[IchabodCrane]

Nah. I'm deleting that.

There are other, better devices for the things you've described.

I concede filling up a FluCard is an annoyance I hadn't considered. Have to think about that one, but I have to ask, if that's going to be an issue why would you shoot with a camera that only has one slot?

I don't mind buying extra SDHC cards for a few bucks but extra FluCards at $100 a pop is borderline insane.

[Uluru]

We've killed it as far as the USA is concerned though, so good luck getting anything else we want from Ricoh.

Pentaxians of old are not that loud; they are constant moaners, they are high on demand, but low on spending — no matter what comes, be it what they wanted or not. They commit with words only. So as a purchasing group they are unreliable and a source of loss for the company.

And as I stated some time ago, it is good for Pentax starting care less about them, because in the end, they are a bad bunch to deal with: never happy, seldom open to anything new and the brand must be new in some way.

And with each new day it seems Ricoh Imaging keeps its concerns just contrary to the list of Pentax Forum members requests and demands. And every interview seems to be pointless. Well, maybe it is a good sign after all.

[cfraz]

We've killed it as far as the USA is concerned though, so good luck getting anything else we want from Ricoh.

This surprises me. On a scale of 1 - 10, I would have guessed the effect of PF forum chatter on USA sales is somewhere South of 1. Way South. I take it you believe we have much greater influence?

[jatrax]

This surprises me. On a scale of 1 - 10, I would have guessed the effect of PF forum chatter on USA sales is somewhere South of 1. Way South. I take it you believe we have much greater influence?

Actually I think the effect of PF forum chatter is quite large. I suspect they monitor this site continuously. And then do exactly the opposite of what is moaned about.

[LeeRunge]

I'm sure the forum has some influence on sales. I'm sure many people buying Pentax in the USA are doing so sight unseen from an online retailer (I've never seen Pentax in a store in the US). This probably involves some research which would lead you here. Seeing a predominantly negative view of a camera could turn away a customer. I know when I bought my initial Pentax (K7) it involved a lot of research and this forum was included in that. Had I read a bunch of negative views/reports It would have weighed heavy upon my decision.

Targeting smartphone users is sketchy anyway. Most smartphones come in at 100 dollars or less when you sign on to a contract. This is one of the reasons the point and shoot (at least simple ones) are pretty much dead. This thing essentially costs 7x what an iphone does without a lens. I question how much demand actually exists for that user (young people don't have a lot of money these days). If it really is a untapped market is this truly what they are looking for? Standard DSLR controls exist for a reason, they are time tested and work well.

It's sad we cannot even discuss concerns like this on this forum without people freaking out about pre-killing the product.

[ElJamoquio]

This surprises me. On a scale of 1 - 10, I would have guessed the effect of PF forum chatter on USA sales is somewhere South of 1. Way South. I take it you believe we have much greater influence?

I dunno. The exec of Pentax USA took at least a week or two out of his schedule to talk to us, individually.

Obviously he was trying to get a pulse on what we want.

[Gray]

"PF forum chatter" certainly has quite a large effect in my initial selection/rejection of Pentax equipment, but it depends on who's doing the chattering. For the most part over the last three years I've learned whose opinions to value and whose to filter out and ignore.

What effect PF forum chatter has on Ricoh in the US (or in Japan) is anyone's guess, but I'm certain they don't make business decisions based on the chatter of a minute, self-selecting and unrepresentative sample of their customers.

[cfraz]

I dunno. The exec of Pentax USA took at least a week or two out of his schedule to talk to us, individually.

Obviously he was trying to get a pulse on what we want.

And I think it was time well spent for him, if he made use of the PF mindshare. Relates to the K-3 type products. But as far as I can see, the K-S1 is purposely targeted to those who don't read photo forums.

[Zygonyx]

But as far as I can see, the K-S1 is purposely targeted to those who don't read photo forums.

Good one, at least most of our posters here.

[luftfluss]

Checking in on this thread after being away for a few days.

I was out taking pictures with my Pentax K-01.

[DennisH]

Checking in on this thread after being away for a few days.

I was out taking pictures with my Pentax K-01.

Wait, these things take pictures?

[luftfluss]

Wait, these things take pictures?

I know, right? I was totally !!!

[Doundounba]

FWIW, after some consideration, I can see the K-S1 being my next Pentax body, once the price comes down a bit, and provided I like it when I handle one in person. I'm sure it will be a very competent photographic machine, and I'm willing to give the DSLR experience a try (currently shooting with two K-01 bodies, and loving it). I think some of the original photos that leaked were unduly unflattering. I do wish it had a better AF module and most especially a tilting LCD. But the 20mp without AA should provide great results. I am also considering a move to a m4/3 body with IBIS, along with a four thirds adapter and a four thirds macro lens, if I can find one. (The Olympus 60mm macro is a bit short for my taste.) Macro is my main thing right now, and the lack of a tilting LCD is the major point of pain in using the K-01 for that.

For the record, I am a North-American male, over 40, and a regular here for about 20 months.

[monochrome]

It's sad we cannot even discuss concerns like this on this forum without people freaking out about pre-killing the product.

K-01.

Pentax America didn't even put it on their website (not the Webstore, the WEBSITE) until release date. (I made an extensive, researched post comparing the USA Division's website to the other Division Websites worldwide. Everyone else had a highly evolved front page feature on announcement day).

I pre-ordered a K-01 from B&H through a link here. 'Someone' in the order chain contacted me and asked, "Are you sure you don't want to wait for a K30?"

Both are absolutely true stories.

The current vitriol is just slightly less extreme than the spring of 2012 - just slightly.

You can discuss Wi-Fi and hinged LCD's all night - I'd actually agree about a hinged LCD if commenters would just admit its purrpose is the same as a refconverter was in analog days. However, the number of posts referring to a hinged LCD as a selfie tool is astonishing - even from shooters! I really, truly think (except for the few users who would actually fill up a Pentax FluCard with files) in-camera Wi-Fi is a solution in search of a problem. Do we really want a 'Publish' button on a dSLR? Really?

'We' is both PF and RIAC, who have IMHO not followed the global marketing points. Near as I can tell the entire entry-level, attract the phone shooters, feature the grip LED's is a US meme. K-S1 isi a very capable mid-range camera with a snazzy, different design. It is an atttempt to make the interface more welcoming for people who are intimidated by both too many buttons and too much Menu diving. What's wrong with trying the Mode Dial on the back of the camera and backlighting it? What's wrong with an LED visual cue for still and movie around the release button? For whatever reason people here hate the design and want the camera to fail.

Someone here (resonsible party) slammed the designers because the grip LED's are of course covered when you hold the grip - MAJOR DESIGN ERROR was implied. Well, duh!! They're not flashies to attract kiddies. They're a different implementation of a count-down timer, and they have that face-recognition counter. They're only intended for use on a tripod or a stack of books!! You wouldn't use the LED's when you were holding the camera by the grip.

At its most generous interpretation such blindness is willful ignorance.

[LeeRunge]

K-01.

Pentax America didn't even put it on their website (not the Webstore, the WEBSITE) until release date. (I made an extensive, researched post comparing the USA Division's website to the other Division Websites worldwide. Everyone else had a highly evolved front page feature on announcement day).

I pre-ordered a K-01 from B&H through a link here. 'Someone' in the order chain contacted me and asked, "Are you sure you don't want to wait for a K30?"

Both are absolutely true stories.

The current vitriol is just slightly less extreme than the spring of 2012 - just slightly.

You can discuss Wi-Fi and hinged LCD's all night - I'd actually agree about a hinged LCD if commenters would just admit its purrpose is the same as a refconverter was in analog days. However, the number of posts referring to a hinged LCD as a selfie tool is astonishing - even from shooters! I really, truly think (except for the few users who would actually fill up a Pentax FluCard with files) in-camera Wi-Fi is a solution in search of a problem. Do we really want a 'Publish' button on a dSLR? Really?

'We' is both PF and RIAC, who have IMHO not followed the global marketing points. Near as I can tell the entire entry-level, attract the phone shooters, feature the grip LED's is a US meme. K-S1 isi a very capable mid-range camera with a snazzy, different design. It is an atttempt to make the interface more welcoming for people who are intimidated by both too many buttons and too much Menu diving. What's wrong with trying the Mode Dial on the back of the camera and backlighting it? What's wrong with an LED visual cue for still and movie around the release button? For whatever reason people here hate the design and want the camera to fail.

Someone here (resonsible party) slammed the designers because the grip LED's are of course covered when you hold the grip - MAJOR DESIGN ERROR was implied. Well, duh!! They're not flashies to attract kiddies. They're a different implementation of a count-down timer, and they have that face-recognition counter. They're only intended for use on a tripod or a stack of books!! You wouldn't use the LED's when you were holding the camera by the grip.

At its most generous interpretation such blindness is willful ignorance.

I had to look up revconverter, agreed, tillty flippy screens are basically the live view version of that. I've just been laying on the ground or kneeling and haven't had one yet, looks nice though.

As for wifi, it's attractive to me although I don't post a lot of sooc images to the web, they usually go through lightroom first. If I do it's via the eye-fi to my andriod phone then to the web. I would rather not purchase add on cards myself as they are clunky to use, not the end of the world by any means.

K01 missed the mark that's all. Good sensor but it was a large camera for a mirrorless. Lot's of Sony options were competing for that market at the time and had viewfinders. Also the X-pro1 came out about the same time.

I don't think this KS-1 is missing the mark quite in the manor the K01 did. It's going to get made fun of for the lights though, no stopping that (Digitalrev will have a field day!). I still do believe everyone (I sure do, and I'm 36) look up reviews these days prior to purchase, everyone does that for online purchases or retail in a store. I don't think people buy 750 dollar anything without a quick look at reviews, a simple iphone/andriod search in the store will do that for you. If they get the interface right the lights will be forgiven. If that interface gets poor press and generates low scores then this camera is going to have a rough life.

I have a delorme inreach with satellite texting. I'm out in Utah now and ride motorcycles (dual sport) way out into the desert where cell phones don't work. I'd LOVE to see a camera work with iridium for uploading photo's remotely. It would take a long time to get them uploaded but would be a really cool feature for me. Photojournalists already do this with iridium mobile setups, it's just super slow.

I don't think this is Pentaxisdoomed..............unless they discontinue the K50/500 and K3 for the K-S1