[Ash]

When the 'Community Manager' gets in on the 'fun' then it becomes a coherent part of the discussion?

I agree though.. it did go sideways fast.. but now back to our regularly scheduled programming of guesstimating what Pentax is/is not releasing and how the K-S1 makes or breaks the entire company due to it being what each of us individually wanted to see.

I answered one post that was off topic.
If you want to blame me for the rest of the responses, fine.

I don't have much to say about the K-S1. It looks fine, and probably will perform nicely too. But I'm more interested in a K-3 successor...

[ebk]

the S1 is not new !!!!.


there was in 2011 a Pentax Optio named: S1.

[boriscleto]

the S1 is not new !!!!.


there was in 2011 a Pentax Optio named: S1.

And Fuji has a 2 year old bridge camera called the X-S1.

[Cynog Ap Brychan]

And Kodak has a Pixpro S1...

[JPT]

In January a rumour from a French forum was posted. I'll quote it here.

KL , K60 K600 would be based on the same chassis , that of improved K50 and one new mail.

- The K600 , took the body of the K60 except the back panel idem K500 , only in black .
Inherit more compared to K500 :
- New electronics for more responsiveness.
- An enhanced through interaction with the meter while keeping the AF module K500 AF .
- A new meter derived from K3.
- A display of active AF points highlighted.
And always the same APSC sensor 16 mpx .
- Course with loss of all time finish.


- K60 have the same body as the K50 with cladding and a new redesigned front panel back also redesigned to match the aesthetics of KL and receive a small grip, always offered in technicolor .
Inherit more compared to K50 :
A - 20 mpx APSC sensor with AA.
- Wifi
- A new AF module derived from K3 with 17 AF points including 15 cross and at f2.8 .
And still finish all times.


The KL - plastic body would retro style different from K60 & 600 except for the back panel equal to that of K60 . The body is also different to allow the use of the battery K3 bulkier than the K50 and a small LCD display on the top , available in black and sylver ( limited edition ) .
Inherit more compared to K60 :
A - 20 mpx APSC sensor without AA .
- The stab and simulation AA K3
The AF - K3 .
The shutter - K5 .
- A larger buffer.
- Tester CDP dedicated to the former .
HDMI socket .
Finishing all times.
And with such a zoom: o: o: o

Based on what we know so far, it really looks like the originator of this rumour was describing the K-S1, albeit described as K60. This makes the other models described look more credible to me. The "KL" looks like a real possibility.

[normhead]

And Fuji has a 2 year old bridge camera called the X-S1.

The dash is in the wrong place this is a KS-1. Who has an S-1? Three characters instead of 2? If we're going to get nit picky..

[Andi Lo]

The white one + DA40 would look pretty sweet

[JPT]

Well, considering that the K60 is described as having the same styling as the KL, which is described as "retro," I don't know how much stock I'd put in that rumor. Also, the body is significantly different from the K50, there is no mention of Wifi in the leaked specs, there's no indication of the AF specs, and there's no indication it is weather sealed (the "And still finish all times" is a mistranslation of "fully-weather sealed").

About the only verified similarity is the 20Mp sensor.

I take your point that there are some differences, but there are a few striking similarities too.
- The 20mp sensor matches K-S1 rumours
- It mentions a small grip
- It mentions multiple colour options (not a long-shot with Pentax, admittedly)
- It makes a point of mentioning that the "K600" doesn't have the redesigned back plate of the "K60" and "KL". The K-S1 clearly has a redesigned back plate.

I wouldn't describe the K-S1's design as retro either, but describing appearance is highly subjective. Besides, the external styling is something that could easily have changed in the intervening months. The internal specs would be more difficult to change.

[Kunzite]

Based on what we know so far, it really looks like the originator of this rumour was describing the K-S1, albeit described as K60. This makes the other models described look more credible to me. The "KL" looks like a real possibility.

I would rather say he was guessing:
- 20 mpx APSC sensor with AA - 20MP was an easy guess (the sensor used by Sony in entry level cameras), but missed on AA
- Wifi - another miss
- A new AF module derived from K3 - another miss
Pentax is using multiple colors for a while so no points for that.
New back plate, that's a miss: the entire body/shell is new!
The biggest miss: the K-S1 is an entry level camera, so it should be matched with the "K600" prediction. It doesn't, at all.

[stevebrot]

Unfortunately, not a K-S1 geek

It does not appear to be a geek camera. Hipster camera perhaps, but definitely not geek.


Steve

[JPT]

I would rather say he was guessing:
- 20 mpx APSC sensor with AA - 20MP was an easy guess (the sensor used by Sony in entry level cameras), but missed on AA
- Wifi - another miss
- A new AF module derived from K3 - another miss
Pentax is using multiple colors for a while so no points for that.
New back plate, that's a miss: the entire body/shell is new!
The biggest miss: the K-S1 is an entry level camera, so it should be matched with the "K600" prediction. It doesn't, at all.

Unless you've seen more information than me, all the misses you point out are just specs we don't know yet. AA filter, Wi-Fi and AF module were not among the information posted on digicame-info. The only clear miss in the French information is weather sealing. The non-WR lens in the pictures strongly implies the camera is not sealed.

Also, we don't know it's an entry-level camera. Do you think it'll be cheaper than the K-50? I think it'll be around the same price.

[DennisH]

It does not appear to be a geek camera. Hipster camera perhaps, but definitely not geek.


Steve

Wouldn't a hipster likely prefer a K1000? Or is "hipster" becoming something else?

[jatrax]

Maybe "younger generation" camera is better. Nontraditional in many ways, hence the negative reaction from those who prefer a more familiar shape. But that works the other way for people who do not want their camera to look like it was built in 1980. Other consumer products change styling over time, cars for example, or clothing both seem to change every year. It makes it easy to spot those that are no longer in style. Cameras have lagged in this quite a bit and not really changed much in years.
Ricoh was derided for all the colors on k-30 / k-50 and the Q, got lots of negative press over the styling of the k-01, but they keep pushing the envelope. I wonder what the reaction would have been to this camera had they not shown the LED lights lit up. Most of the negatives seem to be about those. I'm not a fan either, but then this camera was not designed for me. It appears to be intended for a younger or at least nontraditional target market, and that is a very good thing. Just one more example of Ricoh finding a place that Canon and Nikon are not and putting a product there. Little cut here, little cut there and suddenly the unbeatable giant is bleeding to death without ever noticing it. Of course it takes a lot of cuts and you have avoid getting smashed by the giant all the while.........

[Kunzite]

Unless you've seen more information than me, all the misses you point out are just specs we don't know yet. AA filter, Wi-Fi and AF module were not among the information posted on digicame-info. The only clear miss in the French information is weather sealing. The non-WR lens in the pictures strongly implies the camera is not sealed.

Also, we don't know it's an entry-level camera. Do you think it'll be cheaper than the K-50? I think it'll be around the same price.

Remember my post after they'll publish the official specs. At times, I'm very good at guessing such things
The AF points count can be deduced from the published images - same 11 points layout; and it makes sense to reuse an existing AF module.
I agree about the weather sealing.
I don't know anything about the price, but it looks like an entry level so it most likely is.

[JPT]

Maybe "younger generation" camera is better. Nontraditional in many ways, hence the negative reaction from those who prefer a more familiar shape. But that works the other way for people who do not want their camera to look like it was built in 1980. Other consumer products change styling over time, cars for example, or clothing both seem to change every year. It makes it easy to spot those that are no longer in style. Cameras have lagged in this quite a bit and not really changed much in years.
Ricoh was derided for all the colors on k-30 / k-50 and the Q, got lots of negative press over the styling of the k-01, but they keep pushing the envelope. I wonder what the reaction would have been to this camera had they not shown the LED lights lit up. Most of the negatives seem to be about those. I'm not a fan either, but then this camera was not designed for me. It appears to be intended for a younger or at least nontraditional target market, and that is a very good thing. Just one more example of Ricoh finding a place that Canon and Nikon are not and putting a product there. Little cut here, little cut there and suddenly the unbeatable giant is bleeding to death without ever noticing it. Of course it takes a lot of cuts and you have avoid getting smashed by the giant all the while.........

I think when people actually see the camera in reality, they'll wonder what the fuss was about. When you look at it objectively, the differences from any other small DSLR are pretty minor.

My K-01 is the black one. The K-01 only sticks out if you line it up with other cameras, but when you put it next to other objects out there in the real world, it doesn't look strange at all. In fact, my K20D attracted comments from friends and acquaintances, whereas I've never had anyone comment on my K-01. It just looks more "normal" in the real world. I picked up a D810 the other day. It just feels like a power tool - to be stored in the shed, not the house. I'm not criticising that kind of pure functional design, but it does look out of place in a lot of settings.

---------- Post added 08-23-14 at 12:49 AM ----------

Remember my post after they'll publish the official specs.

OK. Don't expect me to be too cut up if I'm wrong though. I often am! I do want to believe that they have a good model coming between this and the K-3, like that rumour suggested.