[benjikan]

I'm not sure you have the price right. My guess is $1,200. If you are right it better blow the ISO doors off the 40D and equal it's AF speed.

If it does, you'll keep your gear and if it doesn't will you be migrating?

[Buschmaster]

I think he was trying to say he would give all his stuff to me and migrate because I can give him a Canon A-1 and some nice lenses for it

[regken]

If it does, you'll keep your gear and if it doesn't will you be migrating?

Ben,

Purchasing the K10D was one of the smartest moves I've ever made. Sure I'd like to have some more advanced features but there is no way I could switch to another brand an get even close to what I have without spending a fortune. My comment was one of marketing not what I will do.
The Pentax brand does not have enough pull in the market place right now to be able to sell for the same price as Canon if the two models are evenly speced. The Pentax camera has to exceed Canon specs if priced the same or it has to be priced below the Canon if the specs are equal.

I'm an under $1,000 body buyer. The K20D will at some point reach that price and when it does I'll buy it regardless if it is better or the same as the 40D.

[mutley]

The Pentax camera has to exceed Canon specs if priced the same or it has to be priced below the Canon if the specs are equal.

One of the big reasons for the success Pentax has with the K10D (still in the single digit percentile, though), has been its introduction price. $899 was a smart move.

But, unfortunately, Pentax started saying that if they knew it would be so popular, they should have started it higher priced.

That would have been a stupid idea resulting in just shooting themselves in the foot. A Pentax branded camera in the 30D to D200 price range would have brought far lower sales, even more attention to existing IQ deficiencies that unlike the D200 - Pentax would still not have recalled to fix, and of course fewer press accolades.

Better price, better value, more intuitive high end features is a strong factor of what gets people to Pentax (including me - though the available third party lenses being more expensive for Pentax for screw drive, and used Pentax lens prices going through the roof to overly wealthy buyers kind of negates the lower body price - I mean an 80-200mm f2.8 Tokina AT-X Pro sells for over $1000 for Pentax, and $350 for Nikon Pentax??? How ridiculously wealthy are these people!!).

[Canada_Rockies]

I think he was trying to say he would give all his stuff to me and migrate because I can give him a Canon A-1 and some nice lenses for it

The Canon A-1 typifies, for me, the Canon philosophy on operating a camera. In that generation of cameras, to set the f/stop yourself on a Pentax, you, well, just set the f/stop. On the Canon you first told the camera "Hey, camera, I'm going to set the f/stop - Av" and then you set the f/stop. Talk about making things hard for the poor photog.

They make excellent cameras, no question, but they are about as easy to operate as a corporate jet. I know, I'm exaggerating.

[Rickster]

I searched the forum and could not find a reference to this patent ...

US Patent - us20070019945ki

Inventors: Kurosawa; Yuichi; (Tokyo, JP)
Correspondence Name and Address:

GREENBLUM & BERNSTEIN, P.L.C.
1950 ROLAND CLARKE PLACE
RESTON
VA
20191
US

Assignee Name and Adress: PENTAX Corporation
36-9, Maenocho 2-chome, Itabashi-ku
Tokyo
JP

Serial No.: 459438
Series Code: 11
Filed: July 24, 2006

This patent describes a DSLR with an ElectroLuminescent display in the viewfinder - AKA Live display.

Here's the abstract ...

A single-lens-reflex digital camera in which an optical image of an object that is to be photographed via a photographing lens is reflected by a main mirror to be formed on a focusing screen so that the optical image is viewed through a viewfinder while the main mirror is retracted from an optical path of the photographing lens to capture an image of the object by an image pickup device, the single-lens-reflex digital camera includes an electroluminescent display provided on the focusing screen, wherein the electroluminescent display displays at least the object image captured by the image pickup device. The single-lens-reflex digital camera is configured to allow the object image displayed by the electroluminescent display and the optical image formed on the focusing screen to be viewed through the viewfinder.



I have no doubt this is the "Live Display" we will enjoy on the new 'K20D'.

Here's a link to the entire text of the patent.

United States Patent Application: 0070019945

For really fascinating stuff, read the control logic diagrams on how this will all work.

cheers,
Rick

[Rickster]

My reading of the control logic description would suggest you can set up the camera so you can half-depress the shutter release to activate the 'Live View' ... Probably will have the ability to overlay shooting information and or histograms too. This is exciting stuff!

Starting to save my pennies now! ;-)

cheers,
Rick

[Rickster]

Here's the control diagram ...



cheers,
Rick

[nosnoop]

And if all the features are implemented, it would have AF and metering while using Live View!

[misiek3d]

It looks really great but if it's K20D then why we can see CCD sensor and not CMOS?

[thibs]

It looks really great but if it's K20D then why we can see CCD sensor and not CMOS?

Patents are usually very generic and stating CMOS would mean every other manufacturers would know about their plans.

[Rickster]

It looks really great but if it's K20D then why we can see CCD sensor and not CMOS?

A couple possibilities. The sensor type wasn't important to the patent application and/or the decision hadn't been made in July 2006 when this patent was submitted.

cheers,
Rick

[Rickster]

And if all the features are implemented, it would have AF and metering while using Live View!

Looks like phase detect AF with optical and contrast AF with 'Live View'. Too kewl!

cheers,
Rick

[jscoby05]

I found this paten on google

[nosnoop]

I found this paten on google

Well, this is for scanners, so I don't it would have any relevance to the camera.