Originally posted by Barry Pearson I never claimed that you said that the AA filter in the K-5 was a fault. I simply pointed out that, since it wasn't a fault, there was no plausible reason to expect Pentax to provide a service to remove it.
Just as there is no plausible reason to expect Pentax to provide a service to upgrade the AF in a K-5 to the K-5II(s) version, or change the LCD to the new version.
(If someone's K-5 isn't behaving properly - that is, to specification - while under warranty, then Pentax should either repair it or replace it with a properly working K-5. Mine works properly, so they can work!)
I will restate it, even though it's been stated already (since you keep distorting what I'm saying):
-the Pentax brand is one that has enjoyed loyalty, which is waning for several reasons. Once that loyalty is gone, Ricoh has little because it's using short term strategy in moving any units it can, not long term investment goals in the system. The FF is one of them. These rumors are startlingly similar to how Olympus 4/3 owners got burned into continuing to support 4/3 and keep their lenses, rather than sell and gtfo. See one of my above posts for the reference. Luckily, I wasn't heavily invested into 4/3 beyond kit lenses, so it was easy for me to simply give my equipment away.
-No further than the Pentax forums can one see how the quite possibly most loyal bunch are starting to shift and concede. If that FF nex comes out, since we're not averse, by and large, to manually focusing, our lens investment is made and we're on the NEX from here on out. We are the new customers to their base and it's somewhat laughable that they expect, and receive, value added updates and services (ps- Ricoh offers such services in their copying division), while us n00bs come in and apparently know how things work and shoot down any thought of Ricoh applying the same to the Pentax BRAND.
-Pentax no longer exists. It is a brand, a label. This is Ricoh now, so expectations have to be adjusted accordingly, not suspended in the past when a Pentax did exist as a division.
-The K-5II is a simple update of a preexisting camera. It is not a new one.
-The parent company, Ricoh, has a history of feature enhancement/upgrades of older cameras (please look into Ricoh's history and what their customers expect of the company...expectations of upgrades for old cameras inherited from new ones is an expectation)
-Pentax took the wrong road in making the AA so heavy for the K-5 v.1, in comparison to pretty much all the peers who use the same, excellent sensor (or variants thereof). The K-01 and K-30 appear to also have slightly lighter AA sensors on their respective version. The K-5II standard version also appears to have a slightly lighter filter. I know for sure that Sony's own Nex cams use lighter filters.
Ricoh's GR has no AA filter, as their own engineering conceded it was the way to go. Again, Pentax doesn't exist, Ricoh does.
-This would be a paid, value added service. You're thinking in terms of consumer products, while any "proper" camera company understands that these are tools for work (I generate income with my K-5 and the fact that you seem to be thinking of a PURELY consumerist point of view here seems to display our differing usages). Such tools have, from time to time, value added services available, from improved dials, silent updates and higher performing hardware.
So there seems to be a deviation: you are thinking about this from a consumerist/disposable society/hobbyist point of view, while I'm thinking about it from the standpoint of a person that regards my cam as a tool and sees the gap widening, if Ricoh plans on going further into this zone, between Pentax and Canon/Nikon. I like that Canon and Nikon users DEMAND value added services and they have pro services. However, things like this are why I'm now seeing more and more making the sensible jump to Nikon FF from Pentax and why Pentax brand is moving more into consumer goods and away from the discerning user.
It appears that Ricoh is not focusing on retaining the current customer base, but rather allowing them to flush themselves out, while they recruit newer customers from an entry level. This is extremely short-sighted and combined with the lens pricing strategy, it reveals many problems and decentralizations.
-By the way, my car had HID in later versions. I can go to the Mercedes dealer and have them install HID headlights and reprogram the on board computer to support them for a fraction of the cost of a brand new car! Not to mention, when repairs are done, the replacements often are different due to improvements. Even down to electronics. These improvements, even if silent, are value added. Sometimes they are done as voluntary campaigns. Go in for a tire change or oil change, and then the dealer installs a software update, silently replaces campaign parts, and so on.
Regardless, a value added service is common, not only in the imaging industry, but EVERY industry.