Pentax launches Optio WS80 digital camera

"Rugged enough for everyday life"

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6 August 2009 0:01 GMT / By Duncan Geere

Pentax has added to its range of digital cameras with the release of the Optio WS80, which joins the W80 in the "rugged" camp.

Well, it's loitering near the entrance of the camp, anyway, because it's not full "Chuck Norris" rugged, like its S-bereft brother. Instead, it's waterproof to 1.5m, dust and sand-proof, and just "rugged enough for everyday life", according to Pentax product coordinator Stephen Sanderson.

It's got a 10-megapixel sensor, 5x optical zoom, 2.7-inch LCD display and 720p movie shooting capabilities, and it can take SDHC cards if you need to pump up the storage. There's also face detection, smile capture, and blink warnings, along with pixel tracking technology that helps reduce the blurriness of shots under certain conditions.

It comes in white/black, white/purple, green/yellow and black/orange colour combinations, and costs £209. It'll be available around the start of September.