Pentax Optio RZ18: Big Zoom, Small Price

Superzoom compacts are all the rage in the world of digital cameras right now. While sleeker, super-small cameras usually zoom to around 8x, it's no longer unusual to see a zoom of 15x or more on slightly bulkier models like this.

The Pentax RZ18 has an 18x zoom lens with the same basic specs as the Nikon S9100 (25-450 mm f/3.5-5.9, 4 cm macro). However, unlike Nikon's compact, the RZ18 makes do with a CCD sensor (16 Megapixels).

As ever with standard CCDs, the video mode is limited 720p HD resolution. However, Pentax appears to have made no effort whatsoever with this particular function, as video is recorded in the Mjpeg format—which is surprisingly ineffective but which does have the advantage of using less processing power—and the sound is mono rather than stereo.

The RZ18 may have a 460,000-dot screen but—beware—we've already seen a TN screen of this size and definition that has really poor viewing angles. In fact, it's the same screen that stopped the Olympus SZ-30 getting anything more than three stars in our review. Obviously, it's something we'll have to check when we test the camera for ourselves, but given the RZ18's budget price tag we wouldn't be surprised to see the dreaded TN display put in an appearance here.

On the subject of price, that's one thing the RZ18 has certainly got going for it, launching in October for £200. That makes it a direct rival for the Olympus SZ-10, which has a similar set of tech specs and a comparable price tag.

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