Originally posted by lytrytyr Except for J (= "junior" or "junk"
),
the other acronyms are not intended to imply any hierarchy,
and have quite specific technical meanings:
AL = "aspheric lens"
ED = "extra dispersion"
DC = "direct current" ?
WR = "weather resistant"
I guess that that's an incomplete list:
AW = "All Weather"
HD = "High Definition"
SDM = "Sonic Drive ..."
SDM and DC are incompatible (and I assume that one is "better" than another?); same for WR and AW? -- so I think that there is a hierarchy, yes?
Also, there's DA, DA* D-FA, FA - surely there's something to be said among those?
DA* vs DA+WR?
As I said, Pentax has made a mess of an alphabet soup and a mess of a lens-lineup. It's hard (without doing a /lot/ of research first, something only enthusiasts would do) to know what one gets when buying a given lens.....or, if buying a lens, to be sure if one has gotten the "best" lens of that range.
I suggest that this "mess" and "lack of clarity" is a disadvantage for Pentax vs. the "general public" (not so much to folks that frequent PF, given the wonderful lens database here
)