[Laurentiu Cristofor]

Some video people discussing the K-01. x posted, but worth putting here too...

"Interesting things will be if it has: 4:2:2 HDMI out, bit rate support. Gladly it has full manual movie mode, with 30/25/24 fps."

Funny! That comment was carefully extracted from the middle of a post that had a bit more to say about the K-01:

"That's a big camera not to have a viewfinder.

Interesting things will be if it has: 4:2:2 HDMI out, bit rate support. Gladly it has full manual movie mode, with 30/25/24 fps.

Oh, and Marc Newson needs to step away from camera design. What were they thinking?"

So, do we still count this as a positive reaction?

The NEX needs a $400 adapter to use Sony A mount lenses and none have SR !

The A65 uses A mount lenses natively, has SR, and it comes with a top notch EVF. But yes, let's pick on the smaller NEX camera, because it's small and the K-01 isn't.

[johnmflores]

Funny! That comment was carefully extracted from the middle of a post that had a bit more to say about the K-01:

"That's a big camera not to have a viewfinder.

Interesting things will be if it has: 4:2:2 HDMI out, bit rate support. Gladly it has full manual movie mode, with 30/25/24 fps.

Oh, and Marc Newson needs to step away from camera design. What were they thinking?"

So, do we still count this as a positive reaction?

Busted LOL. Actually, IIRC, the original post was a response to someone claiming that there were no positive reactions from non-Pentaxians. The excepted and bold text was to show that there was some interest. But thanks for pointing out.

[vietnam74]

Funny! That comment was carefully extracted from the middle of a post that had a bit more to say about the K-01:

Oh, and Marc Newson needs to step away from camera design. What were they thinking?"

Let's bring the designer of original Pentax camera back!

[ogl]

Youtu.be

Youtu.be

some kind of opinion...

[Alizarine]

Let's bring the designer of original Pentax camera back!

The original Pentax camera... the designer of the Asahiflex?

@ogl

just watched that video a while ago. She has a K-01? whoa.... how? Are all samples out there still pre-production samples or are there ones available now in some places?

[ibkc]

The original Pentax camera... the designer of the Asahiflex?

I've got an East German SLR with (an Exa) with many of the same antique design components found in the original Asahiflex (mirror coupled to the shutter button, waist-level viewfinder, etc.) While IMO it is interesting, fun and educational to occasionally use cameras with limitations like that, I think that if Pentax decided to go THAT retro in camera design, the howls of outrage and dismay would cause this website to completely melt down.

[johnmflores]

Marc newson for pentax k-01: worth the hype?

"Cameras aren’t typically designed, they’re engineered – meaning the engineers who make them determine what shape they’ll take without input from a design team or even a single designer. But that’s only one of the reasons the new camera from Pentax and designer Marc Newson is such a sensation. The K-01 camera is a 16 megapixel mirrorless camera with what they claim is the world’s thinnest interchangeable lens. Of course, Newson also claims on his site that he’s the “most acclaimed and influential designer of his generation,” so perhaps we should take all of this with a grain of salt?"

DesignApplause | Marc newson for pentax k-01: worth the hype?

[johnmflores]

"The K-01 is a much needed revision to Pentax’s line of MILC after the Pentax Q left enthusiasts with much to be desired, the K-01 more than makes up for and we’re not just talking about looks. The K-01 comes with all that we now expect from these tiny wonders like 1080P video recording, 6 frame-per-second burst mode, “artistic filters” and in-camera HDR, but what truly sets the K-01 apart from the rest is its lens compatibility - you can use any of the K-mount lenses Pentax made, makes, and has in the works. It’s a strong legacy that covers decades of lenses made for both film SLR’s and newer DSLR cameras."

Pentax’s K-01 a mirror-less camera with a strong legacy behind it | The Noisecast

[rgknief60]

I found a link to this article written last year, before the K1 was announced. It gave me some insight into why Pentax made the gamble to go mirrorless.

Canon Hanging on to Mirrors Means Opportunity for Sony, Panasonic Cameras - Bloomberg

What caught my eye was the term paradigm shift, and I think they are on to something.

I love the SLR/DSLR viewfinder. I can't imagine using the K-1 to produce photos as easily as I do now. But I also know there is a old saying that goes, "People don't know what they like, but they like what they know." I'm willing to give new technologies a chance.

Allow me to make a few observations from my recent outings. I'd be interested to know if they match up with what any you have experienced.

Over the past couple of months, I've taken pictures of my nephew, his girlfriend, and their cheerleading team at basketball games. There were two people with DSLR's in the whole place. The student photographer, and me. There were a number parents/older adults with point and shoot cameras.

By far, the greatest number of pictures were taken with cellphones, by teenagers, and adults.

What really struck me was the reaction of young people to the two technologies. They did not notice pictures being taken by the mirrorless cellphone technology. They did notice my DLSR, even though I was using my shortest lens, an A 50mm f1.4. They seemed much more self-conscious when I took pictures.

It is possible that may be my own fault; due to the way I approach photography. But I am conscious of that possibility, and try to minimize that.

I think the paradigm shift goes beyond mirror vs. mirrorless. Many students do not own computers, and have no desire to do so. I get the impression that most picture taking is done by cell phone, and uploaded to facebook albums. Almost all cellphones use mirrorless technology. Many can't imagine holding their eyes up to a viewfinder.

Getting on computer to do facebook happens at a friend's place, sometimes infrequently. I might be wrong, but I think the new design is partly a cute, "don't take me seriously while I'm taking your picture" message for a young generation, while still having some serious power built into a camera, power that will take some people to the next step of serious photography, the use of additional DSLR lenses.

We all know that the expense is not in the body of the camera. A company really makes it's money if it can sell quantities of lenses and accessories for those bodies. Like Iphones and apps.

Here's specifically where I think the paradigm goes beyond mirror vs. mirrorless. I think that all the major DLSR/point and shoot brands are in for major problems if they don't build in wireless communications. That will allow the current generation to access the facebook type technologies that are so in vogue today. A significant number of kids won't put up with the added step it takes to transfer images from a camera/card to computer and on to FB.

Rather than be a bold new step, mirrorless technology may be a fight for survival.

I did not search out any statistics to back up what I say, but my observation of a younger generation seems to speak loud and clear (at least to me).

Your observational mileage may (and probably will), vary! And that's okay.

[Laurentiu Cristofor]

"The K-01 comes with all that we now expect from these tiny wonders ..."

Pentax’s K-01 a mirror-less camera with a strong legacy behind it | The Noisecast

"Tiny" wonder?

[Laurentiu Cristofor]

I get the impression that most picture taking is done by cell phone, and uploaded to facebook albums. Almost all cellphones use mirrorless technology. Many can't imagine holding their eyes up to a viewfinder.

We should not confuse people that are interested in photography with people that take photographs. These are different markets. Photography has always been a niche hobby. Equipment has become more available and easy to use, so more people have cameras, but that doesn't make all of them photographers. Cell phones will probably replace the need of a camera for all casual users. But there will always be a significant market consisting of enthusiasts and professionals that want higher end tools and this market will be able to generate more revenue than that obtained from selling Facebook photo-taking appliances, so it will continue getting the attention of photo equipment manufacturers.

Mirrorless cameras in themselves are only a natural refinement of the technology. The mirror and pentaprism are just not needed anymore. Also notice how this change is driven by electronics companies like Panasonic, Samsung, and Sony - Olympus is the odd exception there. It's not a change of paradigm as much as a change driven by technology advances, just like digital photography was - it brings a change of paradigm too, but that is just a side effect of the new technology allowing you to do more, more efficiently.

[rparmar]

These are some I found. I am sure there are hundreds more.

Pentax K-01, Ugliest Camera Ever

Pentax K-01 mirrorless camera doesn't feel as cheap as it looks

The worst mirrorless APS-C camera ever

YAMC (Yet Another Mirrorless Camera)

The new Pentax K-01 - we try to make sense of it

[johnmflores]

These are some I found. I am sure there are hundreds more.

Pentax K-01, Ugliest Camera Ever

Pentax K-01 mirrorless camera doesn't feel as cheap as it looks

The worst mirrorless APS-C camera ever

YAMC (Yet Another Mirrorless Camera)

The new Pentax K-01 - we try to make sense of it

Thanks for the links. Since the intent of this thread is to share thoughts of the camera from outside the camera world (we already have enough opinions from inside the camera world on this forum), I'm going to focus on some of the comments in some of the outside-the-bubble links you posted...

Pentax K-01 mirrorless camera doesn't feel as cheap as it looks, we go hands-on (video) -- Engadget
"Disagree the looks are great, refreshing even !! metro windows 8 style in physical from."

"Somehow I really like this camera! If Canon make a similar one with EF mount (which is impossible) I will buy that."

"I think this thing is beautiful but I love most of Newson's designs."

"Love this design and incredible bang for buck as usual from Pentax."

"I don't like the yellow version but I love the one in this video. I really like the design. It is clean and simple."

"Have you guys seen the video specs on this thing? 1080p/30, 720p/60, mic in, HDMI out (does clean 4:2:2 for connection to an external monitor), and most importantly, access to 25 million K-mount lenses, from an 8-16 Sigma to a 1200/8 Pentax A."

"I love the specs of this camera, and I'm definitely going to do a hands-on for myself...but it is UGLY!!! You look at the X100 and wish all cameras were that beautiful. I'm not giving up on this one, but it is probably the least attractive looking mirrorless on the market (or soon to be on the market)."

"Is this camera meant as a joke?"

"I think it's meant to be fun. But as we all know, Photography Is Serious Business."

"I think this camera is beautiful. Clean, easy to understand, and most of all, it just begs to be held..I predict they'll sell a good number of these."

"The panda version, especially.

I think you hit the nail on the head with the "begs to be held" comment. That's exactly its appeal, and exactly why I'm attracted to it - somewhat against my better judgement given it's lack of an optical viewfinder."

"I actually think it is kitschy and fun--especially in yellow. It's certainly not boring or fake-pro looking like every other camera on the market."


YAMC (Yet Another Mirrorless Camera): Pentax K-01 - MacRumors Forums
"Maybe it's the angle, or just me, but that's an incredibly ugly camera. Also, it looks pretty thick. I don't see the point of having a razor-thin pancake on such a bulbous body.

The branding on the strap is also out of control. Is the camera not ugly enough?"

"It's a boxy little beast!"

"After looking at high res pics, the white version is really growing on me.

I don't know what they were thinking with yellow though..."

"This whole concept seems completely pointless.

If you're keeping the flange difference the same, you may as well throw in a mirror and have done with it. There's no appreciable size reduction, no compatibility with any third party rangefinder lenses... it's just an economy version of their DSLRs with no viewfinder and worse focussing speed.
Disappointing."

"The K-01 design is growing on me. I want to see a full review, of course, but it could be a winner."

[dustette]

I've seen this also!
Garance Doré is my favourite fashion blogger and photographer/illustrator. It's so wonderful to see her using this camera

Garance Doré / Pardon My French Episode 1 - YouTube

some kind of opinion...

[lpfonseca]

Just my opinion...

I really like it the yellow K-01 but is missing a couple of things to be a hit:

1) optional viewfinder (I guess someone already noticed it ) - please Pentax/Ricoh make a viewfinder that connects to HDMI port, can't be that hard.

2) one lens that competes with Canon G1X in size Compare camera dimensions side by side

So they are so close to being an excellent option as a compact alternative to a DSLR. Could atract many DSLR users to k-mount.

Regards,
Luis