Pentax WG-3

Pentax WG-3 is Pentax's Waterproof digital camera originally announced on July of 2013. It features a 16 MegaPixel, BSI-CMOS 1/2.3" size sensor with a maximum resolution of 4608 x 3456.

The WG-3 places at #19 out of 75 in Waterproof cameras and all around #649 out of 1465 for cameras in our collection. Remember to try out our Smart camera finder to find camera rankings based on your custom requirements.

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

The Pentax WG-3 is part of a family of products. You can see the full list below.

You can view the WG-3 from different angles in the gallery here.

Here is a checklist of positives and negatives of the Pentax WG-3 based on aspects that are often viewed as essential in a digital camera.

The measurement of the sensor on the Pentax WG-3 is 6.17mm x 4.55mm (1/2.3"). The 28 mm² sensor has the ability to resolve 4608 x 3456 pixels with aspect ratios of 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9. The camera has got Image Stabilization (Sensor-shift). Optical stabilization is more desirable than digital stabilization since the latter may lead to cropping.

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The BSI-CMOS sensor boasts 16MP and includes a standard ISO range of 125 to 6400. Sadly, RAW files are not supported which means that you have less room to maneuver in post.

The graphic below displays the WG-3's sensor size in comparison to other popular sizes. The WG-3 sensor comes with a crop factor of 5.8 and is presented in green.

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To get an idea of different aspect ratios, you should refer to the graphic below.

Pentax WG-3 weighs 0.51 pounds (230 grams or 8.11 ounces) and the overall size of the camera is 124mm x 64mm x 33mm (4.9" x 2.5" x 1.3"). The weight of normal Waterproof camera is 195 grams and the Pentax WG-3 is weightier than various competitors.

Photography Glossary

Listed below is a pic of the Pentax WG-3 next to a soft drink to help you have a feel for its size.

The top view here will provide the button layout on the WG-3.

The WG-3 is equipped with a fixed lens with a focal range of 25-100mm giving it a 4.0 x zoom which is definitely not very good but it can be valuable in some circumstances.

At it's widest 25mm, it provides an aperture of f2.0 and that is beneficial in low light events and capturing good bokeh. It is going to also make it easier to go with a much lower ISO to capture cleaner shots. For the long end, 100mm comes with f4.9 making it very sluggish and you will have to go with slower shutter speeds.

The WG-3 has the following connectivity:

• USB Yes
• Wireless Yes
• HDMI Yes

Cameras that include NFC or Bluetooth support can easily be used wirelessly through smartphones. You are able to copy images and sometimes change camera settings without connecting straight with the camera.

Some apps also enable a Liveview and click the shutter when you aren't close to the camera. If the camera includes a HDMI out, it could be attached to an external screen. A good number of cameras will allow you to charge the battery with the USB port.

The maximum video resolution on the Pentax WG-3 is 1920 x 1080 and it can save in MPEG-4 and H.264 file format. 1080p resolution can provide a good balance for video quality versus file size but FULL HD will not give you much room to downsample. The body doesn't feature a mic or headphone socket which means you have zero control over your sound. It is probably a better idea to look into a different camera in case you require better sound in your videos.

Pentax WG-3 has environment sealing which makes it a fantastic candidate to use for tough conditions. This can be particularly helpful if you are uncertain about the elements you may encounter for outdoor photography.

The Pentax WG-3 features a 3" fixed screen with a resolution of 460k dots.

Please be aware that the screen offers no touch support.

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The View Finder details regarding Pentax WG-3 are the following:

• ViewFinder None

In those bright outdoor situations that make the camera screens washed out and tough to view, viewfinders will be very helpful.

Pentax WG-3 continuous shooting speed is 10.0 fps. The maximum shutter speed is 1/4000s.

Pentax WG-3 has got just built in flash lacking external flash ability.

Pentax WG-3 has got only Contrast Based Auto Focus and doesn't have Phase Detect Auto Focus. Phase Detection autofocusing is a lot quicker and exact than Contrast Based autofocusing. The camera features Face detection which makes it handy for taking portraits of people.

The AF system features 9 focus points to pick from. It also has Tracking Auto Focus for moving objects. Pentax WG-3 comes with manual focusing when needed for low light conditions or you want to have more accurate focusing control.

The battery (D-LI92) for the Pentax WG-3 is designed to last for 240 clicks according to the CIPA benchmarks making it less than its competition. The general Waterproof camera battery life is 275. Olympus TG-4 has the highest possible (380) battery life for this kind of cameras.

Underneath is a collection of Waterproof cameras which have the strongest battery life:

ModelVisualizeBattery LifeRAWNFCBluetooth

Olympus TG-4
WG-3 vs TG-4380 yesnono

Panasonic TS6
WG-3 vs TS6370 noyesno

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Panasonic TS5
WG-3 vs TS5370 noyesno

Nikon AW130
WG-3 vs AW130370 nonono

Olympus TG-1 iHS
WG-3 vs TG-1 iHS350 nonono

The following illustration provides a overview of the Pentax WG-3 for varying types of photography. To see more, scroll to the specific paragraph below.

The Pentax WG-3 gets a points tally of 41 which is horrible, meaning that it is not suitable to use for portraits. Photographing portrait photos leans heavily to sensor resolution, RAW support in addition to the potential to work with external flash.

Coming in at a nice rating of 61, the Pentax WG-3 is a respectable pick to use in street photography. A very good street photography camera provides a fine balance of picture quality and portability.

A horrible sports photography score of 45 indicates the Pentax WG-3 is not suitable for taking pictures of sports. A camera really should have excellent focusing plus fast continuous shooting for sports photography.

Weight is pretty crucial in buying a camera for travel. All round, the Pentax WG-3 gets a nice 72 for a travel camera which makes it a fine choice to take with you on your holidays.

For anybody planning to purchase a camera for landscape photography, the most vital aspect will be image quality. The Pentax WG-3 with it's reasonable grade of 54 as a landscape camera is fairly appropriate within the current market.

A camera for vlogging really should offer a moving screen, microphone input and preferably IBIS. Considering all things, the Pentax WG-3 is not suitable for vlogging as it gets a horrible rating of 36.

If you are interested in alternatives to the WG-3, below is a list of the highest rated cameras which fall in to the class of Waterproof.

The graph below will give you a summary of the WG-3 compared to it's top rated rivals listed earlier.

These are various other cameras you might look at as alternate options. To look at a thorough comparison, simply click the "compare" link.