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08-17-2013, 02:25 PM   #1
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The Ricoh way.....

Where is Ricoh leading the Pentax brand? Is this a big company who try to get a competitor out of the way, or do they see Pentax as a brand who deserve to live further?
The good thing with a big company in the back, is that the have the resources to get new quality products out in the marked and put in more in marketing.
The bad thing is that they could just get Pentax buried.....
I hope that they see us Pentax users as passionate and faithful. It`s a reason why we choose Pentax and i hope they understand it......
I would like to know what the Pentaxforums users and the crew behind it think about this? Will it be Ricohforums or Ricoh/Pentaxforums in the future.....
I wonder.........

08-17-2013, 02:50 PM   #2
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Ricoh does not 'sound' as good as Pentax/Pentaxian etc.

As long as they make good cameras/lenses, we will just shrug and move on...

Nothing lasts for ever.

I personally don't see ANY primary camera makers surviving in the future. Cameras will just be like another 'electronic' product and electronic product makers will make cameras as one of many products.
08-17-2013, 03:10 PM   #3
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I have had the somewhat dubious pleasure of working for two medium sized companies that were acquired by much larger ones. Both of the smaller companies were highly regarded in our technical field and the purchasing companies were growing into new markets through acquisition. In both instances the more well known names of the acquired companies disappeared completely within four months in favor of the new parent company names. Consistent "branding" was the watch word of the moment and it was critical to the new management that all work was to be done under the new name in each instance.

The result of that sudden change in identity was SERIOUS confusion with our clients for quite some time. The good thing was that the quality of the work we were doing stayed the same and in quite a few ways improved due to deeper pockets and greater resources. It took three years to settle down the first time I went through this and it's been two years this, second, time and things are still in transition. It's never easy to go through that major a disruption in work, but things do settle down and for the most part improve with age. (Think good scotch if you need an analogy.)
08-17-2013, 03:15 PM   #4
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Ricoh steal Pentax and Pentax camera information. Ricoh K-60 and Ricoh K-6 in soon future but no DSLR Lenses like Ricoh GR. I think so.

08-17-2013, 03:32 PM - 1 Like   #5
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QuoteOriginally posted by Pande Quote
Where is Ricoh leading the Pentax brand? Is this a big company who try to get a competitor out of the way, or do they see Pentax as a brand who deserve to live further?
The good thing with a big company in the back, is that the have the resources to get new quality products out in the marked and put in more in marketing.
The bad thing is that they could just get Pentax buried.....
I hope that they see us Pentax users as passionate and faithful. It`s a reason why we choose Pentax and i hope they understand it......
I would like to know what the Pentaxforums users and the crew behind it think about this? Will it be Ricohforums or Ricoh/Pentaxforums in the future.....
I wonder.........
Ricoh has publicly stated that they want to compete directly with Canon & Nikon in the professional market and they are using Pentax to attempt that goal. I say attempt, because Sony has said the same thing and it hasn't really worked out for them.

Why would they bury Pentax? That makes absolutely no sense.
08-17-2013, 03:38 PM   #6
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Pentax...for that matter Nikon, etc...are brand names. They have value for their lens mount, lenses, electronic and mechanical components and their brand name.

Ricoh did indicate that they wanted the 'Pentax' name...the brand... when they bought Pentax.

As long as what Pentax or any product has value and profit...it will stay around, I imagine.

But in the end, business decisons will be made and we have little effect.

Having said that, I hope Pentax , the DSLR, the K lens mount system all keep in production.

But failing that .....my second choice would be that Ricoh do what Sony did with Konica- Minolta (whatever the name was in the end). They bought that particular camera business....renamed it Sony...but kept the lens mount.

My understanding...although I haven't followed it closely...was that you could still use Minolta lenses with your new Sony.

In the end I don't care a lot about what the camera is called...as long as I can continue to use my fairly large collection of Pentax K mount lenses.

But if Ricoh is listening....I do prefer....that the name Pentax be retained . I've had Pentax equipment for nigh on 45 years and I've grown accustomed to the brand name.

I also think there is still 'cachet' to the name Pentax.
08-17-2013, 03:42 PM   #7
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QuoteOriginally posted by OldPentaxFan Quote
The result of that sudden change in identity was SERIOUS confusion with our clients for quite some time. The good thing was that the quality of the work we were doing stayed the same and in quite a few ways improved due to deeper pockets and greater resources. It took three years to settle down the first time I went through this and it's been two years this, second, time and things are still in transition. It's never easy to go through that major a disruption in work, but things do settle down and for the most part improve with age. (Think good scotch if you need an analogy.)
It's easy to underestimate the time a process like this takes, and on top of that it probably take 3 year to develop a new generation DSLR.
So it might take 2-3 more years before we get to see any Pentax DSLR that is developed "from scratch" in the new organisation.

08-17-2013, 03:44 PM   #8
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To be honest I think that Ricoh wil be on top off our future dslr K-mount camera's. I even see that as a good thing!!!!

When Pentax stays Pentax then there is a very thin line that can be broken and shut down the imaging department when economy is going to be worse for a longer periode. When Ricoh is on the brandname then you just don't stop with imaging that easy.

Overhere we have Océ, a large format copier system. Bought by Canon for some time now and in the transition to change the name. It's now in the fase that it is called Océ a Canon powered company (or something like that). In 2-5 years there will be no Océ, but will there be Canon on all their products, wich is a niche market at the time with all the problems in construction/architecture for large plotting.
08-17-2013, 04:15 PM   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by Fogel70 Quote
It's easy to underestimate the time a process like this takes, and on top of that it probably take 3 year to develop a new generation DSLR.
So it might take 2-3 more years before we get to see any Pentax DSLR that is developed "from scratch" in the new organisation.
How "from scratch" does it need to be?

Take the K-5 ergonomics and apply them to a slightly larger body with a FF sensor and VF. Throw in some mature technologies like WiFi and GPS and you have a great camera.

If "from scratch" you mean a new mount for a mirrorless body, then that is a different story.

The technologies we need are all mature and readily available. It is a matter of Pentax putting them together in a well designed package. The K-5 is a pretty well designed package, and I hope they don't go to far from that.
08-17-2013, 04:25 PM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by RonHendriks1966 Quote
To be honest I think that Ricoh wil be on top off our future dslr K-mount camera's. I even see that as a good thing!!!!
I agree. I'm not worried about the brand or the investment that Ricoh will make to bring new products to the market.... Its just a matter of patience... Which I don't have a lot of.
08-17-2013, 05:05 PM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by Winder Quote
How "from scratch" does it need to be?

Take the K-5 ergonomics and apply them to a slightly larger body with a FF sensor and VF. Throw in some mature technologies like WiFi and GPS and you have a great camera.

If "from scratch" you mean a new mount for a mirrorless body, then that is a different story.

The technologies we need are all mature and readily available. It is a matter of Pentax putting them together in a well designed package. The K-5 is a pretty well designed package, and I hope they don't go to far from that.
FI I think Pentax started working on K7 right after or even before they released K10D, and they started working on K30 somewhere between K-m and K-x.

Designing a FF probably take even longer as there will be more parts that has to be redesigned and it will take longer time to design/decide the roadmap for a new FF platform.. A FF body will probably be considerably larger than K5 as the SR mechanism will need to be dimensioned for the FF sensor which is both larger and heavier than any sensor they used SR on before. Small sized bodies might not even be what they have in mind for FF,

Last edited by Fogel70; 08-17-2013 at 05:13 PM.
08-17-2013, 05:11 PM - 1 Like   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by psychdoc Quote
Ricoh does not 'sound' as good as Pentax/Pentaxian etc..
But we can call ourselves "Ricans"
08-17-2013, 05:47 PM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by Fogel70 Quote
A FF body will probably be considerably larger than K5 as the SR mechanism will need to be dimensioned for the FF sensor which is both larger and heavier than any sensor they used SR on before. Small sized bodies might not even be what they have in mind for FF,
The Canon 6D is not much bigger than a K-5 and the K-5 is actually thicker.

Compare camera dimensions side by side

We need a larger mirror box and VF, but Pentax has made larger. Didn't seem to be an issue with the 645.
08-17-2013, 07:14 PM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by Winder Quote
How "from scratch" does it need to be?

Take the K-5 ergonomics and apply them to a slightly larger body with a FF sensor and VF. Throw in some mature technologies like WiFi and GPS and you have a great camera.

If "from scratch" you mean a new mount for a mirrorless body, then that is a different story.

The technologies we need are all mature and readily available. It is a matter of Pentax putting them together in a well designed package. The K-5 is a pretty well designed package, and I hope they don't go to far from that.
Well, throwing in either or both WiFi and GPS does make a pretty large difference, in a number of functional areas in a product like a camera.
  • GPS - It requires power, which will drain the battery faster. It also takes time to sync up with the satellites, which have a very weak signal and does not penetrate inside buildings. So, do you want to wait up to a couple of minutes while you sync up the birds - especially if the last time you took a picture was in New York City, and now that you are in Alaska for dinner, you want to take another. Then, if you are inside a building, how long do you want to wait for the satellite signals that will not be coming?
  • WiFi - Again, it needs power. Do you want it to sync up with any network it finds, or just yours? What if it can't find a network?
How large of a battery do you want? Where should we put the GPS antenna - you don't want your hand covering it - bad for signal acquisition. What range do you want on the WiFi, and how are you going to manage the setup, or do you want to be broadcasting your images to every Stabucks in town.

QuoteOriginally posted by Winder Quote
The Canon 6D is not much bigger than a K-5 and the K-5 is actually thicker.

Compare camera dimensions side by side

We need a larger mirror box and VF, but Pentax has made larger. Didn't seem to be an issue with the 645.
The 6D is a lot larger, and the 645 is tremendously larger than the K5/II/IIs. The K mount is already full frame, its a matter of accommodating the larger sensor, and the supporting infrastructure, along with the new power requirements. Then there is the additional processing for the enlarged sensor, along with all of those new "features". The half life of the parts you designed in 6 months ago (or 3 years ago) will all need to be redone, this time for production based on the length of the model run. Then there are the manuals, testing, production tools, and test equipment, along with the manufacturing instructions and training - plus let's not forget about QC.

I would rather have the body not much larger than the K5/II/IIs and certainly no larger than the K20.

08-17-2013, 08:33 PM   #15
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Think what you want, but Ricoh Imaging has issued their newest future tense roadmap!
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