Nikon Z6 vs Pentax ist DS2

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Nikon Z6 and the Pentax ist DS2, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Nikon Z6 was introduced in August 2018 and Pentax ist DS2 was introduced in August 2005. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Nikon Z6 over Pentax ist DS2.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Pentax ist DS2 over Nikon Z6.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Nikon Z6 has a 3.2" Tilting screen with 2,100k dot resolution and Pentax ist DS2 has a 2.5" Fixed screen with 210k dot resolution. Tilting screen makes Nikon Z6 very useful for photography purposes but not so useful for video shooting. Nikon Z6 also features touchscreen which has advantages such as easy menu navigation, intuitive controls, quick setting adjustment and most importantly a Touch-to-Focus functionality allowing users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording.

Viewfinder

Nikon Z6 has a built-in 0.5" Electronic viewfinder with 3,690k dot resolution and Pentax ist DS2 has a built-in Optical (pentaprism) viewfinder. Nikon Z6 has 100% coverage with 0.80x magnification and Pentax ist DS2 has 95% coverage with 0.95x (0.63x 35mm equivalent) magnification.

Nikon Z6 features a 24.5 megapixel Full Frame BSI-CMOS sensor with dimensions of 35.9 x 23.9 mm and a total area of 858 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 51,200 and expands to 50 - 204,800 in boosted mode. Pentax ist DS2 features a 6 megapixel APS-C CCD sensor with dimensions of 23.5 x 15.7 mm and a total area of 246.5 mm². Its native ISO range is 200 - 3,200.

Nikon Z6 has BSI-CMOS sensor, short for Backside Illuminated Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor sensor. In traditional CMOS sensors, the wiring and circuitry are located on the front side of the sensor, which can block some of the incoming light. BSI technology flips this design by placing the photosensitive elements (pixels) on the backside of the sensor, allowing more light to reach the pixels. This significantly enhances light sensitivity and improves low-light performance. BSI-CMOS sensors are particularly effective in low-light conditions, as they can capture more light, resulting in brighter and less noisy images. This makes them well-suited for indoor and night photography. BSI-CMOS sensors deliver a higher SNR and reduced cross-talk.

Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how different sensors compare with each other:

Sensor size chart

	Sensor	Dimensions	Area	Aspect Ratio	Crop Factor
	Medium Format	44 x 33 mm	1452 mm2	4:3	0.79x
	Full Frame	36 x 24 mm	864 mm2	3:2	1x
	APS-H	27 x 18 mm	486 mm2	3:2	1.3x
	APS-C	23.6 x 15.6 mm	368.2 mm2	3:2	1.5x
	APS-C (Canon)	22.3 x 14.9 mm	332.3 mm2	3:2	1.6x
	Micro Four Thirds	17.4 x 13 mm	226.2 mm2	4:3	2x
	1-inch	13.2 x 8.8 mm	116.2 mm2	3:2	2.7x
	1/1.7-inch	7.44 x 5.58 mm	41.5 mm2	4:3	4.7x
	1/2.3-inch	6.17 x 4.55 mm	28.1 mm2	4:3	5.6x

Nikon Z6 is equipped with EXPEED 6 processor and can take pictures up to 6048 x 4024 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 3936 x 2624 (DX crop), 4016 x 4016 (1:1), 6048 x 3400 (16:9) with 1:1, 5:4, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios. Pentax ist DS2 can take pictures up to 3008 x 2008 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 2400 x 1600, 1536 x 1024 with 3:2 aspect ratios.

Lens Mount

Nikon Z6 has Nikon Z lens mount and Pentax ist DS2 has Pentax K_AF lens mount. Due to Full Frame sensor in Nikon Z6 its crop factor is equal to 1x, this means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length. Due to APS-C sensor in Pentax ist DS2 its crop factor is equal to 1.5x, this means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 1.5.

In-Body Image Stabilization on Nikon Z6

Nikon Z6 has a built-in 5-Axis Sensor Shift in-body image stabilization (IBIS) with 5 stops of compensation. This means that you are still getting vibration reduction when camera is paired with non-image stabilizied lenses. It also works with lenses with optical image stabilization and in combination can achieve even better compensation.

Built-in Wi-Fi on Nikon Z6

Nikon Z6 has a built-in Wi-Fi (Wi-Fi 5, 802.11ac/b/g/n, 2.4/5 GHz) which allows to easily transfer photos and videos from the camera to other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as smartphones, tablets, printers, or computers. This eliminates the need for cables and allows for quick and convenient media sharing and social media integration. It gives you the ability to control your camera remotely using a smartphone or tablet. This is particularly useful for taking self-portraits, group shots, or capturing images in challenging conditions without having to touch the camera. Firmware updates can also be downloaded and installed wirelessly.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in WiFi.

Bluetooth on Nikon Z6

Nikon Z6 has a built-in Bluetooth which lets you to connect the camera to a smartphone or a dedicated remote control device. This allows you to remotely trigger the camera, adjust settings and controls remotely through a paired mobile app. While Wi-Fi is generally faster for transferring larger files, Bluetooth can be used for small, selective transfers, it can provide real-time information about your camera's battery status, memory card capacity, and other key settings directly on your paired smartphone or smartwatch.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in Bluetooth.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB inputs for data transfer. connector for video signal output.

Battery

Nikon Z6 comes with EN-EL15b battery pack with battery life of 330 shots and Pentax ist DS2 comes with 4 x AA battery pack.

External Storage Slots

Nikon Z6 has a single CFexpress Type B / XQD card slot. Pentax ist DS2 has a single SD/SDHC card slot.

Shutter

Nikon Z6 has Mechanical Focal Plane shutter and Electronic shutter. Shutter speed can go up to 1/8000 sec on Nikon Z6, and up to 1/4000 sec on Pentax ist DS2. Nikon Z6 can shoot continuously up to 12.0 fps. Pentax ist DS2 can shoot continuously up to 2.8 fps.

Focusing

Nikon Z6 has Hybrid phase-detection/contrast AF system with 273 focusing points and Pentax ist DS2 has 11 focusing points. Nikon Z6 has detection range from -6 to +19 EV.

Exposure

Exposure meterings of Nikon Z6 ranges from -4 to +17 EV and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±5 EV range on Nikon Z6 and ±3 EV range on Pentax ist DS2. You can also do exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Nikon Z6 and exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Pentax ist DS2.

Flash

Pentax ist DS2 has a built-in flash and also accepts external flash. Nikon Z6 has no built-in flash but an external flash may be connected via Hot Shoe. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/200 sec on Nikon Z6.

Nikon Z6 body has dimensions of 134 x 101 x 68 mm (5.28 x 3.98 x 2.68") and Pentax ist DS2 body has dimensions of 125 x 93 x 66 mm (4.92 x 3.66 x 2.6"). Nikon Z6 weighs 675 g (1.49 lb / 23.81 oz) and Pentax ist DS2 weighs 605 g (1.33 lb / 21.34 oz).

Nikon Z6

Pentax ist DS2

134 mm

101 mm

125 mm

93 mm

101 mm

93 mm