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Pentax P80

 
Pentax Optio P80 front
 
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 64 - 6400
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-110mm (F2.6-5.8) lens
  • 125g - 102 x 59 x 25mm
  • Released August 2009
  • Read full specs
  • Alternatives
  • Size Comparison
  • FAQ
Portability
95
Imaging
35
Features
23
Overall
30

Pentax P80 overview

Pentax P80 is Pentax's Small Sensor Compact camera originally released on August of 2009. The camera includes a 12MP, CCD 1/2.3" sized sensor and has a peak resolution of 4000 x 3000.

The P80 places at #180 out of 261 in Small Sensor Compact cameras & all-around #1115 out of 1465 for cameras in our collection. You can try our Smart camera search to find camera rankings based on your customized requirements.

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Here is a chart of various criteria used in the scoring system.

Pentax P80 Pros and Cons

Below is a shortlist of advantages and disadvantages of the Pentax P80 based on things that are normally seen as necessary in a camera.

above average min ISO (64)
does have HDMI socket
flash built-in
good zoom range (28-110mm 3.9 x zoom)
lighter than competition in class (125g)
relatively wide (28mm)
you can focus manually
display is not selfie friendly
does not have external mic socket
does not have headphone socket
does not have Time Lapse mode
external flash not possible
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
fixed screen
has no phase detect auto focus
has no RAW files
lack of aperture priority mode
low maximum shutter speed (1/1,000 seconds)
low MP (12 megapixels)
low video resolution (1280 x 720 pxls)
manual mode not available
max zoom aperture not good (f5.8)
no image stabilization
no shutter priority
screen has low resolution (230 thousand dots)
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames/s)
slow maximum aperture (f2.6)
small screen (2.7 inch)
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Pentax P80 Sensor info

The Pentax P80 is powered by the Prime chip. The sensor spec on the Pentax P80 is 6.17mm x 4.55mm (1/2.3"). The 28 mm² sensor has the capability to resolve 4000 x 3000 pixels and aspect ratios of 4:3 and 16:9.

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The CCD sensor has 12 megapixels and features a native ISO range of 64 to 6400. Unfortunately, RAW files are not supported therefore you have less room to maneuver in post.

The image below shows the P80's sensor dimensions when compared to other common sizes. The P80 sensor has a crop factor of 5.8 and is highlighted in green.

Pentax Optio P80 sensor size Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

To get a sense of different aspect ratios, you can refer to the visual below.

Camera sensor aspect ratios

Pentax P80 dimensions

Pentax P80 weighs around 0.28 pounds (125 gr / 4.41 oz) & the measurement of the camera is 102mm x 59mm x 25mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.0"). The weight of general Small Sensor Compact camera is 174 gr and the Pentax P80 is lighter when compared to other rivals.

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Listed below is a photo of the Pentax P80 beside a soft drink so you're able to get a feel for its scale.

Pentax Optio P80 dimensions scale

The top view here will illustrate the button design on the P80.

Pentax Optio P80 topview buttons dials

Pentax P80 Lens info

The P80 houses a built in lens featuring a focal range of 28-110mm making it a 3.9 x zoom which may not be significant nevertheless it may be useful in some situations.

At the widest 28mm, it has an aperture of f2.6 and that's quite slow and not good for low light conditions and you will probably struggle to get a shallow depth of field. You will likely also have to increase the ISO setting leading to noisy photographs. Towards the tele end, 110mm comes to f5.8 making it very sluggish and you would need to choose slow shutter speeds.

Photography Glossary

Pentax P80 Connectivity

The P80 has the following connectivity:

  • USB Yes
  • HDMI Yes

Cameras that include NFC or Bluetooth support can be controlled wirelessly by smartphones. You can send pictures and oftentimes adjust camera settings without the hassle of connecting physically to the camera.

Certain applications even allow a Liveview and press the shutter when you aren't close to the camera. If the camera includes a HDMI port, it can be hooked up to an external monitor. The majority of cameras will allow you to charge the battery using the USB socket.

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Pentax P80 Video info

The highest video quality on the Pentax P80 is 1280 x 720 and you can shoot in Motion JPEG format. 720p is awful for today's standards. You should really target a minimum FUll HD quality for good video. The camera doesn't include a microphone or headphone port which means that you have little control over the sound. It is probably best to take a look at a different camera in case you want decent sound for your video clips.

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Pentax P80 Weather Sealing

Pentax P80 doesn't include weather proofing so damp conditions may affect the camera.

Pentax P80 Display and Viewfinder

The Pentax P80 includes a 2.7 inch fixed screen supporting a resolution of 230 thousand dots.

Please note that the screen has no touch support.

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The ViewFinder specs for Pentax P80 are below:

  • ViewFinder None

For bright outdoor conditions which make the camera screens washed out and challenging to see, viewfinders are very helpful.

Pentax P80 Shutter info

Pentax P80 continuous shooting speed is 3.0 frames/s. The max shutter speed is 1/1000 sec.

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Pentax P80 Flash and Hot shoe info

Pentax P80 has only inbuilt flash lacking external flash ability.

Pentax P80 Autofocusing info

Pentax P80 has just Contrast Based Autofocus & doesn't have Phase Detect Autofocus. Phase Detection autofocusing is more quicker & precise when compared to Contrast Based autofocusing.

The Sensor includes 9 focus points to select from. Pentax P80 comes with manual focusing when required in low light scenarios or you want more accurate control on focusing.

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Pentax P80 Battery life

The typical Small Sensor Compact camera battery life is 241. Fujifilm X30 comes with the highest (470) battery life in this kind of cameras.

Underneath is a listing of Small Sensor Compact cameras that come with the strongest battery life:

Pentax P80 for various categories of photography

The following graph shows a analysis of the Pentax P80 for various categories of photography. To learn more, visit the specific paragraph below.

Pentax P80 Portrait photography advice

The Pentax P80 receives a rating of 27 which is terrible, and means the camera is simply not good for portrait images. Taking portrait images favors greatly towards sensor resolution, RAW support plus the potential to utilize external lighting.

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you can focus manually
manual exposure not possible
cannot use external flash
MP count low (12 megapixels)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
has no RAW support

Pentax P80 as a Street photography camera

With a modest score of 55, the Pentax P80 is relatively appropriate to buy for street photography. A very good street photography camera comes with a fine balance of image quality and portability.

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lighter than competition (125 grams)
no articulating screen
lack of image stabilization
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format

Pentax P80 Sports photography details

A terrible sports photography points total of 17 means the Pentax P80 is simply not good for taking photos of sports. A camera should have excellent focusing plus fast shutter speeds for sports photography.

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max shutter speed is low (1/1,000s)
low fps (3.0 fps)
no shutter priority
lack of image stabilization
sensor resolution low (12MP)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect autofocus

Pentax P80 Travel photography information

Portability is extremely critical in picking a camera for travel. In general, the Pentax P80 gets a very good 62 for a travel camera which makes it a very decent pick to purchase for your vacations.

Photography Glossary
lighter than average (125g)
flash built-in
pretty wide (28mm)
does not have Time Lapse recording
sensor resolution not great (12 megapixels)
does not offer selfie friendly screen
sluggish max aperture (f2.6)

Pentax P80 Landscape photography details

If you are planning to choose a camera for landscape pictures, the biggest aspect will no doubt be image quality. The Pentax P80 at it's terrible rating of 32 for a landscape camera is simply not good among it's competitors.

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focusing manually
quite wide (28mm)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f2.6)
small screen (2.7 inch)
no manual mode
does not have image stabilization
MP count low (12 megapixels)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
does not have Time Lapse mode

Pentax P80 as a Vlogging camera

A vlogging camera should have a articulating screen, microphone port and preferably image stabilization. Taking all things into account, the Pentax P80 is simply not good as a vlog camera as it receives a terrible score of 28.

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relatively wide (28mm)
lighter than average in class (125g)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.6)
display is not selfie friendly
no image stabilization
video resolution low (1280 x 720 pxls)
does not have external microphone port

Pentax P80 Alternatives

If you are trying to find replacements to the P80, here is a list of the highest placed cameras that fall into the class of Small Sensor Compact.

The line graph just below will give you a bird's eye view of the P80 compared to it's top scored competitors shown previously.

There are a bunch of cameras you may regard as alternatives. To browse through a full comparison, click the "compare" link.

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Specifications

General Information
Manufacturer
Pentax
Model type
Pentax Optio P80
Type
Small Sensor Compact
Released
2009-08-05
Physical type
Compact
Sensor Information
Sensor type
CCD
Chip
Prime
Sensor size
1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions
6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area
28.1mm²
Sensor resolution
12MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio
4:3 and 16:9
Maximum resolution
4000 x 3000
RAW photos
Maximum native ISO
6400
Lowest native ISO
64
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points
9
Lens
Lens mount type
fixed lens
Lens zoom range
28-110mm (3.9x)
Highest aperture
f/2.6-5.8
Macro focusing range
10cm
Crop factor
5.8
Screen
Type of display
Fixed Type
Display sizing
2.7 inch
Display resolution
230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type
None
DXO scores
DXO All around rating
not tested
DXO Color Depth rating
not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating
not tested
DXO Low light rating
not tested
Features
Lowest shutter speed
4s
Highest shutter speed
1/1000s
Continuous shooting rate
3.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance
4.60 m
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions
1280 x 720 (30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Maximum video resolution
1280x720
Video file format
Motion JPEG
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless
None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS
None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight
125 grams (0.28 pounds)
Dimensions
102 x 59 x 25mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.0")
Other
Battery ID
D-LI68
Self timer
Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage type
SD/SDHC, Internal
Card slots
One
Pricing at launch
$200