[perpetual3]

I'm a little bummed, I must say. I do hope my K-01 serves for a few years at least... For me the real questions are whether there will be a K-02 or not, and whether or not Pentax keeps releasing firmware updates for the K-01.

As someone brought into the Pentax world by the K-01, I have just started investing in K-lenses, and the discontinuation of the camera does make me a little nervous, because I wouldn't want a camera that's *larger* that the K-01. So if the line doesn't continue, I will have a problem when I buy my next camera from the suddenly useless set of lenses, as I switch to another system. I know: I can always sell them here, but that would be a bummer...

Look at it from this perspective:

Camera's obsolete themselves every year. Look at Fuji for example: they release the Xpro1 and XE1, and then obsolete those cameras with the new sensor technology in the X100s.

Now, I'm exaggerating - those cameras are far from useless and produce high IQ. But their technology is now old - and many feel upset because they "just" bought an XE1.

With the K01 you can continue to invest in the K Mount (what I'm doing) and when you want to upgrade the body, the loss on investment will feel lower.

Personally, I bought the K01 knowing its sensor wasn't the latest and that it would be discontinued. But I didn't care. The sensor is great, especially for low light (my priority) and most importantly the lenses available are some of the best - and you can take advantage of manual lenses with the peaking feature. I didn't even realize this until after I bought the K01. I just wanted a camera I could take better pictures at night.

So the cost of entry into the K Mount world is low, yet the benefit is great (the great IQ of the K01, the available lenses).

When Pentax releases their full frame, you'll have a collection of lenses available off the bat - I'm looking forward to this!

[Doundounba]

[...]

With the K01 you can continue to invest in the K Mount (what I'm doing) and when you want to upgrade the body, the loss on investment will feel lower. [...] When Pentax releases their full frame, you'll have a collection of lenses available off the bat

[...]

Thanks for the advice, which would be quite to the point if you hadn't missed the part that says that I wouldn't want a camera that's physically any larger than the K-01. So if Pentax doesn't release another mirrorless K-mount, they are fairly unlikely to keep me as a customer... So far I like my experience, with the camera, the lenses *and* the community, so that would be a bummer. It'd be great if the K-02 (or whaterver they call it) went (say) to m4/3 lenses, but had a K-mount speed boosting adapter as an available accessory... *Then* I might be pretty happy with my K-mount glass and stick with the brand. Of course, this is all hypothetical and for now I'll just be happy shooting with the K-01, and hope for one or two more firmware upgrades...

[RonHendriks1966]

Thanks for the advice, which would be quite to the point if you hadn't missed the part that says that I wouldn't want a camera that's physically any larger than the K-01. So if Pentax doesn't release another mirrorless K-mount, they are fairly unlikely to keep me as a customer... So far I like my experience, with the camera, the lenses *and* the community, so that would be a bummer. It'd be great if the K-02 (or whaterver they call it) went (say) to m4/3 lenses, but had a K-mount speed boosting adapter as an available accessory... *Then* I might be pretty happy with my K-mount glass and stick with the brand. Of course, this is all hypothetical and for now I'll just be happy shooting with the K-01, and hope for one or two more firmware upgrades...

don't worry because with proper use you can enjoy your K-01 for several years. Time enough to get a new model to the market.

[jatrax]

So if Pentax doesn't release another mirrorless K-mount, they are fairly unlikely to keep me as a customer..

Quite a different viewpoint from what we usually see here. Most often the threads are full of "no viewfinder, no camera" comments. I wonder how big the market segment is for a k-01 style camera? I recently had a conversation with a photographer looking for a P&S style camera with interchangeable lenses to shoot professional stock with. He shoots another brand DSLR, just wanted something small as a carry along. I mentioned the k-01 and he was blown away by the cost, IQ and available lenses. So there is a market, but is it big enough to be profitable? And can Pentax bring out a k-02 in time to keep the momentum going? And can they make money at it?

[pentaxian_tmb]

IMHO the K-01 was a marketing fiasco; not a failure in concept. Yes, the K-01 has its flaws, but it has quickly become my go-to camera. Had Pentax not wasted development $$ hiring MN and their marketing blitz, I think it would have appealed to more people. I think the k-01 is a great "bridge" or entrylevel SLR camera, provided the price is right. That was what was the missed opportunity. The pricing on the K-01 was just not appropriate for the ACTUAL market demand. Also, given all the "retro" crazy right now, had they designed the exterior of the K-01 to look more like the Mx-1, I think it would have garnered more interest. I would still like to see a simple SLR (with or without mirror) in a body similar to the ME SUPER.

I am happy with the k-01 for what it is, but disappointed at the missed opportunity.

[slocant]

As I see it, SLRs are traditionally designed to look like tools. Tools precisely engineered tools that rigorously conform to the highest standards.

They have shutters that won't fail before 100,000 actuations. High magnification viewfinders that cover 100% of the image. Bodies that are cold-proof and weather resistant.

They are visually designed to convey this message.

Yet most if not all of such specs have no impact on the use of a SLR by the average user — those who forever shoot with the kit lens (note that you are not the average user).

A camera can be visually designed as a tool. And that has an appeal to a set of users and potential customers.

But SLRs can also be visually designed along other aesthetic guidelines, which appeal to other potential customers.

This alternative path was followed by Pentax when they made pink, red, orange and gold bodies. Such was the success that not only they haven't stopped but competitors have followed suit, although at a more timid pace.

The K-01 embodies such alternative design guidelines. It certainly appeals very much to a different set of users and potential customers. I've only read favorable reviews coming from non-photo-gear critics.

What may lead to unfortunate conclusions on behalf of Pentax is the fact that a design oriented camera was also a K-mount mirrorless one. The success they expected on one matter may have been influenced by the other.

Would've a K-mount mirrorless visually designed as tool been more successful? Maybe. And the unused space of the mirror-box could be quite useful in designing lenses that sat closer to the sensor and didn't protrude much out of the camera body.

Or would've a design oriented camera with a viewfinder and a mirror seen more success? I don't know.

I love the design of the K-01. It is quite innovative in a market that is too conservative design-wise. It certainly has an appeal to customers which normally wouldn't consider SLRs. And at the right price it appeals even to those who would.

Pentax would be wise to continue down this path.

Let there be more design-oriented cameras. And if a K-02 were to be made, I would certainly consider buying it.

[axl]

I can't say I'll be too sad about this being discontinued.
I never understood it. I did actually try one but found it very uncomfortable.
Let's see what will be next but I hope if there will be K-02 I hope it won't be yet another design exercise.

[mdodrill]

I am enjoying my new K-01 and am sure that I will get good use out of it. The fact that it was mirrorless but would work with all the pentax k lens was a major selling point for me. It is not like I need to buy a entire new system. It will continue to be a back up/companion for my k-r (which I hope to update). Don't know what Pentax plans; but I applaud them for trying something different.

[vodanh1982]

The problem is K mount. It is too thick for a mirrorless. Some K-mount owners will buy K-01 as a backup or for curiosity but Pentax cannot make profit with those small sale. The majority will be P/S owners who want to step up. Why do they care if it is K-mount or L-mount or M-mount? They do not own any lens yet and many other manufacturers are competing in this segment especially the NEX and 4/3. If they want to compete they should have the Q with larger sensor.

[dosdan]

Well, I'm happy with the K-01 as a 2nd camera, MF-specific system. Useless for sports, but for static subject shots, it's great. Outdoor shots depend on how successful you are at shading the LCD screen.

If the price drops further, I may pick up another one and leave a M42 mount adapter permanently on it.

My 14 y.o. daughter likes using it too because of its look and its performance, as a step-up from a P&S.

Dan.

[Doundounba]

[...] So there is a market, but is it big enough to be profitable? And can Pentax bring out a k-02 in time to keep the momentum going? And can they make money at it?

Yes, that's the question Pentax needs to answer. And I think it might be useful for Pentax to query the subset of K-01 owners for which the camera was a first Pentax. Of course, many of the users on the forums here who don't have a K-01 have another Pentax APS-C digital, or even (egads) a Pentax film camera. To *that* population, a viewfinder is what you use to take pictures. That's not the case for me - I'm a P&S upgrader. Personally, I think the K-01 could have been successful if introduced around the $500 mark (for the 40mm pancake bundle). At $416 with the pancake, I felt I was getting quite a deal, and at $360 right now it's crazy. Can Pentax make money on a K-02 around $500? If they can, I think/hope they should produce one.

Also, for me thickness isn't a very big issue. Rather I looked to "bagability", and for that, the K-01 compares pretty evenly with other mirrorless I was considering, because once you put a lens on your camera, width and height affect "bagability" more than thickness - and on that score, compare, for example the K-01 and OM-D EM-5... the K-01 actually wins! And also once there is a lens on your camera, a little thickness is actually helpful for the grip, IMHO. (In fact, those who complain about the K-01's ergonomics sometimes do so because its grip isn't thick enough, in their opinion!)

The cameras that the K-01 beat out in my case were Olympus OM-D EM-5, E-PL5 and XZ-2. (Maybe I should have considered Sony a bit more...) The OM-D was the only one of those to match the K-01 in IQ, and is it ever a beautiful object, but it was just waaayyy too expensive. The E-PL5 was bundled with a crappy lens, was still more expensive than the K-01 and didn't feel (as) good in my hand. And the XZ-2, well, I just decided I liked the idea of experimenting with legacy glass.

My wife bought a Canon G15 at the same time as I got the K-01, and so far, I've only asked her to use it when I wanted to take pictures of my K-01 to post in other threads in this forum.

[vodanh1982]

To reduce the cost, they need to do mass production. With current Pentax market share, it is not easy to do mass production like other big name. The cost will go up and they will not have profit again. In term of efficiency, I think it would better build more K-30 and reduce it price than building both K-01 and K-30.

[Doundounba]

BTW, Dpreview, in their item on the K-01's discontinuation, speculate that the K-01 might be followed by a K-mount "module" for Ricoh's GXR system. I don't know much/anything about the GXR system, but looking at the design of the existing modules, that might make sense...

[jatrax]

To reduce the cost, they need to do mass production. With current Pentax market share, it is not easy to do mass production like other big name. The cost will go up and they will not have profit again. In term of efficiency, I think it would better build more K-30 and reduce it price than building both K-01 and K-30.

I agree about mass production and efficiency but not the k-30. That is a completely different camera, different market. And it is too expensive as an entry level anyway.

If you need a viewfinder then the k-01 is not going to interest you and if you came up in film then generally you want the viewfinder. But a lot of folks started with P&S cameras or cell phones and to them a viewfinder is just plain odd to use. In that market it is a disadvantage because the user does not know how to use it or even want it. How many soccer moms have you seen using liveview to take pictures with their dslr? No idea what the viewfinder is. There was a post here recently from someone asking what the 'little hole' at the top of the camera was for and why did they have to hit the LV button to turn on the viewfinder.

I agree with Doundounba, a K-02 at $449 with 40mm lens would sell. Now whether Pentax can make money on that I have no idea.

[Jamey777]

I just think of mine as an iphone that uses all my super expensive lenses (and my not so expensive lenses!)

I use it just like i use my phone camera. Take videos of the kids.

Really its a great consumer body. I am well over thirty and none of the folks I know under thirty (certainly not the teens) care to use any camera in any way except how they use their camera phones.

I think Pentax will prove themselves a few years too early on this idea.