Review on Pentax K-r 12.4 MP Digital SLR Camera with 3.0-Inch LCD and 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens (Black): High-resolution photography made easy by James Weber

See update at end. My initial excitement turned to disappointment. First a few comments on other reviews on other sites. One reviewer claims it lacks visible AF points. It's just not right. The AF points are not only visible in the viewfinder, you can also adjust the AF point. The reviewer goes on to say that the AA battery adapter is expensive. This may be true as the ability to use lithium or AA (a big plus) is relative, but you can buy a cheap battery for less than $10. This reviewer also states that bracketing is limited to 1/3 stop. Not right. You can set the function for a range of up to 3 levels! Finally, the reviewer notes that high-end cameras use a CCD sensor and not a CMOS sensor. I just checked Nikon's $7000 work and it uses CMOS (albeit at full frame size) and so does their mid-range camera, but their low-end work uses CCD. You should also be aware that this camera consumes some power. This produces the claimed shots, but with all the electronics in the camera, your experience may vary. I would recommend a backup battery. They can be bought cheaply for less than $10. Now my experience for the last month. This is my first SLR camera. I've been using Pentax cameras since the early 1970s. This summer I traveled to Europe and shot over 20 rolls of film on my beloved and resilient SF1. After spending hundreds of dollars on processing, it became clear that digitization was necessary. After months of research, I decided on KR. You simply trust this company. Also, and this got me hooked, ALL older lenses will work with this camera, and the anti-shake protection is built into the body, not the lens. My glass on my SF is excellent and I wanted to use these lenses. KR "reads" these lenses almost like new lenses. I think the only thing DA lenses bring is automatic aberration correction. However, you can manually correct older lenses if you notice an aberration. This is a truly amazing digital camera, although I still think I prefer film (Luddit!). Fit and finish are excellent. The speed of the burst exposure mode is the same as that specified. I just bought a 32GB class 10 card (over 3000 full res RAW shots!) and was able to take over 30 full res images before it even slowed down. My photos are still pretty damn good. My criticism of this camera is that it's pretty damn flexible (read complex). You can reset almost anything, and the default settings aren't necessarily the most desirable. While the menus are fairly easy to navigate, it took me a while to finally get all the menus and options where I wanted them. There are so many options that it's impossible to remember how to access them or that they even exist. Constant reference to the user manual is a must. I tried to buy a second one from Pentax to use in the field but they told you to download the PDF version. Of course, you can set the camera to automatic mode and take pictures right out of the box, but then why buy a camera that can do so much? Then again, it's a camera you can grow with and not worry about next year's model being significantly better. My next complaint has to do with video capabilities. The KR is only 720p, not 1080p like it is now, and doesn't have autofocus in film mode. It also lacks an HDMI output for connecting directly to an HDTV. For example, you need to download a movie to a flash drive before you can watch it on TV. It records in mono, not stereo as is common elsewhere. Obviously, Pentax hasn't caught the wave of DSLR video capabilities. My two-year-old $100 Flip camcorder has more flexible video options, if not video quality. You lose a star because of this problem. My final gripe is that the "live view" on the LCD lags a bit when moving the camera. Although I rarely use anything other than the viewfinder. All in all, if you're half serious about photography, you need a great lens with backwards compatibility (and front compatibility since my SF easily uses the new DA lens) and a camera. This really is a DSLR for the average user that offers really good value for money at an affordable price for the entry-level user, this one is for you. UPDATE: Pentax discontinued this camera and I'm generally unhappy with it. I've found that most shots require sharpening adjustments in editing programs. In addition, the accuracy of the measuring system can vary. In the end, two identical shots are taken in a row, one is fine and the other is underexposed. Shadows and highlights are not properly balanced. The movie mode just sucks and it even beats it by $200. Not having decent video capabilities these days is absurd (no HDMI output? C'mon!). After so many years with a great Pentax camera (SF1) it seems silly to have a camera that now seems obsolete so quickly. However, I have a lot of Pentax lenses, so I'll probably buy another Pentax once they get the right video.