[i_trax]

I think this is really ugly too - I loved the K-01. It reminds me of those cameras that died and you never see any more - Minolta, Four Thirds cameras. However, this is the kind of ugliness that blokes who buy cameras love. Fits in with the WG-02 look, and if it IS built ruggedly rather than just looking rugged, it will be very popular.

I agree with those who see this as entry level, with a K3 and FF. With this line-up I can see why Ricoh were so confident about competing with Canikon. :-)

Having said that, I really regret buying a K5 when I did... I think this may be a better camera...

matter of personal tast, I like K-01 but I would never buy it, I like KX and I did buy it, I like K7 and I did buy it, I like Q and did buy it , I like K5 and I did buy it, I like K30 and I would buy it.
Just purchased K-5 , bugger (!) the K30 would be much more suitable for me, I think ,AA battery, green button in the right spot ( not where my nose is on K7+K5 ) ,smaller and lighter body and no top LCD ( which I never really use).
Actually the K30 body does not look any smaller than K7 or K5 so there might be possibility that all three could share the same battery grip , I hope,
if not with grip, the claimed parallel usage of AA and Lithium-ION sounds a bit puzzling, although if it is much bigger than KX there might be enough room to
house both kind of batteries, that actually would be an excellent idea!
time will tell

[jeztastic]

green button in the right spot ( not where my nose is on K7+K5 )

Amen to that!

[WerTicus]

Don't think anyone else has mentioned it yet, but there's a Raw/Fx button on the side. Not really a killer feature, but one that does bring it a bit closer to the high end..

It does nothing useful on my K-5... I can program it to do one of several pointless things. It COULD be awesome if i could program it to do ANYTHING.

The original purpose of the button is obsolete since memory cards are cheap enough to shoot raw + jpg 100% of the time.

[french_mike]

I suppose it will come down, but so will the K-5 if a successor to that comes out.

or the K5 wil disaper when the K3 will be on sale

[eddie1960]

That's what I think will happen.

Newbies: K-01
Serious newbies: K30
Hobbyists: K-3 (APS-C)
Pros: Full frame K-mount
Studio: 645D

That right there would make a pretty solid & logical lineup.

I still think you can add an entry level non WR DSLR ala the kr/kx Adam the K30 most definitely looks positioned as a mid level to compete with the D5100

Mirrorless is a whole separate category and i can see them expanding it at some point as well with a second more enthusiast level K-0 model (and a new Q model as well)

I need to see the full spec but this cam looks pretty good (though build quality will not be up to K5 I'm sure)

[french_mike]

yes, you can add a k300 (nikon d3200) and i am sure we will hear about it very soon, before the summer, so people who buy a camera for they summer trip will have a "cheap" Pentax choice (and not just a choice of CaNikon in the entry level market)

[eddie1960]

I agree. The K30 will be the mid-level DSLR, a K-r replacement with truly basic features is coming, and a K-5 replacement later. That fits in with Jonathan Martin's forecast; a full line of four DSLR's to compete with Canon/Nikon.

Pentax themselves mentioned the need for a 4 DSLR line at the interview in January. This most definitely is mid level apsc. entry will likely be more kr/kx like (no WR single wheel, less features)
K3 24mp plus mag alloy and likely some new goodies over the K5
FF (which i bet is 1999 and 24 mp and built like a brick )

[WerTicus]

unlike the k01 i think the k30 has good styling. looks racey.

especially the blue.

[french_mike]

i think so is well, like the bleu one, i cant wait to know what the AF will be ...

[Supernaut]

I can see Pentax design strategy clearly now. The K-01 made the Q look good and now this K-30 makes the K-01 look good. I'm afraid of what the K-5 successor will look like

Btw, it seems to be sold (according to amazon) with the DA-L kit lens meaning that it will not be WR.

[ZizZ^]

Wow. Best looking camera ever! I really dig that deisgn. Strong, powerfull and yet elegant.

[illdefined]

definitely looks fast and active, but I'd hardly call it 'elegant'. if anything, I'd call it xtremely adolescent.

[jeztastic]

definitely looks fast and active, but I'd hardly call it 'elegant'. if anything, I'd call it xtremely adolescent.

Yah.

For me what really lets it down is the pointless heat-sink style stripes on the camera's left. I can see that some people will love it though. It wound me up that people didn't get how great the K-01 looks. Horses for courses, cameras for hipsters and adolescents, keeps the world spinning!

[D0n]

Yah.

For me what really lets it down is the pointless heat-sink style stripes on the camera's left. I can see that some people will love it though. It wound me up that people didn't get how great the K-01 looks. Horses for courses, cameras for hipsters and adolescents, keeps the world spinning!

unless it really is a heat sink.. in which case forms follows function... Pentax cameras have had a solid feel to them due in no smal part to the metal body construction.. so it is very reasonable to speculate that this is a metal bodied camera and the body is being used as a heat sink for the sensor...

[illdefined]

I'm joking, but if we follow that logic, than the 16mp D4 also will not be able to compete with the D3200.

One of our club members just received his D4 within the last week and was remarking how great the resolution was on a picture he uploaded. He came from a D300 with 12mp. So i replied that yes indeed, the 16 mp of my current K5 provides wonderful resolution and that he could check the nicely increased resolution of lenses on photozone.de that results from using 16mp.

Hopefully, Nikon's use of a 24mp sensor on the D3200 and a 16mp sensor on the D4 will convey to newcomers that sensor mp are only one aspect of performance.

unfortunately, newcomers are much more likely to look at the big 36mp D800 in that respect.

the D4 is a very purpose driven pro-specific camera in a pro-body at a pro-price. needless to say, only pros would be looking at it (and understand it). not to mention 16mp FF should yield significantly superior results than 16mp APS-C...