After some consideration of my habits, I decided against getting a dSLR (I was between the Olympus e420 and the Nikon d60). Convenience, efficiency and durability were more suitable criteria for me. So I bought the Pentax Optio w60, in ocean blue color.

[caption id="attachment_58" align="alignleft" width="233" caption="water and sand/dust proof"][/caption]

As you can see from the image on the left it is both waterproof and sand/dust proof. These I regard as safety and longevity features and not necessary photography requirements. I wasn't thinking of scuba diving with this camera nor on joining a desert caravan. But I know that I'm not the most careful person when it comes to valuables, in other words gadgets suffer at my hands. I hope this camera can stand me longer than others would be able to.

I had it brought from the states, and it cost 230EUR ¹. There are cheaper 10 Mpixel cameras out there but I thought it worth paying for it being waterproof, up to 4 meters below the sea. It also has a 28mm wide angle lens which sounds useful.

At the moment I'm charging the battery so I haven't even taken a single photograph but I'm anxious to try it out (in about two hours). I'll update this post when I've taken some photos and more importantly, discovered if the battery life is ok. I might have to get a spare one because I haven't read stellar reviews on the Li-Ion battery.

1. About $300 at current exchange rate (back).