Pentax's budget PC-series 35mm point-and-shoot — 35mm f/4.5 AF lens, motor wind, built-in flash, AA power.
The Pentax PC-50 was a lightweight plastic 35mm point-and-shoot from Pentax's budget PC series of the mid-1990s. From 1990 to 2005 Pentax split its compacts into the entry-level PC-prefixed line and the higher-end Espio (IQZoom in the US) range, and the PC-50 sat firmly in the former: a simple fixed-lens snapshot camera, made in China, also offered as the PC-50 Date with a quartz date back.
It carried a fixed 35mm f/4.5 lens with autofocus, a motorised film transport that loads and advances film automatically, an integral flash and a self-timer. Power came from two AA alkaline batteries, with the manual estimating a pair would last around ten rolls with flash used on every frame. The body measured 126x73x49mm and weighed roughly 190g without batteries, so it slipped easily into a coat pocket.
This is snapshot photography at its most basic: point, press, and let the camera handle the rest. The slow f/4.5 lens leans on flash indoors, so it suits daylight casual shooting, first-time film users and anyone wanting a cheap, unfussy carry-everywhere. It offers none of the controls or brighter optics of the Espio line, but there is little to go wrong in use.
On the used market these sell cheaply, so condition matters more than completeness. The camera will not fire without working AAs; confirm the motor advance runs, the flash charges with a healthy whine, and the AF window is clean. Check the battery compartment for alkaline corrosion — a common fate for cheap AA compacts — and the film door for cracked plastic hinges.