Originally posted by jatrax You assume that Ricoh wants to keep the current user base. Perhaps it is so small, so cheap, so picky, so quirky that they are better off starting from zero and building an entire new user base?
Maybe not entirely, but maybe they think that the FF user base already left and so there is no reason to convince current Corolla drivers to buy a Lexus. Better to market to Mercedes buyers and convince them to switch.
I hear lots of whining that Pentax needs a cheap FF to take care of current user base. I think that is wishful thinking, or whining. "Please mr. Ricoh make me a cheap FF because I cannot afford an expensive one". Not sure that is going to work, I think they are moving on and targeting people who can and will buy a $3,500 camera.
This I fully agree. I have budget for fullframe, and my FF target is like Nikon D810, Nikon Df, Canon 5DM3, or Sony A7RII.
If pentax make premium FF body, one can just imagine this is going to be above those FF camera I mentioned. Imagine if, new BSI sensor 42 Mpix, and combined with new milbeaut chip that is going to be used by Nikon D5 (
here is the rumour) , than nobody will complain about the price. And that will make the current user base proud, and some will start saving to buy the ultimate machine.
Subsequently, Pentax may introduce 2nd body FF camera with the lower specs to feed the current users who think what they need is only APSC.
The problem is, whether Ricoh can expand AF system
dramatically.