Strengths: well constructed, large LCD, bright view finder, lots of inexpensive lens out there, SR works

Weaknesses: focus is still sort of slow, noise at ISO1600, shallow buffer, focus assist light utilizes build-in flash, poor continuous shooting speed

Summary: Pentax K100D makes a very good beginner's DSLR. Good ergonomics. The control settings are not as handy, but for a beginner that is less an issue. If you do not want to invest a lot of money in photography, then pentax is your perfect choice.

Strengths: Price, Shake Reduction, Large and bright LCD, Decent viewfinder, Decent kit lens for starter, Backward compatable lenses, Natural picture tones and decent noise control.

Weaknesses: Slower focus in low light compared to other competitors, Small buffer.

Summary: Pentax K100D is my first DSLR camera. It is very well constructed.(not cheap plastic) It is not too bulky or heavy. I picked this camera because of its SR and faster focus compared to the Pentax DL and DS. I shot some graduation pictures with this camera, it did not fail me. The pictures came out sharp and natural without much need of modification. I like pentax's color. With all the features came with K100D and its moderate price, I would recommend this camera to others!

Strengths: Relatively inexpensive compared to other entry level digital SLR cameras; built-in shake reduction; uses inexpensive SD memory cards; uses 4 AA-size batteries instead of proprietary batteries

Weaknesses: None that I can think of right now

Summary: This is a great camera for the price ($584.00 right now with the 18-55mm lens.) It takes pictures with excellent quality. It has shake reduction built in so you don't need to buy expensive lenses with image stabilization. It uses inexpensive SD memory cards which are relatively cheaper than other media and also uses four AA-size batteries instead of the more expensive proprietary batteries. You can't get a better value for an entry level digital SLR camera. For those of you just starting to get into digital SLR cameras, this is the one to get.

Strengths: Affordable price, solid construction, feels really great in hands, shake reduction is super useful.

Weaknesses: Focusing is a little hesitating when the ambient light is not strong enough.

Summary: Shake reduction is super helpful, especially when shooting indoors. I really love this feature. The 18-55mm kit lens also features SMC(super-multi coating), however still not comparable to other prime lenses I have.

Strengths: Good image quality, many features for a relatively low price, shake reduction on all pentax lenses, works with many old pentax lenses, easy to use.

Weaknesses: Autofocus a little slower than competition, but good enough for most uses. Only 6mp(not that important because with higher resolution sensors there is more noise though 8mp would have been nice)

Summary: The ergonomics are very good and the button layout is convenient. It has a nice weight and feel to it and is definitely more comfortable than the rebel xt(i). The kit lens is also very good. The k100d is basically everything you would expect from a DSLR from the increased speed to the higher photo quality. This is a very good camera for the price, but if you need a more advanced camera or faster autofocus, you may want to wait for the pentax k10d, which is due out this winter.

Strengths: Shake Reduction2.5" LCD with 230k pixels resolutionBright Viewfinder, 0.85x (though pentamirror)Interface is pretty good18-55mm lens is better then the Canon and Nikon's 18-55 kits.

Weaknesses: AF hunts in very low light (AF is very good in bright light)To reach ISO settings etc you press "Fn" and then any of the 4 arrow keys, not when you just press any of the arrow buttons (stupid!!)

Summary: I've had the camera for about two days now, taken some 290 pics and I'm pretty excited about it. Its price is pretty competitive and it offers Shake Reduction CCD (which means all Pentax lenses are now image stabilized!! even the oldest Pentax lenses are compatible with this camera!!) Canikon's offerings are more expensive; they're bigger companies and want you to pay for the brand name, Pentax offers more for less $. Nikon D50 is more expensive and perhaps the only things where D50 wins are the AF speed, larger memory buffer and faster fps shooting. Same goes with Canon Rebel 300D and Rebel XT 350D (though it's 8MP). I would always get the "best bang for buck", which in this case was Pentax, I earlier bought a Pentax *ist DL when it was dirt cheap but then sold it on ebay without using much to get this Pentax K100D (it has better image processing, faster AF, 11pt AF sensors vs 3 pt for DL and more). DSLR is a new world altogether for a person who has shot using only point&shoot cameras for years (i.e. me)... I've been trying to get used to the menus etc... The camera is amazing... but greater control over everything means there is a steep learning curve if you're coming from a point & shoot camera. Grip is another issue, I'm so used to handling the lighter Panasonic FZ15 (35-420mm ultrazoom, IS) that I'm having some trouble getting used to this new size and shape. Plus, I have bigger hands and the camera probably doesn't fit best (or I don't know how to best handle an SLR yet). I'm using a Patriot 133x 4GB SD memory card with this camera and it has no problems dealing with 4GB. Speed is pretty good, but I can't compare with other cameras because I haven't used any other DSLR extensively. Test shots: You can find many sample images at dpreview.com's Pentax SLR forum and also on pbase.com's camera database. I will upload pics from this camera on my pbase gallery (http://pbase.com/waqas) later on.

Strengths: Handling, shake-reduction, price, lens compatibility

Weaknesses: None so far

Summary: When I first decided to purchase a DSLR a few months back (after my trusty Minolta DiMAGE 7i gave up the ghost), I spent countless hours comparing the specifications of entry-level offerings from all major companies and speculating how they would affect my future photography experience. Seeing that the agony was not getting me anywhere, I decided to look at my old pictures and see how a new camera could improve their quality.While I studied the pictures, I noticed that quite a few of them are blurry not from bad focusing, but from camera shake. When taking photos at long focal lengths, or when taking photos in low light at any focal length, the relatively long exposure time makes it difficult to hold the camera steady, so the pictures turn out to be a mess. Canon and Nikon offers image-stabilized lenses, but they cost a lot and are most certainly out of my price range. In the end, I chose the Pentax K100D because of good reviews, low prices, and the shake-reduction function built into the camera body (the CCD sensor moves to compensate for the hand movement). I rarely take my tripod with me, and I feel that shake-reduction will be more beneficial to me than all the extra mega-pixels offered by competitors.So, did I make the right choice?After I received the camera, I took it to a local museum which was hosting a Star Wars exhibition. It was dark in the exhibition room, and the models are all behind glass windows (so flash is out of the question). I took a few hand-held shots at 28mm focal length (42mm after 1.5x crop), 1/10s (2 stops slower than typically necessary to avoid camera shake), ISO800, and went home to study the pictures. I was blown away: noise is very well controlled (and the little that is there cleans up well with software tools), and the pictures are all very clear with no signs of camera shake. There is no way I could have gotten those shots without a tripod if I had went with Canon or Nikon. The K100D is, from my perspective, the best of all entry-level DSLR cameras currently available.Of course, my friends told me that I need to go with Canon or Nikon because buying a DSLR is committing to a system. While that may be true for professional photographers who spend thousands on high-quality zoom lenses, I don't see myself going down that road in any reasonable timeframe. What I need is a great tool like K100D so that I can take pictures now, and buying an inferior camera just to be "future proof" sounds quite illogical to me.Finally, the Pentax lens system has it own perks. K100D is compatible with all K-mount lenses that Pentax had ever made (since the 70s?), and there are literally millions of them out there. I picked up a 50mm f1.7 and a 28mm f2.8 for a total of $55 (both are second-hand manual focus lenses in good shape), and they both produce beautiful pictures. Compatibility with old lenses makes it simple to pick up good glass on the cheap, and for photographers on a budget, it is a much better way to grow your photography system.And the kicker is, both of these 70's manual lenses work with shake-reduction! Neither Canon or Nikon offers a 50mm prime lens with image-stabilization functionality.In conclusion: if you need a good entry-level DSLR to take pictures today, you cannot go wrong with K100D.

Strengths: Size, shake reduction

Weaknesses: none

Summary: This is my first DSLR camera and it is great! Excellent product for the price. Rebel XT can't compare to it. The shake reduction is awesome because you can go with a longer exposure and not worry about blurriness. This is the best entry level DSLR IMO.

Strengths: Price. Takes any Pentax lens. Image stabilization. Ease of use. Doesn't require specialized batteries.

Weaknesses: Included software isn't terribly intuitive. Would be nice if an SD card was included so you could start using it out of the box.

Summary: I decided on the Pentax because I have several Pentax lenses and have owned 2 Pentax film cameras which I was very happy with. I also thought the price was good and liked the fact that it had image stabilization. The fact that it takes regular batteries and the common SD memory card was also a plus.I've been using it for a couple of days now and it seems to do a great job. The features that I need are available and fairly easy to use. As with most digital things these days, there are a lot of features available through menus that I will most likely never use (not being a professional photographer) but I like being able to control many things that you can't with a regular digital camera.All of my old Pentax lenses work fine with this camera once I got the camera set up to work with them. (Not hard... just had to read the manual.)Picture quality is great. Although a little higher resolution might have been nice, 6 megapixels is fine for me.So far, I'm very happy with my purchase... both the features and the price. I would highly recommend this camera to anyone who already has some Pentax lenses.

Strengths: price, shake reduction(SR), compatible with old lens, decent noise control, AA battery,

Weaknesses: focus under low light, less control buttons, white balence, small buffer

Summary: Overall a solid performer, easy to carry, kit lens is better than Canon's, 4 NiMH AA can last 500 shots which is enough for a normal day. If you are on trip, some CRV3s will be a wise choice. How useful is SR? Once you use it, you won't be able to live without it. SR of K100D works better at tele end, at 200mm I can get some decent handheld 1/10 shots which are at least 4 stops better, however at wide end 18mm, there is no way I can handhold a 1/2 shot. Anyway, tele end is where the SR is really needed. Small buffer really makes K100D react slower than you might expect, especially when you are shooting RAW with ~10MB file size. On the other side, the charging of built-in flash is really fast. I would recommend K100D to any one who wants a entry level DSLR.

Strengths: Great ValueAnti ShakeAwesome ViewfinderLens compatibilityAA battery use

Weaknesses: Only 6MP

Summary: The K100D is my second digital SLR (first one was an Olympus E-500 which is also an excellent camera). The K100D has all the important features an entry level DSLR should have and can go head to head with the best from Canon and Nikon. There are 2 key advantages with the Pentax that smoke the Digital Rebel and the D50, AS and a gorgeous viewfinder.I switched to Pentax because of availability of great and inexpensive vintage prime lenses. In fact, lens compatibility is awesome for all Pentax DSLRs, all K mount and even screw mount lenses can be used with this body (screw mount with an adapter). The sensor shift anti shake works with ALL lenses. Given the premium Nikon and Canon charge for their IS/VR lenses, the K100D has to be the best value in class bar none. AS also means one can stop down any lens that's on the camera to the sweet spot (most lenses are rarely the best wide open) and shoot at slower shutter speeds without worrying about blur. This camera makes ALL lenses BETTER.The other key advantage is the big/bright viewfinder. The viewfinder is the primary human interface to the camera and the Pentax has absolutely the best in class viewfinder.One should definitely check out this Gem from Pentax when in the market for an entry level DSLR.

Strengths: SHAKE REDUCTION!!! low noise for iso under 800. feels not "cheap" at all. very good image quality. The price is right!

Weaknesses: low light auto-focus a problem, noisy when focusing. white balance needs improvement.

Summary: This is overall an EXCELLENT camera, especially for the price. I've got several sharp pictures with 0.3 second exposure (without a tripod). if you often take pictures you will immediately understand what I am saying - the shake reduction is one of the kind. I also have a point-and-shot camera which is CANON sd800 IS. The 800 also has a shake reduction function but compared to this k100d, come on, k100d really wins big! Another nice thing about this camera, under iso 800 the pictures always look clean, and the noise level is very low. I think overall this DSLR is really a nice entry-level DSLR. Look at the price tag, under 600 w/ kit lens. For body only it's now only 500. However I'm not saying the camera is problem free. Auto white balance sometimes can be a problem, especially when you shoot indoors. Remember if you are using the SLR indoors, try to use the "Tungsten light" rather than "auto white balance", perhaps you will get a much better picture. There is another problem, the focusing motor is somewhat noisy but it is OK to me, especially when considering the price. in the very low-light condition you perhaps have a hard time to auto-focus but this happens all the time to almost all cameras. I also wish the LCD panel on the top could have a back light. Overall, excellent camera. for an entry-level DSLR I will give it 5 out of 5.

Strengths: price, SR, holding

Weaknesses: resolution

Summary: This is the first entry level dSLR camera I have. It is pretty good. Menu is fridendly, and the quantity of photos is good. Shake reduce is useful in centain conditions, like dark or long distance, but not always work. I would said 2-3 photos would be useful if you take 10 pictures. Batteries are use out very fast, so it is better to grabe some re-chargeable ones.

Strengths: Size, antishake, lens compatability, feels very well balanced.

Weaknesses: Blinking of subjects during flash photography. 18 - 55 lens vignettes with a UV filter at 18mm setting.

Summary: The k100 does very well for outdoor photography. The antishake feature works well and several hand held photos taken at 1/4 second were pretty sharp. Some users complain about slow focusing in low light... mine searches a bit, but about the same as my film slr so it's something I'm already used to. The optional 360fgz flash has IR assist which helps.What I was not expecting was the new flash system uses p-ttl exclusively, meaning that my old 500ftz flash is now obsolete except for operation in manual mode. What's worse is the new p-ttl dedicated flash (the 360fgz) has a pre-flash that causes blinking in certain subject. In my family, it is a very real problem as 1/3 of flash photos (32 out of 100 taken over the last week) had closed or partially closed eyes of subjects.I've figured a workaround by operating the camera in Av mode and using the flash in auto mode, but I really wish somebody would have mentioned this to me before the deal was made.Other than that, it seems very well balanced and intuitive. Build quality is good. The skylight filter to protect the lens causes dark corners of photos taken at 18mm (vignetting), but the addition of the filter was my choice, not pentax's.I would buy the k100 again, but knowing that p-ttl and the associated pre-flash cause blinking would have prevented a lot of frustration over photos taken with default settings.

Strengths: Size, Price, Image Stabilization (SR), Compatibility with older Pentax Lenses, AA Batteries, Image Quality, Low Noise at High ISO

Weaknesses: Mirror VF (instead of a Prism VF), limited expansion options (but excellent upgrade path to the K10D), No PC-Sync socket, Menu layout not well thought out

Summary: I upgraded from a digital P&S camera. Had this little wonder for about 3 months now and shot close to a 1000 pics. I am absolutely thrilled with this gem of a camera. I had mind my heart set on a Minolta DSLR, but after Minolta sold its unit to Sony and the new 10MP Sony DSLR does not perform as well at high ISOs as the previous 6MP versions, I started researching the available options and came across the K100D. It had everything I wanted, plus the SR - which is a pleasant surprise - and actually works quite well too.Image quality with the 18-55mm kit lens is very good. But with a prime 50mm lens the image quality is just amazing, even in low-light indoor shots. I get smooth prints at ISO800 with little or no noise reduction. And even at ISO 3200 I get more than decent 4x6 snapshots.Menu is a bit rough, but I got used to it pretty quickly. Ergonomics are excellent. I'd have preferred a true prism viewfinder, but the Pentamirror VF was quite bright and useful - much better than the Canon or Nikon DSLR VFs in the same price range.Tons of cheap used lens for Pentax on Ebay. Very helpful user community. All in all, an very satisfactory purchase. I spent another $700 on Pentax accessories since I got the K100D. I will be sticking with Pentax for the foreseeable future.Cheers.