The Toshiba PDR-M5 offers 3X optical zoom, 1/2-inch CCD with 2.14 megapixel 1600 x 1200 (or 800 x 600) resolution, USB/Serial connectivity and a burst mode.   It is housed in a high impact plastic body that breaks away from conventional styling. At first glance it appears to be an SLR, upon closer inspection reveals itself as an optically-coupled rangefinder camera.

Toshiba has used the most advanced digital signal processing (DSP) technology available to provide superior speed for the PDR-M5. This DSP chip set allows the PDR-M5 to operate at a higher burst rate than most other digital cameras. There is a minimal delay between shots of 0.8 seconds.

In burst mode, the internal 16 MB of memory acts as a "buffer" temporarily storing images before transferring them to the removable SmartMedia® card. The buffer combined with the DSP chip set allows users to shoot up to four continuous shots at the camera's highest resolution setting in two seconds.