Pentax Monday announced its new K-5 digital SLR camera to replace the K-7. The $1600 K-5 is aimed at a more advanced photographer than the company’s $800 K-r model, which was released earlier this week.
The 16.3 megapixel K-5 has an ISO range of 100 to 12800 (expandable to 51200) and it can take up to 7 frames per second in continuous shooting mode. It features a greatly improved 77 segment, 11 point autofocus system with nine cross-type sensors and a spotbeam AF projector. The K-5 has a maximum shutter speed of 1/8000.
The magnesium alloy and stainless steel body of the K-5 looks similar to the K-7 and is dustproof and weather- and cold-resistant. Photographers can compose their photos using Live View on the 3-inch, 921,000 dot LCD screen, or use the pentaprism optical viewfinder with 100% coverage and .92x magnification. There’s an HDMI port and one memory card slot, which is compatible with SDXC cards.
Video enthusiasts can capture 1080p HD video at 25 frames per second (fps), though it doesn’t have the continuous auto-focus feature found in many of the other DSLRs released this Fall.
The K-5 will be available in October for $1600 for body only, or packaged with an 18-55mm lens for $1750. Pentax is also releasing a 18-135mm, f/3.5-5.6 Penax-DA lens for $530.