As Pentax's entry-level SLR, the K-r ($699.95 direct with 18-55mm lens) has a bit of a storied heritage. The company's K1000 was the student camera of the 1970s—thousands of photographers cut their teeth on that 35mm SLR. The K-r offers full compatibility with the K-mount lenses used by the K1000, but that's where the similarities end. The 12-megapixel K-r is a fully automatic D-SLR with a high-resolution rear LCD and the ability to grab photos at close to 6 frames per second. The camera is a bit behind in terms of video technology—it doesn't support any type of autofocus while recording—and the bundled kit lens is pretty poor in terms of sharpness. The camera poses no danger to our Editors' Choice for sub-$1,000 D-SLRs, the Nikon D5100 ($899.99, 4.5 stars), but if you're interested in shooting with Pentax's line of compact prime lenses, take a look—assuming that you're willing to ditch the included 18-55mm lens and shoot with something of better optical quality.

Design and Features
The K-r doesn't offer as much of a size advantage over entry level D-SLRs as the Pentax K-5 ($1,249.95, 3.5 stars) does over mid-range bodies. It measures 3.8 by 4.9 by 2.7 inches (HWD) and weighs 21 ounces, making it a bit larger and heavier than the 3.75 by 4.75 by 2.5-inch, 17.4-ounce Nikon D3100 ($699.95, 4 stars). Like most entry-level D-SLRs, the K-r uses a pentamirror viewfinder—which provides a dimmer, smaller image than the more traditional pentaprism design. Pentamirrors are less expensive to produce and are also lighter, but it's unfortunate to see that the industry has decided to sacrifice quality for lower production costs. The only entry-level model currently available that doesn't use a pentamirror is the Sony Alpha 35 ($699.99, 3 stars)—that D-SLR  uses an electronic LCD viewfinder.

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Pentax offers the K-r in three color choices—black, white, and red. Most D-SLRs are available only in black, but if you're not concerned about being inconspicuous when shooting, the red body is striking. Its 3-inch rear LCD offers a 921k dot resolution—three times that of the Pentax K-x ($599.95, 4 stars) that the K-r replaces. This makes it possible to review shots in the field to verify critical focus, and is also helpful when focusing in Live View mode.

Unlike its big brother, the K-5, the K-r doesn't feature any sort of weather sealing. Aside from preventing you from shooting in a downpour, the lack of sealing makes for a louder camera. I found the K-r to be one of the louder D-SLRs with which I've shot—especially at high frame rates, in sharp contrast to the K-5, which is one of the quietest. 

The camera has the standard physical controls that you'll find on most entry-level SLRs including dedicated buttons to control White Balance, the Flash mode, ISO, the Drive mode, and EV compensation. They are configured in a manner that makes the back of the camera less cluttered than the Canon EOS Rebel T3 ($599.99, 3.5 stars), which squeezes a dozen buttons onto its rear plate. The Pentax engineers placed two buttons—the EV compensation control and the programmable Green button—on the top plate, which makes them easier to access without removing the camera from your eye. In addition to the standard SLR shooting modes, the Mode dial also has presets for several scene modes—which should make the camera more comfortable to use if you are transitioning from a point-and-shoot model.

Pentax has built a nice menu system into the camera for those times when you need to adjust a shooting setting that doesn't have a physical control. Hitting the Info button scrolls through various rear displays, one of which is a laundry list of common settings—15 in total—that can be quickly adjusted, without having to dive through numerous menu screens. To adjust more esoteric settings, you get a more-detailed text menu. The design should be familiar to Pentax shooters—it's basically the same one that was in the company's first generation D line of D-SLRs.