Originally posted by interested_observer So they 1) removed the screwdrive from the lens and its SDM only so that on a non SDM capable body (K100 and before) its a manual lens and 2) they removed the focus distance scale.
"Removed"? Which previous 18-135 lens had those features? Answer: there were no previous 18-135's for this to be "removed" from. They started with a clean slate and decided which features needed to be there. "Didn't add" is the more appropriate term here.
Anyhow, I think the handwriting's been on the wall regarding screw drive for quite some time now; doesn't seem surprising to me that they are going the way of everyone else and offering more and more SDM-only lenses.
As for the focus distance scale - I guess that's useful to maybe 5% of the population 5% of the time, but I can't see most really losing sleep over this.