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04-10-2012, 05:36 AM   #226
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Only thing I would note is the 12-24 likely had no increase because it's going to be replaced. it dropped in price $300 up here last week (to 999)
The DA 14 priced below the DA15 never made sense to me before. the 15 is certainly a nice lens but it shouldn't cost more than a faster wider lens

04-10-2012, 07:35 PM   #227
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QuoteOriginally posted by wizofoz Quote
I've not heard of the motor needing replacement. My understanding is that there is a screw that binds and stops the motor turning. I guess one could lead to the other though.
".... one could lead to the other...", exactly.

You will notice that there are a number of posters to the "DIY SDM repair" thread for which the DIY procedure did not work. Their SDM motor seems to have given up the ghost. I've also read may people getting their SDM motor replaced. I'm assuming the service centres don't do it unless necessary. In any event, if they do it, you'll have to pay, no matter whether it was absolutely necessary or not.

I don't think that the 50-135's SDM history, the one year only warranty and the recently enforced minimum retail price go together.
04-10-2012, 08:43 PM   #228
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QuoteOriginally posted by Class A Quote
".... one could lead to the other...", exactly.

You will notice that there are a number of posters to the "DIY SDM repair" thread for which the DIY procedure did not work. Their SDM motor seems to have given up the ghost. I've also read may people getting their SDM motor replaced. I'm assuming the service centres don't do it unless necessary. In any event, if they do it, you'll have to pay, no matter whether it was absolutely necessary or not.

I don't think that the 50-135's SDM history, the one year only warranty and the recently enforced minimum retail price go together.
Yes, one COULD lead to the other, but I have yet to see empirical proof. There could well be more than one problem with this lens design. It seems to have been more prevalent with older batches of the 16-50 and 50-135. Less prevalent in the 17 -70 and I don't recall hearing of a 60-250 having a problem (but that means nothing, other than I don't recall, and I'm getting older by the minute )

We have yet to see the prices rise here, but I take your point. There seems to be a disconnect between the warranty and QC/design of the DA* line and the recent enforcement of the minimum retail price in the USA. The fact that it is an enforcement of a MRP, rather that an actual price increase, makes me ponder that there is some strategy in play to re-position the distribution of the Pentax products, I cannot otherwise see the point of forcing the US retailers to make more profit per unit, while not taking a cut as the manufacturer.

But I am not qualified to even speculate.

I have faith that people at Penatx/Ricoh know what they are doing and are taking some short term flack for what will be a far better future. Colour me rosy.
04-10-2012, 08:54 PM   #229
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QuoteOriginally posted by wizofoz Quote
I have faith that people at Penatx/Ricoh know what they are doing and are taking some short term flack for what will be a far better future.
I want to believe as well.

04-16-2012, 06:06 PM   #230
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2 words---amazon.com...

I just did some looking around a found some bettterr prices at amazon,especially on the Pentax da*16-50 and pentax da* 50-135.

Amazon.com: Pentax da16-50 and pentax da 50-135
and how about that K5?
Amazon.com: Pentax K-5 Digital SLR Camera Body with DA 18-55mm WR Zoom Lens with 32GB Card + Battery + Case + Tripod + Filter + HDMI Cable + Accessory Kit: Camera & Photo

I guess that's a little better but it would still hurt to buy them
04-16-2012, 08:38 PM   #231
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QuoteOriginally posted by Class A Quote
I want to believe as well.
The K-Files?
04-16-2012, 08:49 PM   #232
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QuoteOriginally posted by jonhock Quote
I just did some looking around a found some bettterr prices at amazon,especially on the Pentax da*16-50 and pentax da* 50-135.

Amazon.com: Pentax da16-50 and pentax da 50-135
and how about that K5?
Amazon.com: Pentax K-5 Digital SLR Camera Body with DA 18-55mm WR Zoom Lens with 32GB Card + Battery + Case + Tripod + Filter + HDMI Cable + Accessory Kit: Camera & Photo

I guess that's a little better but it would still hurt to buy them
Aden Camera currently has the 16-50 and the 50-135 for about a couple hundred cheaper.
Aden Camera - Canada's digital camera store

Still hurts tho.

04-16-2012, 09:00 PM   #233
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QuoteOriginally posted by Matcha Quote
How do you think about the lens price increase?
Next camera hobby purchase planned is a K-5 by end of year, so the lens announcements don't affect my strategy until my next big purchase after that (maybe 2013?). The next target lens, until the price announcement, was the 60-250. So with the price change, my strategy for that lens went from justifiable (barely), to unjustifiable (by a large margin). Will have to wait and see if a better price can be had, or change positions, or wait a lot longer to purchase.
04-17-2012, 09:01 PM   #234
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QuoteOriginally posted by Laurentiu Cristofor Quote
The K-Files?
Exactly.
04-18-2012, 02:05 AM   #235
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Lens prices and our channel strategy in the U.S. - Ned's Photo Journal
Ned's blog post content below:
"April 17, 2012 Lens prices and our channel strategy in the U.S.
I realize that many of you have expressed concern over our new unilateral pricing policy and specifically the lens pricing. However, the new policy we introduced has both short and longer term implications for our plans in the U.S. Recognizing that there is frustration and misinformation being discussed on various forums, I’d like to address a few of your concerns.
To clarify, we have not "raised" the prices on any lenses. The last increase we announced was over a year ago and applied to the DA* star lenses (such as the 16-50mm and the 50-135mm) as well as the FA50mm f/1.4.

One user comment I read summarized the situation quite well by saying, “I think you are seriously misunderstanding the whole conversation. Pentax has not raised prices. They have required authorized dealers to stick to MSRP [Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price] or some percentage of it (we do not know the exact terms). Pentax is attempting to police their sales channel just as many other manufacturers do. Any additional margin will go to the dealers not Pentax.”

The comment above is pretty accurate in his assessment of the retail distribution channels, not only for Pentax, but for every manufacturer in the photo industry. For our growth as a company, and the health of the photo retail marketplace, it is necessary to set guidelines for retail pricing to protect the integrity of the marketplace, and the value of a manufacturer’s products.

One specific plan we have which will benefit the brand and many of you as customers is to increase availability of Pentax products in retail stores.

For example, during the last year we have renewed relationships or expanded our presence with key photo retailers across the U.S. such as Samy’s (LA), WB Hunt (Boston area), Dodd Camera (Cleveland), Ace Photo (Virginia), Cameraland (Iowa), Cameraland (NYC), Creve Coeur Camera (greater St. Louis), National Camera Exchange (Minneapolis) as well as others. In addition, you’re going to very shortly hear that Pentax is back in a major National account, which is something we’ve been working on extremely hard for over a year.

While I can’t share certain details, I can tell you that establishing a level playing field is critical to our expansion in the States. This includes new partners being able to carry and offer not only our cameras but our lenses. The prices some of you refer to are likely found “online” and have in the past represented significant discounts which no storefront can compete against. As such, until we create parity in pricing, it’s very hard to get retailers to want to carry or expand their support for Pentax.

Many of you have asked for greater availability of Pentax cameras in stores, where you can touch and test the product. This is absolutely the right approach for us to take and is consistent with Pentax and Ricoh’s goal to grow our businesses in the U.S. market.

We realize the need for Pentax to better monitor prices across our distribution channels will likely result in higher lens costs to you. Therefore, once we’ve established this program, we will consider running lens rebate promotions in the future. We tested this program successfully several years ago and these type of rebates offer a good value to consumers and increased traffic to our dealers.

I would also like to dispel any rumors or misinformed comments that our relationship with Ricoh is in any way responsible for our changes in retail channel pricing policies. We are excited about being part of Ricoh and the opportunities it presents to Pentax for future growth in the photo industry.

I hope this helps you better understand our channel strategy in the U.S. and how lens pricing is an integral part of the plan. And I certainly appreciate and encourage your comments on this matter.
"
04-18-2012, 02:13 AM   #236
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I was gonna go all out Pentax (K-5, several DA lenses) but now due to the increases in prices I am going to make a switch to Nikon. I can't wait for Pentax to get their stuff together and start offering lens rebates or whatever. The price increases don't make sense since they want more for lenses that Nikon has quicker versions of, not to mention metal mounts and quick shift.
04-18-2012, 03:57 AM   #237
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QuoteOriginally posted by harish Quote
Lens prices and our channel strategy in the U.S. - Ned's Photo Journal
Ned's blog post content below:
"April 17, 2012 Lens prices and our channel strategy in the U.S.
I realize that many of you have expressed concern over our new unilateral pricing policy and specifically the lens pricing. However, the new policy we introduced has both short and longer term implications for our plans in the U.S. Recognizing that there is frustration and misinformation being discussed on various forums, I’d like to address a few of your concerns.
To clarify, we have not "raised" the prices on any lenses. The last increase we announced was over a year ago and applied to the DA* star lenses (such as the 16-50mm and the 50-135mm) as well as the FA50mm f/1.4.

One user comment I read summarized the situation quite well by saying, “I think you are seriously misunderstanding the whole conversation. Pentax has not raised prices. They have required authorized dealers to stick to MSRP [Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price] or some percentage of it (we do not know the exact terms). Pentax is attempting to police their sales channel just as many other manufacturers do. Any additional margin will go to the dealers not Pentax.”

The comment above is pretty accurate in his assessment of the retail distribution channels, not only for Pentax, but for every manufacturer in the photo industry. For our growth as a company, and the health of the photo retail marketplace, it is necessary to set guidelines for retail pricing to protect the integrity of the marketplace, and the value of a manufacturer’s products.

One specific plan we have which will benefit the brand and many of you as customers is to increase availability of Pentax products in retail stores.

For example, during the last year we have renewed relationships or expanded our presence with key photo retailers across the U.S. such as Samy’s (LA), WB Hunt (Boston area), Dodd Camera (Cleveland), Ace Photo (Virginia), Cameraland (Iowa), Cameraland (NYC), Creve Coeur Camera (greater St. Louis), National Camera Exchange (Minneapolis) as well as others. In addition, you’re going to very shortly hear that Pentax is back in a major National account, which is something we’ve been working on extremely hard for over a year.

While I can’t share certain details, I can tell you that establishing a level playing field is critical to our expansion in the States. This includes new partners being able to carry and offer not only our cameras but our lenses. The prices some of you refer to are likely found “online” and have in the past represented significant discounts which no storefront can compete against. As such, until we create parity in pricing, it’s very hard to get retailers to want to carry or expand their support for Pentax.

Many of you have asked for greater availability of Pentax cameras in stores, where you can touch and test the product. This is absolutely the right approach for us to take and is consistent with Pentax and Ricoh’s goal to grow our businesses in the U.S. market.

We realize the need for Pentax to better monitor prices across our distribution channels will likely result in higher lens costs to you. Therefore, once we’ve established this program, we will consider running lens rebate promotions in the future. We tested this program successfully several years ago and these type of rebates offer a good value to consumers and increased traffic to our dealers.

I would also like to dispel any rumors or misinformed comments that our relationship with Ricoh is in any way responsible for our changes in retail channel pricing policies. We are excited about being part of Ricoh and the opportunities it presents to Pentax for future growth in the photo industry.

I hope this helps you better understand our channel strategy in the U.S. and how lens pricing is an integral part of the plan. And I certainly appreciate and encourage your comments on this matter.
"
I'm glad he said "any additional margin" and not that there is one given that sales st the higher prices have gone to nearly 0 from what Amazon's automated pricing has done on several lenses over the past week+. Also, it took 2x the promised time for that?
04-18-2012, 04:24 AM   #238
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QuoteOriginally posted by geekette Quote
I was gonna go all out Pentax (K-5, several DA lenses) but now due to the increases in prices I am going to make a switch to Nikon. I can't wait for Pentax to get their stuff together and start offering lens rebates or whatever. The price increases don't make sense since they want more for lenses that Nikon has quicker versions of, not to mention metal mounts and quick shift.
About the price simply ask for discount, that seems to work
04-18-2012, 05:08 AM   #239
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QuoteOriginally posted by geekette Quote
I was gonna go all out Pentax (K-5, several DA lenses) but now due to the increases in prices I am going to make a switch to Nikon. I can't wait for Pentax to get their stuff together and start offering lens rebates or whatever. The price increases don't make sense since they want more for lenses that Nikon has quicker versions of, not to mention metal mounts and quick shift.
I'm sure Ricoh/Pentax didn't just all of a sudden get a brainwave to increase the prices. As we don't know what they actually plan for Pentax in the future, I'm sure they've considered the increase and its effects very carefully, before deciding to implement it.

If you are not happy about it and decide to move on, I'm sure you and everyone planning to do what you're contemplating, were part of their calculations that led to the decision.

In the end it is just a tool, and If you're not happy with it and think you can replace your current setup, plus planned lens purchases, with another brand at a better price, I would suggest you do it. Sentiment should not play a role in such decisions, especially if you're using your equipment to create some income.

Personally, being in retail myself, and being a long-time supporter of the brand, and photography only a hobby of mine, I don't have to make quick decisions like you, but I do understand your frustration
04-18-2012, 05:23 AM   #240
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I had 2 copies of 60-250 crap out on me, the first one had a stuck zoom ring - can;t go past 200mm, and a piece was loose inside the barrel.

The second one had SDM died on me after 6 months.
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