Evaluation:  
Conclusion: Pentax Warranty Problems
Review: This is a very small camera with no protrusions so that it is easily carried in a pocket or purse. Two of my friends have this model and have taken hundreds of excellent photos. However, my experience with it not been good. When the camera arrived, the on/off button did not function correctly. I managed to take a few good pictures with it on a vacation trip before it became unusable. When I returned it to the Pentax Distribution & Service Center, the Center claimed that the camera had internal damage "due to the penetration of liquid or oily substance" and could not be repaired under warranty. The camera was never exposed to a liquid or oily substance while in my possession. I cannot recommend this camera or any other Pentax product because of this failure to repair or replace this camera that was defective or damaged before I received it.
Evaluation:
Conclusion: needed factory repair 2x
Review: I had 3 problems with my S4i, always at the worst times. I do have to say that Pentax Customer Service has been okay to me. I bought the camera in April 2004. Around Sept 2004, it just stopped working. I was at a charity event, took it out of the case to snap a few photos, but it wouldn't operate. When I pressed the power button, I got 2-3 beeps, a sound like the lens was trying to open, then the camera just powered off. Then it started working again, at least for a while. A month later I took it on a short weekend holiday. Of course it stopped working there. Sent back to Pentax for repair. Got it back about 2 months later, repaired. 6 months later was going on another short holiday. Took the camera out of the closet to confirm it still worked, and again was disappointed. When powered up, the lens opened, autofocus failed, lens closed, and camera powered off. Had to buy another digital camera (this time a Canon) for that trip. Sent the camera back to Pentax, as my cust. svc. rep told me it would be repaired under the 1 year warranty dating from time of first repair. I just received it back a week ago. Hope it continues to work.
Evaluation:
Conclusion: Terribly dissappointed
Review: This camera was not inexpensive and takes mediocre photos. The flash doesn't reach most of my subjects and I get a lot of black photos back. Half the photos are blurry and I cannot get it to focus. You have to wait what seems like eternity between shots as it won't let you take a photo within 5-10 sec of each other. So sad :-( Taking a loss on this one and looking for something more consistent and reliable.
Don't waste your money here.
Evaluation:
Conclusion: Fragile -- Do Not Purchase!
Review: Everything said on this forum about the fragility of this camera and the terrible customer service is true. The camera worked great for a few months, then mysteriously stopped working. When I took it to an authorized repair facility they voided the warranty because of "impact damage" and claimed that the entire zoom mechanism would have to be replaced to the tune of $200. What a bunch of b.s.! The "impact damage" was a tiny scuff mark that did not result from a drop (since it was never dropped). We babied this camera and took extreme care to be careful with it and it just decided to quit on us. I suspect that taking this camera out of its case subjects it to "impact" -- it just feels delicate and is an accident waiting to happen. Don't waste your money.
Evaluation:
Conclusion: Great vacation camera
Review: I bought this camera to take on vacation to New Zealand. Its very easy to use. Having never used many cameras before, I was able to figure out my way around this camera, its modes, and even began messing with exposure times. The image quality is exceptional, especially for a camera that is so small and light that I sometimes forgot I had it strapped to my belt.
The battery life was quite good. I was able to take a couple hundred pictures with flash and display on before having to recharge.
A couple of things to note, though. The battery life indicator isn't very accurate. When the battery started draining fairly low, I'd power on the camera and sometimes it would show that it was fully charged, sometimes it would show that it was about to lose power alltogether.
Also, don't plan on taking either action or night shots with this camera. The shutter delay (time between pushing the button and it taking the picture) was long enough that I missed taking a few shots that I really wanted. (ie, a whale's tail as it was diving). For night shots, there is a lot of noise on the images, and objects tend to blur a little. (lacking detail on faces/etc)
That aside, I'd still recommend it for point-and-shoot users that want a record of their vacation. For the price and size, I couldn't be happier.
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