Originally posted by monochrome
I'll bet Ricoh knows precisely who is its real audience.
Would you be happier if the K-3 and 645Z were held for Photokina? Ricoh has had a hell of a good year.
The irony is, K-3 and 645Z were exactly the products to announce at Photokina.
However Q, WG and G toys are an insult for a such show. Did Nikon announce their Coolpix with 1/2.3" sensor and made "news" out of it? Or will Leica bother everyone with their tiny sensored compacts? Canon, will they "steal" attention with a product more fit for American House Builders Association members?
Or perhaps Leica comes with a theme of celebrating 60 years of the M camera? And Canon announces a camera fit for their true enthusiasts — showing to them they really listen to their enthusiast audience?
Serious companies target a completely different audience for Photokina, which is
not electronics show or Disneyland, but the most respected
photography show on this planet. This is the show in which a serious company shows deep respect towards its ambassadors — people who are really enthusiastic about photography. Users who still keep this industry from sinking into the snapshoot oblivion.
So do I think Ricoh knows exactly who is their audience? I never underestimate their talent for no-show and mis-reading of their audience, and the pattern of behaviour fits into the historical pattern; each venue needs both a league of gentlemen, and a jester. Real trouble is, even if they wish to announce a few small goods for enthusiasts, their
timing and still no news in that arena shows they are fooling around with its loyal audience.
For this kind of silence at Photokina they'd better have
a bomb of a product, or simply pack up and avoid participating in such shows, and stop embarrassing the photography heirloom.