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10-08-2012, 04:03 PM   #946
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Dr. Pentax, unlike others here I have yet to run into some of the issues others have. Maybe its because I use everything even my multiple AF540FGZ flashes in manual.

My biggest gripe and what may get me to move on is the slow flash sync speeds. I would love a 250/sec sync speed.

I haven't yet used a K5iis, so I can't judge if my autofocus issues have been solved, but I am openly optimistic.

At the end of the day, I don't mind your lack of Full Frame, but I would enjoy one, especially for my studio that is quite cramped with APSc magnification factors.

10-10-2012, 01:19 PM - 1 Like   #947
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Dear Pentax

Dear Pentax.

This thread is now 5 years old and there are a lot of suggestions of things reasonable and not so reasonable (biometric sensors on a camera?), and since the question of "jumping ship" has been on my own mind a lot lately I though I'd contribute.

I've been a long time Pentaxian, from my first film camera given as a gift from my dad (Pentax P30T and some lenses) to the *ist-D back in the early days of "affordable DSLRs", to my current workhorse of a K20D. Pentax is an enigma to me, in some ways far ahead of the curve, in some ways far behind. Knowing that for what I do (non-pro portraits) I don't "need" any more of a camera than what I have, here are some thoughts on the pros and cons of Pentax.

Pros:
  • High end features in sub-$2000 bodies such as
    • In-body IS
    • Optical preview
    • Great ergonomics (no idea how someone adjusts ISO easily on the D800 without taking the camera off their eye)
    • Built in intervalometer (a $40+ option in other brands)
    • 5 shot bracketing
    • Digital level
  • Great image quality
  • Backwards compatibility with every K mount lens ever. Plus screw mounts and anything else you can adapt to a bayonet mount. You don't realize how nice this is until you try to navigate the fx/dx/eos/etc lens mazes from Canon and Nikon
  • Built in DNG

There are also cons (these are things that affect me personally, not a blue sky wishlist of features I'd want to see):
  • Flash sync speed still restricted to 1/180 compared to the 1/250 that most (not all, the D600 being an odd exception) other higher end DSRLs have. High speed sync is available with Pentax Flashes, but the fact that there are only two or three, all over 5 years old at this point (the 540 and 360 anyway), this is distressing to a strobist shooter such as myself.
  • Low selection of new lenses. I know I can use old lenses, but confidence in the overall system is from seeing new products come out, and the Pentax Lens roadmap hasn't gotten much new added or filled in for years.
  • Few product lines, at least in the DSLR range. You have the K30 (mid-range/mom-with-camera) and the prosumer K5, but no "pro" camera (ie: D4 equivalent). This isn't an issue for me (again, I don't "need" new gear), but it adds to the impression that Pentax isn't that dedicated to the DSLR lines.
  • Full Frame, which everyone seems to want, isn't a huge deal to me and Pentax has done a great job with the DA50-135/2.8 which my FF friends are constantly annoyed that I can carry around with one hand all day. However "affordable full frame" seems like where the market is going and as affordable FF models from Nikon and Canon move from pro level down to mom-with-camera level and Pentax is the only company without a full frame offering, they'll be seen as behind the curve.
  • Higher megapixels would be nice. The 14 from the K20 are great and the 16 will be nice, but another jump up against the competition like you had with the K10 and K20 would be nice.
  • Autofocus speed and AF points. I recently played with a 4 year old D90 and found it's AF speed and ability to be far faster and more accurate (in what it locked on to) than my K20 from the same age. The number of focus points on the K5ii is 11, the D600 (FF 24mp) and D7000 (aps-c 16mp) have 39. Shooting a marathon last weekend I found the AF speed and accuracy of the K20 affected my performance as a shooter.

The issues for me personally are less features that are missing and more about uncertainty about the future. Pentax has been bought and sold twice in the last few years, and the only DSLR camera that has come out in the last 2 years is the K5ii, which is admittedly an upgrade to an already great camera, but it's a literal copy of a camera that came out in 2010 with (as far as people have seen/been told at this point) a better AF system. There have been minimal new lenses released. The flash units from Pentax are from 2006. Other than (constant) rumors about upcoming full frame offerings nothing seems to have happened.

Most importantly we, as loyal Pentaxians don't know what is happening. I know that companies don't like to tip their hands for upcoming products, but when a company like apple does this you know that a new iPhone will be coming out each year, but with Pentax we could see no new DSLR products for years and years.

I am happy with my gear. I don't need new gear. I do however hesitate to put more money into more Pentax gear because I don't know if it's putting money into a system that isn't moving forward. I don't need more megapixels or more FPS now, but if and when I turn pro and do need to shoot portraits that can be blown up to billboard size or sports where I need 11 FPS and Pentax doesn't have the gear available... that's where my hesitation comes in. The decision I, and other Pentax fans are asking ourselves right now is should we put more money into Pentax now and hope that new and improved gear arrives or should we save that money and move to Canon or Nikon, which appear to have more vibrant ecosystems of gear, even if we lose some of the awesomeness that Pentax has (see the above "Pros" list).

Love,

Alan
10-18-2012, 01:29 PM   #948
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Dear Pentax,
I'm just trying to get in. Why won't you let me? Why won't you keep your word on the K5II(s) release date? Did you really think there would be very little demand for your new cameras so You are going to keep a short supply? Because that's what this looks like. I hate the uncertainty and the wait. At least make a press release about the release date and supply.

Sincerely,
Luis
10-23-2012, 07:05 AM - 2 Likes   #949
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Dear Pentax,

Thank you for so completely supporting your older products. I'm a newcomer to Pentax but I have to say I'm having a love affair with my K-5 and manual A lenses. No autofocus, viewfinder AF indicator turned off, no beeps. Just eye to viewfinder, focus (although I did buy an aftermarket EE-S-based focus screen...), click. Just the sound of the shutter, the soft, smooth, stiff feel of the focus helicoid, and my brain doing the lion's share of the work. Photography is new again. AF lenses, even good ones, now feel like toys to me.

Please help out fellow Pentaxians who really crave it...let's have a roadmap that people can believe in. It doesn't have to be filled with detail down to the .01mm of body size. Just a general outline of plans and direction. Obviously full frame is a big deal to many. All your major competitors are heading down the path to more and less expensive full frame options...please look carefully at the trend.

My research into Pentax before "jumping in" revealed a company with a rich history of innovation and great products at reasonable prices.

Please don't stop.

10-24-2012, 10:57 AM   #950
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Dear Pentax (or better: dear Ricoh?),

Thanks for starting your Marketing to increase brand recognition! A great sign for us Pentaxians that your announcements concerning the growth is followed by actions!
Attached Images
 
10-24-2012, 01:17 PM   #951
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QuoteOriginally posted by infoomatic Quote
Thanks for starting your Marketing to increase brand recognition! A great sign for us Pentaxians that your announcements concerning the growth is followed by actions!
That looks like targeted advertising to known Pentax users,
which would be unlikely to increase the brand recognition.
I'm not registered on Depressing Review,
and I'm not getting the Pentax ad at all if I visit there.
10-24-2012, 01:34 PM   #952
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yes, thats true, however, I haven't seen that before on dpreview ;-)

10-24-2012, 02:37 PM   #953
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I saw it in a "clean" browser, maybe it's not really targeted? Anyway, I very much doubt they are targeting such actions only at people already interested in Pentax - they're smarter than that
10-24-2012, 04:28 PM   #954
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QuoteOriginally posted by lytrytyr Quote
That looks like targeted advertising to known Pentax users,
I went to DPReview without logging in, the ad is still there. Unless Pentax uses alien-level surveillance... I don't know how they're gonna know I'm a Pentaxian browsing that site, while logged off.
10-25-2012, 04:56 AM   #955
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QuoteOriginally posted by Alizarine Quote
I went to DPReview without logging in, the ad is still there. Unless Pentax uses alien-level surveillance
It's most likely something as simple as an internet cookie - some of them are quite persistant. - - Unlss one has a program such as CCleaner by Piriform or some other software that "nearly" elimminates cookies, but... Nowadays - even ones ISP and/or search engine also "send along" and even sell ones computer surfing patterns. This is especially so when using public (free) WiFi.
10-25-2012, 05:13 AM   #956
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Just tried DPR again, with the Phase One news. But again, no Pentax ad.
10-25-2012, 06:21 AM   #957
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Apparently it has something to do with your current browser and it's security. I logged on to DPR from work and the adds were there for a moment, then the browser security took hold and nothing. I log on from home and get nothing at all. The top banner area is black, and the first add in the upper right column is a white blank. The DPR site must be pretty bad...
10-25-2012, 07:40 AM   #958
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Dear Pentax, with the phone that I got free with my cellphone-account about a year ago, I can do instant panoramas. It uses this little app with which I just swipe my camera over a larger area. The results are quite good for such a little device with poor optics. Why can't I do that, and do it over 25 times better, with my $1500 camera and excellent optics?
10-26-2012, 07:51 AM   #959
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QuoteOriginally posted by Medium FormatPro Quote
It's most likely something as simple as an internet cookie - some of them are quite persistant. - - Unlss one has a program such as CCleaner by Piriform or some other software that "nearly" elimminates cookies, but...
Yup I have CCleaner, and use it every night. Mine PC is a bit old, so I free space up whenever possible. You're right on the other note though, could be the ISP... but I sure hope they're NOT doing that
10-27-2012, 05:11 AM - 1 Like   #960
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QuoteOriginally posted by Alizarine Quote
could be the ISP... but I sure hope they're NOT doing that
I sincerely wish thaat I could share the same perspective here myself. Every ISP in the states of Pennsylvania and West Virginia manage to keep the very own customers search patterns very well "logged and stored" and also offer them in one form or another - for sale. Some ISP's even "name name's" - as in...Imagine one's own personal (not even business) ISP selling one's info and then naming you as it being your own person surfing history - even the entire history for over the last two years.

And software does help on this one, but... does not eliminate the problem entirely. It's close to impossible to surf wtihout showing identity in most place in North america.

Also as eluded to earlier... Surfing from public WiFi... Not exactly the best of ideas, as most places don't have 802.11n or even offer much (if any) in terms of encryption. So to anyone out there, be sure to use something to try to clear out each and every cookie and all surfing patterns before going into public WiFi. Something like CCleaner before logging into that WiFi, then during, then most definately upon logging out of public WiFi. Remembering there's a specific reason that so many places offer free public WiFi. It may be free to the average customer, but they are also making money off of it as well - typically by selling your information and surfing patterns
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