Pentax Optio W90

usability, portability, durability, performance, screen

water proof, reliability

71% of the reviews on Amazon.co.uk give this product a positive rating.

usability, portability, performance, durability, price

reliability, low-light, shutter, memory, energy

62% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

Ruggedized without being ugly. Waterproof up to 18 feet and resistant to extremes in cold. 720p HD-video support, plus face detection plus Microscope mode gives you plenty of robust shooting options. Comes with a carabiner

Noisy images and video in low-light situations. No real whiz-bang features aside from ruggedness

Nice wide 5x lens; Extremely durable; Captures nice 12-megapixel photos; HD movie mode (720p max. resolution); Multiple Scene Modes; Good shooting performance; Great price for a Lifeproof camera ; Cons ; Weak Flash; Good deal of noise present at all...

Weak Flash; Good deal of noise present at all ISO settings in still photos and movies; Short Battery Life; LED lamps are not very bright ; Bottom Line ; Pentax continues to create competitive models for the "lifeproof" point-n-shoot category. The Optio...

Pentax continues to create competitive models for the "lifeproof" point-n-shoot category. The Optio W90 performed well during our tests, and is sure to please the active user who needs a camera that is as tough as they are. Read more in our

Pentax's Optio W90 certainly looks the part and, as ever with devices of its indestructible ilk, it would be no surprise if image quality often comes second to beefy dimensions and additional padding. But this is not just a camera of outer muscle; it's...

Rugged design; Special underwater shooting mode; Extreme close-up mode with LED lights; Superb underwater images

Not as tough as other cameras; Reports of underwater breakdowns; Average out-of-water images  

Robust enough to allow pictures that would prove impossible for standard cameras, more compact mobile phone-like dimensions than we're used to from a camera of this ilk, plus unique creative features and image quality that's better than expected

You'll pay extra over a non-protected digicam, and the modest battery life is its Achilles' heel

It's only worth paying a £100+ premium for the W90's rough and tumble resistant padding if you're the sort of person who indulges in said rough or indeed tumble. However, even for the less adventurous the W90 is one of the more coolly styled examples...

Outstanding design; excellent feature set and shooting options for its class.

Short battery life; no optical or mechanical image stabilization.

The well-designed Pentax Optio W90 offers up very good photos and performance at a reasonable price for a rugged pocket camera.

A viable option for those who will make good use of its strongest features. The solid build comes at the cost of some quality but allows almost limitless flexibility

If you're willing to pay that bit extra (although we've seen online prices as low as £194) for waterproofing and shockproofing as well as improved macro and face recognition technology, then the Optio W90 is an ideal outdoor activity camera.

Waterproof, Dustproof and Shockproof; Build quality; Colour reproduction; Image quality at close and medium distances; Fair price

Image quality at infinity

We gave the W90 the tourist treatment around town and were impressed with the sharpness, exposure and colour as long as we didn’t go past ISO200. There is the usual tendency to over expose under grey skies. Auto white balance is good. The 1280X720...

The exposure compensation control is buried in the menus when it should be controlled from a camera-body dedicated button

This is a point and shoot camera of above average competence. We like the look of it, sort of cold war techno chic. We would rank this on a par with the Canon Powershot D10 and many customers will no doubt prefer the Pentax’s austere, no nonsense body...