[sbc]

Pentax DA* 60-250 which was rated as a 1 !!
Shows here: SMC Pentax-DA* 60-250mm F4 ED [IF] SDM Reviews - DA Zoom Lenses - Pentax Lens Reviews & Lens Database

I never thought this lens would "deserve" a 1 !!

So, I believe that the reviews are very useful for anyone looking to buy a specific lens, and get some feedback from actual users, but the comments (whether positive or negative) must be cautiously considered.

JP

By his standard, everyone should throw away their 70-200 f4 zooms; Because it is even more 'useless' that the DA* 60-250!

[normhead]

All I look for in the review sections is... does someone use this lens for what I would use it for, and how are they doing with it? And a rating over 9. All other comments besides ones written by those who find the lens useful are pretty much ignored here. People have their reasons why a lens may not be of use to them... but unless they use the lens like I would use the lens, they aren't relevant to me, and I could care less what they think of the lens.

[innivus]

(I really hate grade inflation).

I'm a teacher, I know all about it. Somehow a B-, which is technically 'above average', has turned into something akin to a D.

"10 is only reserved for AF and I will give 9 just because lack of AF"

I know, Yusuf... If you believe this, that's fine, but why are you then reviewing manual lenses?

[Gray]

This picture was taken in 1961...

Hey Arnold, I love looking at old colour photos. Looks like the picture was taken in Pretoria, South Africa, judging by the AA badge, TP reg. plate and registration discs. Correct?

[arnold]

Hey Arnold, I love looking at old colour photos. Looks like the picture was taken in Pretoria, South Africa, judging by the AA badge, TP reg. plate and registration discs. Correct?

That is correct. Pretoria. Taken by our front gate in 1961 with a Kodak Retinette 1A on Kodachrome 10 ASA. This photo is over a half century old, but Kodachrome makes it look recent. A simple camera lens has results that make one wonder at the relevance of the nit picking about modern lenses.

[jpzk]

jpzk - I think that this review you pointed out is a misuse of the reviews database, and possibly some trolling on the part of the user. It should be deleted.

Maybe reviews should have a "report" option? I'd certainly report that review, for the stupidity of it.

Should any lens deserve a 1? I doubt any currently in production lenses should. Seemed like the reviewer's problem was not the lens itself, but what wasn't available from Pentax (a 200-400mm lens). Silly to down grade a decent lens, just because another lens isn't available.

Yeah ... this seemed quite a bit "out of line" (to be polite).

I agree that this particular "review" should be removed ASAP.
If the reviewer had actually bought this fine lens and then goes on bashing it ... why did "he" buy it in the first place, knowing that Pentax did not have a 200-400mm lens ?
It may be on the MarketPlace ... who knows?

Cheers!

JP

[Gray]

That is correct. Pretoria. Taken by our front gate in 1961 with a Kodak Retinette 1A on Kodachrome 10 ASA. This photo is over a half century old, but Kodachrome makes it look recent. A simple camera lens has results that make one wonder at the relevance of the nit picking about modern lenses.

The Kodachrome look is very special. Have you seen the documentary about Steve McCurry shooting the very last roll of Kodachrome?

You Tube

You Tube

[arnold]

Have you seen the documentary about Steve McCurry shooting the very last roll of Kodachrome?

Yes thank you. Very sad, but that is the way the world works. I have just started a new thread about old photos because I find them so interesting.

[stormtech]

Yeah ... this seemed quite a bit "out of line" (to be polite).

I agree that this particular "review" should be removed ASAP.
If the reviewer had actually bought this fine lens and then goes on bashing it ... why did "he" buy it in the first place, knowing that Pentax did not have a 200-400mm lens ?
It may be on the MarketPlace ... who knows?

Cheers!

JP

Also notice in that review the price paid - $550......just adds to how bogus the whole thing actually is.

[Sagitta]

Also notice in that review the price paid - $550......just adds to how bogus the whole thing actually is.

Hey, posting outrageously bad, underpriced reviews just makes the eBay resellers lowball their stuff. I say we should automatically deduct 50% off the price and 25% of the average for ALL lenses in the database. Just don't advertise we're doing it so we can buy our stuff at real prices there...

[Blue]

Also notice in that review the price paid - $550......just adds to how bogus the whole thing actually is.

That in addition to the fact he said there was no point to the lens. That said, it is PF policy to NOT edit reviews except in rare cases and even then it is up to the Admins to do that and not Moderators.

[nater]

Two things would help make the user reviews here at pentaxforums readable for me (I've largely stopped bothering with them in the last couple of years):

1. The ability to upvote/downvote someone's review. That would allow sorting the reviews based on what readers think of them, and should push the crappy reviews to the bottom where we can all ignore them. It might also be worth considering allowing the upvotes/downvotes to impact aggregate score ratings as well, so the crappy reviews have a less substantive impact on the overall score of a lens.

2. Some guidelines, and collecting more useful info. Dyxum has guidelines:

Dyxum Lens Database Reviewing Guideline

I've actually found it more useful sometimes to read the reviews over at Dyxum for third-party lenses that are available for both Minolta/Sony mounts and Pentax mounts, because on average their reviews are better quality I think and they collect some useful info that pentaxforums doesn't.

[ChristianRock]

WHAAAAT did you just call K20D a "OK" camera? Blasphemy!

Alright it might be just "okay" by today's high ISO and AF standard but I think the results from and handling of this camera leaves little to be desired when paired with decent glass like you said

Hey the K20D is my baby, so I'm definitely not dissing it

To get good results out of it I hardly ever set my ISO higher than 400, otherwise I end up not liking the result that much. Sometimes 640 but only if I have to and if it's for portraits where it doesn't need to be tack sharp. I do envy all the newer Pentax cameras with the Sony sensors and the people taking sharp pictures at 1600 ISO. Yesterday I was at an event and I took pictures along with 4 other guys with DSLRs (3 Canon FFs, 1 Nikon D7000). I was the only one that used flash... can't complain at all about the pictures I took though! Not being able to go to higher ISOs is making me learn to use the flash and I definitely think I got good use out of it.

Also, when taking pictures outside where it's sunny, I have to underexpose because of the K20D's tendency to blow out the highlights. It's worse with some lens than it is with others.

Considering that, and even though I love my K20D and the way it feels in my hands, I have to say that by today's standards it's an OK camera...

[ChristianRock]

Hey, posting outrageously bad, underpriced reviews just makes the eBay resellers lowball their stuff. I say we should automatically deduct 50% off the price and 25% of the average for ALL lenses in the database. Just don't advertise we're doing it so we can buy our stuff at real prices there...

You might be on to something...

[jiimaa]

I confess I only write lens reviews when I want to rant about them.
Also, most while drunk

Anyway, the review section needs to be overhauled to have a reputation or experience thing, weight system, and somehow factor in the readers votes. Right now all reviews are considered equal. But the reviews are not worth equal. Basically:

- Having experience with other similar equipment should bring perspective, which should give a bit more weight to review - should be reflected by the reviewer in the actual review also, not just a checkbox "yea I'mma totally a pro on this stuff wazzup" which one might argue someone might want to contest
- Having used the thing a lot or for a long time should bring a bit more weight
- Having a good track record, or good reputation on other reviews should bring a bit more weight
- Having users vote "damn, this review was actually helpful / had insight / was really smart / offered good knowledge about the subject matter / was really thorough" should bring a bit more weight and increase the reputation of the reviewer

- Having the opposite should reduce or have no effect on weight

The weight should be factored into the overall as well as individual area scores, to better reflect the opinion of a competent person who actually has a clue of what's being talked about

But.

Having anyone writing a review if the review section gets rules as long as the rules in the marketplace for example, is the big question. I tried to write a wanted ad some time ago, but it was violating some thing mentioned somewhere in the 10 page legal mumbo jumbo type rule set distributed in various posts around the forum. After reading about 3 pages and only just getting to the actual small print I a) let out a long moan about the pentaxforums sh****ing me, and b) just scrolled down to see how much was there to come, and promptly thought fsck this thing I don't even remember the first rules any more and there are four times as many ahead, and gave up.

So in the end I think the question can be reduced to do we need a working review system, or do we need many reviews.

I think the many reviews bring many viewpoints, and while giving 1 to a telephoto because it's not wide angle isn't going to win the pulitzer, I don't mind skipping them for the joy of finding the occasional slightly irrelevant but very good point. If, however, there will be new set of things and rules and stuff and whatnot, I move they are very short rules, like 'don't be a dick' and such, and nothing like the excruciatingly long and incomprehensible rules of the marketplace.