Pentax K-3: Souped-Up Flagship SLR Announced

Pentax is done with keeping its head down, through with playing it safe, and back with a new camera that pulls out the big guns and strays from the well-trodden track. The new arrival is based on the same winning formula that has helped seal the success of the firm’s expert-level SLRs since the K-10— i.e. weatherproofing + 100% pentaprism viewfinder + internal stabilisation. But there’s more to the K-3 than meets the eye. Under its familiar-looking casing, this souped-up flagship SLR has a new 24-Megapixel APS-C sensor with no low-pass filter, an updated autofocus module, improved weatherproofing, a new viewfinder, a sharper screen and more. Nikon D7100 and Canon EOS 70D beware!

In a camera market where sleek curves, racy designs and fun looks are all the rage, Pentax is sticking to its boxy, chiselled-looking design with this SLR. It stands out like a muddy 4×4 off-roader in a world of city-slicking SUVs. But who cares? With its 92 weatherproof seals to keep dust and water at bay, its range of weatherproof lenses, flashes and grip, its stainless steel chassis (rather than aluminium) and its magnesium casing, the K-3 is the perfect companion for adventure.

From the outside, the K-3 looks very similar to the K-5 IIs and, like that model, it too has no low-pass filter. The K-3 uses a new 24-Megapixel APS-C sensor but keeps the sensitivity range at 80-51200 ISO. It’s highly likely that this sensor is a Sony-made Exmor, with a very similar set of specs to the sensor in the Nikon D7100, but with no low-pass filter. Removing the low-pass filter can lead to moiré effects and aliasing, but Pentax has developed a new system that tilts the sensor very slightly to simulate the effect of a standard AA filter. This can be switched on and off as required, and its level of intensity can be adjusted. It’ll be interesting to see how effective that system shapes up to be in practice.

On top of that, the K-3 has been treated to Pentax’s new SAFOX 11 autofocus system, with 27 AF points including 25 cross-type AF points (compared with just 11 AF points for the K-5 II/IIs). The AF is even geared up to adjust and optimise its performances in relation to the scene and lighting conditions in hand. There’s also a new 86000-pixel (RGB) exposure metering sensor onboard. Shutter speeds run from 30 seconds to 1/8000 s. The burst mode is announced at 8.3 frames per second for 60 JPG or 23 RAW shots thanks to the speedy new Prime III imaging engine.

Building on the K-5 IIs, the K-3′s 100% pentaprism viewfinder has had its magnification upped to 0.95x. The rear screen has been boosted in size and resolution to an impressive 3.2” and 1,037,000 dots. The K-3 features two SD memory card slots and can be piloted via a smartphone over Wi-Fi … if you plug in a special Flu card, which obviously sells as an optional extra.

This new Pentax camera is the first SLR to use a USB 3.0 connection. The USB 2.0 standard used in all its competitors is restricted to a theoretical data transfer limit of 60 MBps, even though SDXC cards can, in theory, work at up to 104 MBps. And the upcoming SD 4.0 standard will raise that to 300 MBps! It’s therefore high time that camera makers switched to USB 3.0, which supports data transfer at up to 640 MBps. Although the benefits of this new addition won’t be felt immediately, it’s great to see Pentax taking the lead in adopting USB 3.0, which is already pretty commonplace on computers.

Other handy connections include a flash sync port plus headphones and microphone sockets.


The Pentax K-3 is due out in November with prices starting at £1,100 for the body only.

Pentax K-3: Souped-Up Flagship SLR Announced