[JeffJS]

Luckily I didn't have the stain problem, but I did have the main board fail after three months of use. It was replaced by CRIS under warranty, but took almost 8 weeks. That's when I found out about the warranty. Really wanted to be able to extend the warranty after having something that major go wrong in such a short time and then having the camera in repair for almost as long as I've owned it! Seems to be an isolated issue, so hopefully I'll see a few more years before I have to worry about it. On a side note, if it were to fail after the warranty expired, I wouldn't hesitate to pay for the repairs or buy another one. Definitely the best camera for my purpose bar none.

I bought the extended while mine was at CRIS being replaced. I don't know how long it would have taken for service if they were repairing instead of replacing it. The way it worked out was a week each way for transit and a two week wait for a replacement to come in. At this point I also don't know what kind of delays the Japan earthquakes may have caused in this sort of thing (without knowing when yours was in for service). I don't think CRIS has a bin full of replacement boards and sensors for these cameras and have to get them from the manufacturers on an as need basis. They also service other brands so if I have to send it in, I'll just have to manage my realistic expectations.

I will note however, with regard to my comment about Needing service, the K5 is the first camera I've EVER sent off for service. The rest have always outlasted my interest in keeping them (been sold for upgrade). I don't think I would hesitate to buy another K5 if needed either. In fact, the only thing at this point that would make me chase the next generation, is an articulated rear screen. Many may call it useless but I would find it infinitely useful.

[kriss15]

Finally placed the order and its on the way. Talked to Pentax rep. about international warranty, and was told that it covers everything like USA warranty , but will not be able to buy the extended USA warranty if the camera is bought outside USA. Now the wait ia killing me.

Wanna buy a sd card.Can K5 take 16gb sd card?

Thank you all!

[Igor123]

My K20 handles 32gb cards just fine so the K5 should as well. I think I've read that depending on firmware, it will take SDXC as well (64 and 128 gb exists so far).

[RonHendriks1966]

Finally placed the order and its on the way. Talked to Pentax rep. about international warranty, and was told that it covers everything like USA warranty , but will not be able to buy the extended USA warranty if the camera is bought outside USA. Now the wait ia killing me.

Wanna buy a sd card.Can K5 take 16gb sd card?

Thank you all!

files are big on K-5, so buying 32 GB is smart. Fast card like SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s or the new Pro 45MB/s UHS-I cards are a good purchase.

[kriss15]

Got my K5 just now...and am really excited. The serial no. is 4045462, but how do I know its from Pentax USA? ( bought it from USA seller). Also, is there anything else I need to check?

Thanks
Kriss

[lammie200]

Got my K5 just now...and am really excited. The serial no. is 4045462, but how do I know its from Pentax USA? ( bought it from USA seller). Also, is there anything else I need to check?

Thanks
Kriss

I suggest downloading the PhotoMe software. It is free. You can google for it. I think that it says that it is a beta version, but it seems to work well in all aspects.

Once you take a RAW shot you can open it up in PhotoMe and get a lot of good info. The least of which is the shutter count and the actual manufacture date. You may need to hunt a bit for it in all the data, but it is there. Then you can at least see if your camera arrived with few, if any, previous shutter clicks. You can also see if it was manufactured during the sensor stain era, but I doubt that it was since that was fairly long ago. However, the manufacture date may help us all pinpoint when the mirror flopping production began and/or ceased.

Good luck and have fun. Like a lot of people my K-5 seems to be trouble free and it is a great camera. It is all about lenses though, so have fun finding the ones that suit your needs.

[bjdavey]

Can K5 take 16gb sd card?

Thank you all!

I use 16 GB cards in my K5. Each card can store 481 RAW pics, 1103 highest quality **** jpegs, and 6165 lowest quality * jpegs.

Correction: I had some pics on my card - above figures now correct.

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Last edited by bjdavey; 08-31-2011 at 01:27 PM. Reason: Correction.

[Franky2step]

I purchased a K5 from Prodigital2000 3 weeks ago, received it within 48 hours, and have no issues with it at all. If you are considering the DA lenses, their prices are better than B&H, if you want FA lenses, B&H is unbeatable.

[pcnyc]

files are big on K-5, so buying 32 GB is smart. Fast card like SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s or the new Pro 45MB/s UHS-I cards are a good purchase.

+1 on the big files. I used a Canon 7D before, so I thought 8gb+4gb backup was enough when i got my k-5 right before a vacation, but quickly realized that I had to turn down the jpeg size to 10mp after the first day. file size for a 10mp jpg at highest quality is about 6mb, which is more than a 16mp jpg coming out of 7D.

[kriss15]

Downloaded Photome and checked the Mfr. date - 04/12/11 and shutter count of 1. still gotta check for "string of pearls", just updated the firmware to 1.11.

Thank you all for the info.

Kriss

[lammie200]

Downloaded Photome and checked the Mfr. date - 04/12/11 and shutter count of 1. still gotta check for "string of pearls", just updated the firmware to 1.11.

Thank you all for the info.

Kriss

There is a guy here (I think that it might be JeffJS from the above posts?) who is very knowledgeable about sensor stains. I seem to recall him saying that it may take time for stains to show up. The stains are essentially burned into the sensor as live mode or movie mode is used extensively. Those modes heat up the sensor more than just taking pics without using those modes. The staining is an adhesive that vaporizes when it gets hot.

Also, the manufacture date of your camera is well beyond the time that sensor staining was an issue. If I were you I wouldn't worry about it at all.