[wlachan]

Except that dSLR sales are rising worldwide, Pentax market share has been rising worldwide, CaNikon market share has been falling, Ricoh announced that they're big on SLRs, and Ricoh wants to eat Canon's market. Sure, except for facts, it's apparent that Pentax is doomed. Right.

Because it is. If Pentax disappeared entirely, the public wouldn't notice, or care.

[eddie1960]

Except that dSLR sales are rising worldwide, Pentax market share has been rising worldwide, CaNikon market share has been falling, Ricoh announced that they're big on SLRs, and Ricoh wants to eat Canon's market. Sure, except for facts, it's apparent that Pentax is doomed. Right.

Meh it's just over 11 1/2 months till the end of the world anyway so we're all doomed

[Kunzite]

Sure, except for facts, it's apparent that Pentax is doomed.

Well said

Because it is. If Pentax disappeared entirely, the public wouldn't notice, or care.

The Pentax K-mount customers would certainly notice, and care. However, as RioRico said...

[topace]

Because it is. If Pentax disappeared entirely, the public wouldn't notice, or care.

Before I got into photography, I wasn't really aware of Nikon either, and Canon only as a producer of photocopiers and compact cameras. So I guess "the public" doesn't really care much about DSLRs anyway.

Well, it seems we have another future product speculation thread brewing.

Honestly though, CES will be interesting. I'm not buying anything until I know what PRIC are up to there.

[gazonk]

If the K-5 is discontinued, that's probably good news. It means we'll get both a K-r replacement and a K-5 replacement very soon, probably in less than a week at PMA@CES. K-5 replacement with 24mp, K-r replacement with K-5 sensor - pretty obvious?

Now if they additionally could make some juicy announcements or even show some prototypes (large mirrorless, ff, 645d mk 2, ...), 2012 gets a good start :-)

[Kryscendo]

1: If Pentax collapses overnight, we would still have great cameras like the K5 and K7 to carry us for at least, a few more years. And by a few more years, I mean (depending on your needs) probably to the middle/end of the decade. Just look at how many K10D and that era of users are still floating around.

2: Lenses don't go obsolete. Camera bodies simply get out-competed. But certainly do not think that they will not be another page in Pentax history. Again, for all the doom sayers out there, if Pentax folded, cool all your DA* glass and your K-5 will be a collectors item in just a few short years.

For me, I have the dilemma now of waiting for a new body or jumping on a sub $1,000 body. Also my dilemma is that I have no money.

[SteveM]

Think about it. Ricoh didn't buy Pentax to discontinue DSLRs and retire 95% of the lens lineup. Pentax / Hoya most likely were left with a glut of previous models when the new ones were released. I'm not sure what the lag time might be, but discontinuing production of a model could take a very long time to sell off remaining stock. We might not hear anything about the new model for months.

[Kryscendo]

Just throwing this out there guys, even with Hoya at the helm, Pentax released the K-5 and the 645D as well as the K-x and K-r. All pretty decent sellers. Very good reviews all the way around. Yes, we know about a few stained sensors on the K-5 but over all, those were some decent years.

And now that we have a more enthusiastic driver behind the steering wheel, I can only say I am cautiously optimistic.

All I know is I am saving my money now. (hoping to get a limited edition color, we all know there will be one.)

[bobell69]

Well hopefully Ricoh's first move isn't to disenfranchise the majority of Pentax Users by killing the Kmount. This would sure tick me off after having paid a ransom for my new Pentax Mount Sigma 70-200

[Winder]

Sorry for repost of this article from well known person (RiceHigh), but sometimes he knows news that are about to hit us.

Link to his blog

If you don`t want to ramp up his blog hits, here is the complete news he posted:

http://bbs.kakaku.com/bbs/K0000152653/SortID=13971212/
Google translate

This is quoted from a shop who claimed to learn from a Pentax staff. And yes, K-5 has been discontinued and now it will still be available until the existing stocks run out.

Some people would then deny this rumour straight-forwardly by the logic that "There is not yet any replacement model announced that will come!" But the same thing did already happen for the K-r. So, it is actually possible!

But, if it is true, WHAT body would now be still stay in the current Pentax K *lineup*? Will there be only lenses?! :-o

For these days, I just wonder what Ricoh are doing on Pentax, really.. >:-(

None of this is surprising. Work on the K-5 replacement would have started before the K-5 was ever shipped and long before Ricoh came to the table as a buyer.

I have been told by a couple of Pentax collectors that the Silver edition is the LAST production run for a body. I have no idea if that is true, but for them is signals the coming release of a new body.

People want product as soon as it is announced these days. Product needs to be ready to ship within a few weeks of an announcement.

I would expect a K-r and K-5 replacement very soon at least a lens road map with 3 lenses to be released this year. There is also a good chance that a mirror-less will be released.

No inside information to assume Pentax is going to do what every other camera company is the world is doing. Release new product to keep up with the market.

[GDRoth]

Except that dSLR sales are rising worldwide, Pentax market share has been rising worldwide, CaNikon market share has been falling, Ricoh announced that they're big on SLRs, and Ricoh wants to eat Canon's market. Sure, except for facts, it's apparent that Pentax is doomed. Right.

Those facts get real pesky..........

[TaoMaas]

I seriously doubt that Ricoh is going to kill the K-mount. Why bother buying Pentax at all, if that was the intention? The Pentax name, by itself, doesn't really carry that much more clout than the Ricoh name these days, if you subtract the K-mount products.

[eddie1960]

Just throwing this out there guys, even with Hoya at the helm, Pentax released the K-5 and the 645D as well as the K-x and K-r. All pretty decent sellers. Very good reviews all the way around. Yes, we know about a few stained sensors on the K-5 but over all, those were some decent years.

And now that we have a more enthusiastic driver behind the steering wheel, I can only say I am cautiously optimistic.

All I know is I am saving my money now. (hoping to get a limited edition color, we all know there will be one.)

I'll give hoya benefit for k5 and kr (and somewhat the kx and k7 though they were likely under development already), the 645D though their main input was the green light, it was under development for a long time and the market was finally right (like the long Q development which may well have started pre hoya)

[eddie1960]

Those facts get real pesky..........

it's a bugger when the truth get's in the way of opinion isn't it

[Aristophanes]

If you read some of the translated further postings by the original source, he claims to have talked directly with a Pentax technical development persons...over drinks!

The read is that "full size" (full frame) has been "not go", some camera parts operations were curtailed by the Thailand flooding, and the new models will be APS-C, and lens development is an issue for the company.

And K-mount was large reason why Ricoh bought Pentax.