in very dark environments and I'll be using that tonight as I shoot a gig with a local band. It's also easy enough to use (with no intimidating knobs and levers everywhere like the K10D) that I can hand it to my SO or loan it to friends.

RAW performance feels slow compared to the K10D, but still waaaay faster than JPEGs on my old Olympus 2100 UZ. One factor that may play into this is that I have still only used the slightly slower PQI 133x SD cards, not any of the 150x Transcend or Apacer ones I use in the K10D. JPEGs straight out of the camera are clearly "punchier" than from the K10D (with both cameras set to their default settings, ie the K10D at Natural instead of Bright) with almost too much saturation and contrast. Right now, I shoot RAW with the K10D and JPEG with the K110D, we'll see if that changes over time.

Battery performance seems good, I still haven't depleted a set of Uniross Hybrios (rated at 2100mAh IIRC) but then again I haven't shot more than a hundred shots yet, with very little flash usage. I like that it uses regular AAs from a price and availability standpoint, but the Li-Ion in the K10D lasts ages and weighs less so I guess it's a toss-up between them.

Menus are well thought-out, but I do miss all those knobs of the K10D so I don't have to get in the menus for every change in ISO, file format - not to mention how I miss the dual e-dials. Many menu entries are apparently encrypted in Engrish, ostensibly for space reasons. It takes a while to decipher and get used to stuff like "Plybk dsply mthd" and "ISO Snstvty Wrn Dspl".


I'd really like the ability to map a RAM/JPEG toggle switch to another button, say the Delete button which I have never used. Also, on my Olympus I could use the arrow keys to adjust aperture and shutter while in the P or M modes - as they do nothing on the K110D unless you press the Fn key first, I'd love to map them the same way here. Ie, pressing Left without Fn would decrease shutter speed and pressing Up would increase the aperture. Both of these should be doable options in firmware.



Yes, I have noticed that most new shots here are from the K110D. This is not because I find it a better camera than the K10D, it's just because it gets brought along more. And yes, that can very well be considered the most important feature of any camera - if it ain't in your hands, it ain't gonna take no photos. ..

/ Richie