Denver, Colo. – Ricoh Imaging of America introduced a new addition to its Pentax-branded Q-series mirrorless compact system camera line that is said to renew the company’s claim to “the smallest and lightest” mirrorless format camera on the market.
The Pentax Q-S1 begins shipping this month at a $499.95 suggested retail price.
The company also expanded its lineup of medium-format camera lenses by introducing the Pentax DA645 28-45mm f4.5ED AW SR lens, which will be available this month at a $4,999.95, suggested retail.
As for the tiny Q-S1, Ricoh said it continues to keep the Q form factor small and light by using a 12.4-megapixel 1/1.7-inch CMOS compact-camera sensor.
The Q-S1 also boasts up to a highly sensitive 12,800 ISO low-light capability and sensor-based image stabilization system.
The camera will record FullHD 1080/30p video, includes a 3-inch 460,000-dot LCD screen with AR coating.
The camera supports full-resolution burst shooting up to 5fps, and provides in-camera RAW format process and HDR shooting.
The camera also includes a Bokeh control, manual exposure modes and a pop-up flash.
In addition, Ricoh is resurrecting its color-to-order service to support the Pentax Q-S1 launch. The company is offering four standard color combinations and additional 36 body and grip colors including: champagne, khaki green and charcoal black. In addition, the Pentax-01 Standard Prime lens color can also be chosen from five different options to match or coordinate with the camera body color.
As for the other Pentax ILC offerings, the Pentax DA645 28-45mm f/4.5ED AW SR lens is billed as the first ultra-wide-angle zoom lens for the Pentax digital medium format line.
It includes 17 optical elements in 12 groups, including two aspherical elements and two extra-low dispersion elements. Other features include built-in Shake Reduction that compensates for up to 3.5 shutter stops, HD lens coatings that optimize light transmission and minimize reflections, weather/dust sealing to compliment the weather sealing on the Pentax 645Z medium format camera.
