[anomaly]

I can see the benefits of having live view IN the view finder. Imagine looking through that view finder and having your image literally fill your field of vision. It would be like using a film camera again.

[mattdm]

I can see the benefits of having live view IN the view finder. Imagine looking through that view finder and having your image literally fill your field of vision. It would be like using a film camera again.

Imagine your vision being highly pixelated and with a dizzying lag vs. reality. Not like using a film camera at all.

I'm not sure it's necessary for what you want, though. Take a look at the Olympus E-3 -- 100% view and 1.15× magnification.

[anomaly]

There is lag? :?

So what is the point?

I am now anti liveview.

[thibs]

Better, liviview in viewfinder is not redered useless because the weather is plain sunny.

Lag, I dunno, never tried. But it can still be usefull with lag: focussing in a Macro situation for example.

[jeffkrol]

Better, liviview in viewfinder is not redered useless because the weather is plain sunny.

Lag, I dunno, never tried. But it can still be usefull with lag: focussing in a Macro situation for example.

I'd prefer a clear overlay over the sensor w/ a monochrome LED that can act as a digital ND filter. Now there's something useful..... Why mess w/ the viewfinder, just put a better prism in it and/or monitor off the sensor. Maybe I'm missing something or I won't be able to see "what the point is" until I actually see it... I mean you still have to look through the viewfinder. Won't help me get off the ground for Macros ect....

[Mats]

I'd prefer a clear overlay over the sensor w/ a monochrome LED that can act as a digital ND filter. Now there's something useful..... Why mess w/ the viewfinder, just put a better prism in it and/or monitor off the sensor. Maybe I'm missing something or I won't be able to see "what the point is" until I actually see it... I mean you still have to look through the viewfinder. Won't help me get off the ground for Macros ect....

I agree with you, cannot really see the use of a live view EVF. Perhaps the possibility to have a stabilized could be useful? I dont believe for one second that Pentax will drop sensor based shake reduction and go for in-lens SR. The mention in the patent of in-lens image stabilisation is most likely to safeguard the technology from competitors to use it. A stabilized EVF can be obtained by calculating the camera shake and by clever algorithms mimic the camera movement in the EVF.
The most interesting thing for me is the possibility to see a histogram of the image taken in the VF.
/Mats

[mutley]

I mean you still have to look through the viewfinder.

Is Pentax aware that the main point of even having live-view is the ability to hold the camera overhead to shoot over crowds etc., or put the camera as low as you need without having to put your head on the ground?

Any other live-view features are fine as long as those needs are met.

Do the engineers realize this? Those patent descriptions are a little old, and might not give the whole story now with Hoya money muscle behind them.

[Jesus]

The fold out swivel LCD would be a perfect addition to any Pentax .
Like the Canon Pro 1 has , and many others

[sir_bazz]

Just found this thread.

Please let the January announcement be a larger format DSLR with a new line up of lenses to suit.

This would make up for the disappointment of the 645D project.

bazz.

[revolution6]

I can't say where I work but i have heard from a very reliable source that at PMA they will announce a body with a 14 mp chip and a more professional feature set. Whether the chip is full frame or APS-C i dont know. I also know that they will be discontinuing the k100 and the k10 will become the entry level body, ith reduced price and program biasing.

[pop4]

I can't say where I work but i have heard from a very reliable source that at PMA they will announce a body with a 14 mp chip and a more professional feature set. Whether the chip is full frame or APS-C i dont know. I also know that they will be discontinuing the k100 and the k10 will become the entry level body, ith reduced price and program biasing.

the K10D an entry level body?? That would be pretty damn awesome for something "entry level"

......
Do the engineers realize this? Those patent descriptions are a little old, and might not give the whole story now with Hoya money muscle behind them.

How many terrific projects you know that never get out of the prototype phase?? I would believe that they are old now, but Pentax engineers are full with new ideas, as usual, and the Hoya $$upport can push them way beyond your imagination. Let it be. Let them amaze us all.

[vinzer]

I can't say where I work but i have heard from a very reliable source that at PMA they will announce a body with a 14 mp chip and a more professional feature set. Whether the chip is full frame or APS-C i dont know. I also know that they will be discontinuing the k100 and the k10 will become the entry level body, ith reduced price and program biasing.

That's all well and good. I hope Pentax also would bring out the new lenses they've promised on the roadmap. Any news about that?

It certainly wouldn't help Pentax to have both an entry-level and a pro-level body with professional features on *both* and no lenses to put on it.

The thought of the K10D being an entry-level camera is way cool, but I would think consumers like soccer moms would want something smaller and wouldn't mind having some features culled.

[revolution6]

I too think that the features and abilities of the k10 would be awesome as their entry level, and my source wouldn't verify this but i expect them to take the same 10mp chip, and the same k10 processor, maybe take out the sensitivity priority modes and some of the specialized buttons, add scene modes and squish it all into a smaller body and call it the k200 or something similar, because the k10 is a bit large and intimidating to a broader consumer market.

As far as lenses, I really haven't heard much as far as firm releases, but it seems that they are for the time focusing on the lower-end consumer lenses like the 18-250, which looks and feels almost exactly like its Tamron sibling, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, and the 60-250 DA*. I haven't heard anything about the long telephoto DA* primes apart from rumors on the net that they're redesigning them with some financial help from Hoya after the less-than-perfect reception of the 16-50 and 50-135 DA*s which sounds like a reasonable assumption to me.

[Harald]

If the latest rumors are true, then Pentax comes with lifeview in the viewfinder.
No full frame and things.

Fiddly lifeview that is absorbing light and is error-prone?
Do we really need that?

Please don't ...

Isn't that called EVF (electronic viewfinder)? what use it would have? it combines all negatives from optical and lcd viewfinders. Minolta digicams used to have one and I considered it an ridiculous invention