[DogLover]

Since the 24-70 is a rebadged lens and does not get the "star" designation, is it actually just a placeholder until Pentax/Ricoh can develop one of their own? Same for the 15-30. If so, is there any indication when the "real" lenses might arrive?

[Sandy Hancock]

Q1: maybe
Q2: no

[Adam]

I don't think they are placeholders. It wouldn't be prudent, however, to put a star on a lens that wasn't fully developed by Pentax.

[Paul the Sunman]

I don't think they are placeholders. It wouldn't be prudent, however, to put a star on a lens that wasn't fully developed by Pentax.

... which is why I seriously doubt that Tokina played a major role in developing the DFA* 50 f/1.4.

[Adam]

... which is why I seriously doubt that Tokina played a major role in developing the DFA* 50 f/1.4.

I don't think Tokina played any role, other than licensing the design- at least that's what I've heard.

[Dericali]

Since the 24-70 is a rebadged lens and does not get the "star" designation, is it actually just a placeholder until Pentax/Ricoh can develop one of their own? Same for the 15-30. If so, is there any indication when the "real" lenses might arrive?

I hope it's a placeholder

But given the current speed of the roll out of Pentax lenses, and the many gaps to fill, I would expect that if Pentax did release its own (hopefully *) version of the 24-70 it will be a long way off. Which is sad, because if we had a 24-70 with the same quality and autofocus capabilities of the 70-200 then the K1 would be a lot more useful and versatile for event shooting, photojournalism etc. I find the Tamron rebadge a bit disappointing for what in theory could be one of the most used zoom lenses on my camera. I'm waiting for a DFA* 35mm to shoot alongside the new 50mm but having a good zoom would be a easier solution for event photography.

As for the 15-30, I think Pentax would be better off developing an f4 wide angle zoom lens for full frame rather than another f2.8.

[Blooming Soul]

There are many FF lenses that Pentax are not yet released, and 24-70/15-30 2.8 already closed the niche of universal pro zooms - they are weather resistant, sharp enough, and high-aperture.
I can not see any reason to change it in a product lineup in the next 15-20 years.
And you can keep in mind that Jun Hirakawa - is a Tamron main lens engineer since 2010, including the 24-70 2.8
Stars, badges - in my opinion, not so important in this case.

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Last edited by Blooming Soul; 02-06-2019 at 03:23 AM.

[Rondec]

My expectation is that these two lenses will stay in the Pentax line up for several years, at the minimum. Currently Pentax should release a 70-300 variable aperture zoom, fish eye zoom, DFA *35 and 85, DFA 70-200 f4, and a 20-ish mm prime for full frame. They should also re-release the DA * zooms with new lens motors and tweaked optics. At the current rate of development, I am guessing that will take 5 years.

At that point, they can decide if they want to continue the relationship with Tamron or try to create their own lens designs for the 24-70 and 15-30. Frankly, I would like to see a Pentax 24-70, but the 15-30 is good enough as is, assuming a good copy.

[joergens.mi]

Both lenses are no place-holders. Why should they missing a * . paint it on yourself

[RobA_Oz]

I wouldn’t be surprised to see something like a 24-50 f4 zoom appear at some point. It would not directly compete with the 24-70 because of the reduced zoom ratio and maximum aperture, but it could still be a compact, relatively light and high IQ lens, in the spirit of the DA20-40 Limited.

The 15-30 is also too heavy for some (me included), so a similar thing could be done there (maybe a 14-20?).

[Blooming Soul]

I wouldn’t be surprised to see something like a 24-50 f4 zoom appear at some point.

The 15-30 is also too heavy for some (me included), so a similar thing could be done there (maybe a 14-20?).

Maybe new 20-35/4?

[rangercarp]

When the 24-70 first appeared on the road map it carried a star designation. That was dropped with a later updated road map. My guess is they originally planned to design the lens in house, but as they watched the camera market contract they were forced to pull back the resources necessary to build out the line up, and that is when they turned to Tamron.


So is it a place holder? No, it is a place filler. Will is eventually be replaced by an in house design? Possibly, but I suspect any decision on the matter is so far in the future, that even those who will make said decision are not yet contemplating the matter. If I had to guess I would suggest a minimum of ten years, and who knows where the market will be at that point?

[pschlute]

Since the 24-70 is a rebadged lens and does not get the "star" designation, is it actually just a placeholder until Pentax/Ricoh can develop one of their own? Same for the 15-30. If so, is there any indication when the "real" lenses might arrive?

I do understand what you are saying here, but as a user of both these lenses I can assure anyone considering a purchase that the 24-70 and 15-30 are very much "real" lenses.

[northcoastgreg]

I believe the DFA 24-70 is essentially a place holder. The f2.8 standard zoom in a lineup is often regarded as the flagship lens. I would suspect that Pentax would prefer for their flagship lens to be a Pentax star lens, designed by Pentax to match the very high standards that star lenses currently have. But given everything they've gone through producing the DFA* 70-200 and the DFA* 50, that would be quite an undertaking, and I don't think we're going to see that, or should we see that, until all the lenses on the current roadmap are in production and Pentax has finally come out with a slower aperture wide angle zoom.

I don't, however, see any great need for Pentax to replace the DFA 15-30 with a design of their own. The Tamron 15-30 is considered in some quarters to be the best wide angle zoom on the market, and the Pentax version, with its HD coatings, may be even a little better than the original Tamron version.

[Reed]

Both 24-70 and 15-30 got upgrades from Tamron to match performance of new SP line. Main feature being doubled in lens CPU's and tap-in dongle compatibility, and that makes a significant difference in AF operation and decisiveness, mostly on the 24-70 part(I have access to both old and new T24-70 for Nikon). Both G2's are also built up from better materials to my taste. I would buy newer version of 24-70 if it ware compatible with such dock station made for Pentax.