Pentax Q7 Mirrorless Review

Daniel Bell reviews the Pentax Q7, the flagship model in the Q series with a larger image sensor.

Posted: 29/07/2013 - 11:22

Features
Handling
Performance
Verdict

Announced in June 2013, the Pentax Q7 is the flagship model in the Q series. It has a larger image sensor and there are a choice of 20 body colours and six grip colours giving 120 possible colour combinations. There is no pricing available yet, but we expect it to be around the same price as the Q10 at launch - which had an RRP of £379.99 when purchased with the 5-15mm lens.

Pentax Q7 Features

The Pentax Q7 has the largest sensor of any of the cameras in the Q range, a 1/1.7-inch, 12.4 megapixel back-illuminated CMOS sensor. With a larger sensor, it has a magnification factor of 4.6x compared to the Q and Q10 magnification factor of 5.5x, this gives a wider view when using the Pentax Q lenses on the Q7, for example the 5-15mm standard zoom lens, which is the equivalent of 27.5-83mm on the Q and Q10 becomes 23-69mm equivalent on the Q7.

To keep images as sharp as possible there is a sensor shift shake reduction, which features a gyro sensor. You can use any of the Pentax Q mount lens as well as K mount lenses if you purchase the Adapter Q for K-mount lens adapter.

The Q7 has an auto mode, full manual controls and a number of scene modes which include HDR. You can get creative with your picture taking using the Custom Image modes and Smart Effects. You can even apply a digital filter to your pictures after shooting via the edit option in playback. The Q7 also introduces a dual axis electronic level, Eye-Fi compatibility, and HDR interval movie timelapse function.

Videos are recorded in full 1080p HD at 30 fps and you can also use the Smart Effects during recording.

Key Features

• 1/1.7-inch, 12.4 megapixel back-illuminated CMOS image sensor
• Pentax Q lens mount
• Sensor shift shake reduction
• 3.0 inch 460k dot LCD monitor
• Full manual controls
• Full 1080p HD video recording
• ISO 100 - 12800
• 5 fps continuous shooting
• HDR mode
• Choice of 20 body colours and six grip colours

Pentax Q7 Handling

The Pentax Q7 has an extremely small body and is rubberised on the front either side of the lens to help with grip. There are also three dots on the rear for your right thumb. Despite its small body, there are an ample amount of buttons. On the top is a mode dial and another for changing settings such as shutter speed and aperture. Other buttons on the top are the shutter release, on / off, playback and a switch which releases the pop-up flash.

On the rear are buttons to set the ISO and white balance as well as flash mode and self-timer. In the middle of these buttons is an OK button, all of which act as a d-pad for cycling through the menus. There are also exposure compensation, info, menu and green buttons - the green button can be used for different settings. The Q7 also has a dial on the front which has 4 options and can also be changed to the users preference such as aspect ratio, focus method etc.

Pentax have managed to pack a 3.0 inch screen on the Q7 which has a decent 460k dot resolution and has been treated with an anti-reflection coating. The menu system is split into 5 sections with sub-sections in each - it can take a little time to go through all the available options.

Battery life is rated at 250 shots according to CIPA test results, which should be enough for a day of shooting. We took a number of shots to test the camera's responsiveness, from switch on to first photo, shot to shot, focusing speed etc. We take a number of shots and then use the average to ensure accurate and consistent tests, making it easy to compare with other cameras.

Shutter Response	0.25 secs
Wide - Focus / Shutter Response	0.6 secs
Full zoom - Focus / Shutter Response	0.6 secs
Switch on Time to Taking a Photo	1.85 secs
Shot to Shot without Flash	1.8 secs
Shot to Shot with Flash	1.95 secs
Continuous Shooting - Lo (RAW + JPEG) slows after 3 shots	1.3 fps
Continuous Shooting - Lo (RAW + JPEG) with flash	0.5 fps
Continuous Shooting - Hi (JPEG only) slows after 5 shots		5.2 fps
Continuous Shooting - Hi (JPEG only) with flash	0.7 fps

All off the continuous shooting modes record in full resolution.

Pentax Q7 Performance

Pentax Q7 Sample Photos

Sample Photos - Images are well exposed with excellent colour reproduction. Portraits have good skin tones and are free of red-eye when shooting with the flash. To extend the dynamic range you can use the HDR mode.

Pentax Q7 Lens Test Images

Lens Performance - Image detail is good throughout the images at both ends of the lens, except in the shadows where detail is non-existent. Purple fringing is well controlled in contrasting areas. The 5-15mm isn't ideal for macro shots as you can't focus close enough, even when zooming in.

Pentax Q7 ISO Test Images

ISO Noise Performance - Noise is low at ISO 100 and remains low, with sharp images produced right up to ISO 800. Images are soft in places at ISO 1600 with detail lost in places at ISO 3200. Lots of detail is lost at ISO 6400, with poor image quality at ISO 12800.

Pentax Q7 White-balance Test Images

White Balance Performance - Under the incandescent lights the Auto White Balance (AWB) takes an image with an orange cast, with the incandescent preset taking a much better picture. The AWB fares a little better under the fluorescent lights. There are four different fluorescent presets, all of which produced images with colour casts.

Pentax Q7 Digital Filters

Digital Filters - Above we've included examples of the custom image modes and digital filters available. The last three are examples using the three different HDR options.

Video - Below is a video recorded in full 1080p HD. Quality is good, there is a video using the zoom during recording over on the our YouTube page.

 

Value For Money

Although the price for the Q7 has yet to be announced, we estimate it will cost around £380. Other mirrorless cameras to consider with a similar price are the Sony Alpha NEX-3N at £325, Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF6 at £399, Nikon 1 S1 at £300, Olympus E-PM2 at £399, Canon EOS M at £375 and Samsung NX1000 at £240.

Pentax Q7 Verdict

If you're a fan of small gadgets, the Pentax Q7 is going to appeal to you, particularly with the range of colours it is available in. It's extremely small, yet packs all the features you'd expect to see on a DSLR. You've full manual controls, RAW shooting and 5 fps continuous shooting. The screen size and resolution hasn't been compromised and the body and 5-15mm lens have plenty of rubberised grip.

Image quality is good, with excellent colour reproduction, but detail in darker areas of the images is poor. The Q7 also comes with custom image modes and a range of digital filters so you can take creative pictures.

Specifications: Pentax Q7
Availability
Discontinued	No
Year announced	2013
Box Contents
Box Contents	USB Cable I-USB7, Strap O-ST131, Rechargeable Lithium-ion Battery D-LI68, Battery Charger D-BC68P, Hot shoe cover FK, Body mount cover
Dimensions
Depth	33.5mm
Height	58mm
Weight	180g
Width	102mm
Exposure Control
Digital filter	Yes
Exp modes	Aperture-Priority, Shutter-Priority, Manual, Scene modes, A
Exposure Comp	+/-2
ISO sensitivity	6400 - 100
Metering	Centre-weighted - Average, Spot, TTL
Self Timer	12 seconds, 2 seconds
Shutter speeds longest	30sec
Shutter speeds shortest	1/8000sec
White balance	Auto, Manual, Outdoors/Daylight, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent, Shade, Flash
Flash
Hot Shoe	Yes
Focusing
Focusing modes	Autofocus, Spot, Face Detection, AF Tracking
General
Lens Mounts	Pentax Q
Image Sensor
Aspect Ratio	4:3, 3:2, 16:9, 1:1
Pixels	12Mp (Megapixels)
Pixels (H)	3000
Pixels (W)	4000
Sensor Size	1/1.7 inch
Sensor Size (height)	3000mm
Sensor Size (width)	4000mm
Sensor Type	Back-lit CMOS (B.S.I.)
Interface
Ethernet	No
Firewire	No
HDMI	Yes
Platform	PC, MAC
USB	USB 2
Wi-Fi	No
LCD Monitor
Brightness adjust	Yes
LCD Monitor	3in
Live view	Yes
Screen resolution	460,000 dots
Tilting screen	No
Touch Screen	No
Other Features
Dust removal	Yes
GPS enabled	No
Histogram	Yes
Image Stabilisation	Yes
Thumbnail / Index view	Yes
Power Source
Battery Life (CIPA rating)	250shots
Battery Type	Rechargeable Lithium-ion Battery D-LI68
Shooting Options
Continuous shooting	5fps
Sound recording	Yes
Storage
Card Type	SD, SDHC, SDXC
File Type	RAW, JPG, RAW + JPG
Video
Movie mode	Yes
Optical Zoom with Video	Yes
Stereo Sound	No
Video FPS	30
Video Resolution	1920x1080 FullHD, 1280x720 HD 720p, 640x480 VGA

Members gallery photos using: PENTAX Q7

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