Originally posted by atlnq9 I am pretty sure anybody buying a Q and some toys as their first interchangeable lens camera is not going to jump from that to FF. They will go to a Kr. People that will trade up to FF will come from the Kr or K5 levels...
Actually, I don't think you can presume to speak for those buying a Q and what they may or may not do. As I alluded to earlier, the marketing research that Pentax did (which I translated from Japanese in another thread) suggests that the target market is not necessarily beginners, although part of the target market certainly will be.
However, you are right in that even if the Q is wildly successful, that does not necessarily create a viable business case for Pentax to release a full frame camera. If I was a Q owner, I won't necessarily feel any loyalty to Pentax - I may as well buy an established market leader if I want full frame.
(which is exactly what I was trying to say earlier except some poor misguided souls think this must be because I am a Canon fangirl - even though I don't own any Canon SLRs at the moment!)
However, if Pentax becomes a major player due to the success of cameras like the Q (unlikely, but we can all hope) then Ricoh /Pentax may be more inclined to create a full frame camera to complement their existing range. Who knows? Companies do change their marketing and product strategies over time. Pentax's current strategy to be quirky (with colours, themed/skinnable cameras, etc.) is probably a reflection of a limited R&D budget. With a bigger R&D budget, Pentax may well feel they can challenge Canon and Nikon on their own turf.