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Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80

Portability
63
Imaging
57
Features
66
Overall
60
Pentax K-30 front
 
Pentax Optio P80 front
Portability
95
Imaging
35
Features
23
Overall
30

Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 Key Specs

Pentax K-30
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 12800 (Raise to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/6000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 650g - 130 x 97 x 71mm
  • Announced October 2012
  • Successor is Pentax K-50
Pentax P80
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 64 - 6400
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-110mm (F2.6-5.8) lens
  • 125g - 102 x 59 x 25mm
  • Introduced August 2009
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Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 Overview

Following is a in-depth review of the Pentax K-30 versus Pentax P80, one is a Advanced DSLR and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and both are built by Pentax. There exists a huge gap among the sensor resolutions of the K-30 (16MP) and P80 (12MP) and the K-30 (APS-C) and P80 (1/2.3") boast totally different sensor dimensions.

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The K-30 was released 3 years after the P80 which is a fairly significant gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Pentax K-30 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Pentax P80 being a Compact camera.

Before going straight to a complete comparison, here is a simple synopsis of how the K-30 grades against the P80 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Pentax K-30 over the Pentax P80

 K-30 P80 
IntroducedOctober 2012August 2009More modern by 40 months
Screen size3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution921k230kSharper screen (+691k dot)

Reasons to pick Pentax P80 over the Pentax K-30

 P80 K-30 

Common features in the Pentax K-30 and Pentax P80

 K-30 P80 
Manually focus Very accurate focusing
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither comes with selfie screen
Touch screen Lacking Touch screen

Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is aiming to carry around your camera often, you should take into account its weight and size. The Pentax K-30 comes with physical measurements of 130mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8") accompanied by a weight of 650 grams (1.43 lbs) whilst the Pentax P80 has specifications of 102mm x 59mm x 25mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.0") having a weight of 125 grams (0.28 lbs).

See the Pentax K-30 versus Pentax P80 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you have at that moment. Following is a front view measurements comparison of the K-30 against the P80.

Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 size comparison

Using dimensions and weight, the portability score of the K-30 and P80 is 63 and 95 respectively.

Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 top view buttons comparison

Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it is difficult to envision the gap in sensor sizes only by going through technical specs. The image underneath will help provide you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the K-30 and P80.

As you can tell, both of the cameras come with different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The K-30 because of its bigger sensor will make shooting shallow DOF simpler and the Pentax K-30 will produce greater detail as a result of its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will let you crop shots a good deal more aggressively. The more modern K-30 is going to have a benefit when it comes to sensor tech.

Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 sensor size comparison

Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 Screen and ViewFinder

Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Pentax K-30 Portrait photography highlights
Pentax P80 Portrait photography highlights
74
manual focus
good MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
offers face detection autofocus
saves RAW formats
27
you can focus manually
manual mode not possible
no external flash support
sensor resolution low (12MP)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
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Street Comparison

Pentax K-30 Street photography highlights
Pentax P80 Street photography highlights
68
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
saves RAW formats
weather proof
screen is fixed
55
lighter than competition in class (125g)
no moving screen
does not have image stabilization
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Pentax K-30 Sports photography features
Pentax P80 Sports photography features
67
maximum shutter speed is high (1/6,000s)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (16MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
offers tracking autofocus
weather proof
sensor has phase detect autofocus
painfully slow continuous shooting (6.0 frames/s)
low battery (410 per charge)
17
maximum shutter speed is a little low (1/1,000s)
painfully slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority mode
does not have image stabilization
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
has no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Pentax K-30 as a Travel photography camera
Pentax P80 as a Travel photography camera
60
weather proof
good MP (16MP)
built-in flash
low battery (410 per charge)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
62
lighter than competition in class (125 grams)
has built in flash
relatively wide (28mm)
doesn't have Timelapse function
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
does not have selfie friendly display
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.6)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Pentax K-30
Landscape photography with Pentax P80
73
manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
screen size is good (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (16MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
saves RAW formats
weather proof
low battery (410 shots)
32
you can focus manually
relatively wide (28mm)
cannot swap lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.6)
tiny screen (2.7")
manual mode not possible
does not have image stabilization
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
doesn't have Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Pentax K-30 Vlogging details
Pentax P80 Vlogging details
30
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection autofocus
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
missing external microphone port
28
relatively wide (28mm)
lighter than competition in class (125 grams)
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.6)
does not have selfie friendly display
does not have image stabilization
low quality video (1280 x 720 pixels)
doesn't have microphone port
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Pentax K-30 vs Pentax P80 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Pentax K-30 and Pentax P80
 Pentax K-30Pentax Optio P80
General Information
Manufacturer Pentax Pentax
Model Pentax K-30 Pentax Optio P80
Type Advanced DSLR Small Sensor Compact
Announced 2012-10-29 2009-08-05
Body design Mid-size SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Prime M Prime
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size APS-C 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 23.7 x 15.7mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 372.1mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixels 12 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 4:3 and 16:9
Max resolution 4928 x 3264 4000 x 3000
Max native ISO 12800 6400
Max enhanced ISO 25600 -
Lowest native ISO 100 64
RAW data
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points 11 9
Cross focus points 9 -
Lens
Lens mount Pentax KAF2 fixed lens
Lens focal range - 28-110mm (3.9x)
Maximal aperture - f/2.6-5.8
Macro focus range - 10cm
Available lenses 151 -
Focal length multiplier 1.5 5.8
Screen
Range of display Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3" 2.7"
Display resolution 921k dot 230k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Display tech TFT LCD monitor with brightness/color adjustment and AR coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentaprism) None
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.61x -
Features
Min shutter speed 30 seconds 4 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/6000 seconds 1/1000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 6.0fps 3.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 12.00 m (at ISO 100) 4.60 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-eye,Slow Sync, Slow Sync+ Redeye, Trailing Curtain Sync, Wireless -
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Max flash sync 1/180 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30,25,24 fps), 1280 x 720 (60,50,30,25,24 fps), 640 x 424 (30,25,24 fps) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video data format MPEG-4, H.264 Motion JPEG
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS Optional None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 650 grams (1.43 pounds) 125 grams (0.28 pounds)
Physical dimensions 130 x 97 x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8") 102 x 59 x 25mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.0")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 79 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 23.7 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 13.0 not tested
DXO Low light score 1129 not tested
Other
Battery life 410 shots -
Battery form Battery Pack -
Battery model D-LI109,4 x AA D-LI68
Self timer Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC, Internal
Storage slots One One
Price at release $525 $200