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02-23-2018, 03:01 AM   #1
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K1 Mk ii. Is Pentax marketing as dead as Tony Northrup says?

Here's Tony Northrup's preview of the K1 mk ii. He pessimistic about the Dynamic pixel shift and AF improvements but probably of more concern is the implication that Pentax marketing is quite dead.


02-23-2018, 03:03 AM - 7 Likes   #2
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Was this thread really necessary?
Why give one (uninformed) opinion extra exposure?
02-23-2018, 03:12 AM - 2 Likes   #3
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I might not agree with some of Tony's assertions but certainly I wouldn't dismiss him as an uninformed opinion.
02-23-2018, 03:18 AM - 5 Likes   #4
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I watched the review, and his comments about Pentax marketing are about the only thing he says that is observation, rather than speculation. Even so, Ricoh sells enough to make sufficient profit to encourage the company to keep making them. Marketing isn't just about advertising, as anyone who knows the theory will tell you.

02-23-2018, 03:24 AM - 1 Like   #5
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QuoteOriginally posted by MMVIII Quote
Was this thread really necessary?
Why give one (uninformed) opinion extra exposure?
I have been a Pentax user for 10 years now, I have had every top end APS-C body they have made and have owned every DA* lens they make (and then some) and have to say I totally agree with him. Pentax marketing is crap, it always has been. Another updated AG algorithm? How many do we have to have before we get a new AF module that is even comparable to my 6 year old Canon 7D? The only thing going for the K-1 update IMO is the new pixel shift and if that doesn't work as many people are expecting then I'm really at a loss as to where they will go next.
02-23-2018, 03:29 AM - 5 Likes   #6
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QuoteOriginally posted by Andy Fern Quote
I might not agree with some of Tony's assertions but certainly I wouldn't dismiss him as an uninformed opinion.
He is guessing on every feature. Of course, he had no chance to test or see it. This is not a review, it is a speculative preview. And I think for this it is useless as he does not have information his opinion could be based on. For example, I don't know if I can recall it correctly, but for pixelshift the shutter opens only once and an electronic shutter is applied, therefore the sequence is taken in very short time, but not in 1 second, as he claims. If his follow-up opinion is based on the lack of proper information, how should I call it then?
02-23-2018, 03:29 AM - 2 Likes   #7
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If pentax marketing was any good they wouldn’t have sent him a K1 with a SMC-A- 28-135/4 attached. No wonder he couldn’t get the AF to work.....

02-23-2018, 03:31 AM   #8
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I am not at all au fait with marketing, the advertising side of it often has the effect of putting me off a product or "name" brand but I'm sure that Ricoh has some sort of a marketing strategy it works to.
The product either fills a niche to the extent it is profitable or competes with competitors by providing a better product, perceived or actual and establishes a reputation.
Pentax products appeal to me and I hope many others because of many positive aspects, if and when I upgrade I will probably stay with Pentax because of my enjoyment of the K-5. At the moment the only other option I might consider is mirrorless with adapters to be able to use my current lenses. I expect that any upgrade will entail upgrading my PC to be able to process bigger file sizes!
This forum has it's lurkers, some of whom move into the Pentax system it seems, maybe prompted by what they read here.
As long as there are people enjoying their Pentax cameras, maybe "word of mouth" will help with the marketing of new cameras, increase the user base and prompt 3rd party manufacturers to invest in making their new lenses with K mount.
Long live Pentax!
02-23-2018, 03:32 AM - 2 Likes   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by MMVIII Quote
He is guessing on every feature. Of course, he had no chance to test or see it. This is not a review, it is a speculative preview.
I'd call it speculative bashing
02-23-2018, 03:35 AM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by Mike.P® Quote
I have been a Pentax user for 10 years now, I have had every top end APS-C body they have made and have owned every DA* lens they make (and then some) and have to say I totally agree with him. Pentax marketing is crap, it always has been. Another updated AG algorithm? How many do we have to have before we get a new AF module that is even comparable to my 6 year old Canon 7D? The only thing going for the K-1 update IMO is the new pixel shift and if that doesn't work as many people are expecting then I'm really at a loss as to where they will go next.
Right, my bad. I did not watch it further than to his "pessimistic" opinion on some of the features he could not have tested. I was not aware what he says about the marketing, nor was I interested in hearing it, and I'm still not. Though, if this discussion should be about that, I'm out, sorry to have bothered you.
02-23-2018, 03:53 AM - 8 Likes   #11
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Andy, the first thing I'd say - with respect - is that the title of this thread is a little extreme and misleading, and it's likely to prompt some emotional responses.

Nowhere in the video did I hear Tony Northrup say or imply that Pentax marketing is dead... only that he doesn't know what's going on at Pentax and he'd like them to get in touch. That's quite different. Having said that, I agree that Pentax marketing doesn't seem to be as pro-active and prolific as some other manufacturers. Personally, I'm far more interested in the products than I am the marketing.

As for the rest of the video... His scepticism of certain features and updates means very little to me until he's tried them out.

Like a surprising number of members here on the forums, Tony seems to have been expecting the K-2, not the K-1II... but - like those forum members I refer to - he doesn't take into account the typical refresh vs new model cycle for Pentax. Coming out just two years after the K-1, the K-1II was never going to be a completely new camera - it's just a refresh, like the K-3II vs K-3. That said, the image processing technology from the KP, and the dynamic pixel shift sound like useful updates to me. I'll be a lot more interested to hear what real-world users - members of this forum - think of the camera once they've used it for a few weeks
02-23-2018, 04:19 AM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by BigMackCam Quote
Nowhere in the video did I hear Tony Northrup say or imply that Pentax marketing is dead... only that he doesn't know what's going on at Pentax and he'd like them to get in touch.
My apologies if it seemed provocative. But he did seem to imply that the marketing wasn't alive, as in the example given about how Ricoh hasn't put up a single video on its Youtube channel for over a year. That seems pretty dead imho. But I admit, those are my words not his.
02-23-2018, 04:20 AM - 1 Like   #13
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Let me add to what I said before: many people seem to confuse advertising with marketing. Giving Tony Northrup (and other Internet reviewers) a camera to test is one form of promotion, which doesn't involve significant costs, which traditional advertising does (I include online, as well as press, in that).

The old saw in marketing is that if you want to increase sales, you do one of two things: discount the price or advertise (or both). What I've seen almost continuously running for at least the past 12 months in our local and online advertising is the Big Three (and often as not the Lesser Two) advertising their current ranges at a discount through the dealers. They also advertise their forthcoming models without a price, but calling for early expressions of interest through a deposit. In such an environment, I wouldn't expect Pentax advertising to make much of an impact, so it isn't a strategy I would be enthusiastically supporting if I was in charge of their marketing, and I certainly wouldn't be playing in the discounting game.

Last edited by RobA_Oz; 02-23-2018 at 04:31 AM.
02-23-2018, 04:37 AM - 1 Like   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by RobA_Oz Quote
I watched the review, and his comments about Pentax marketing are about the only thing he says that is observation, rather than speculation.
QuoteOriginally posted by MMVIII Quote
He is guessing on every feature. Of course, he had no chance to test or see it. This is not a review, it is a speculative preview. And I think for this it is useless as he does not have information his opinion could be based on.
Totally agree about Tony Whatsup rumor mill and hypothesizing noise.

From my point of view, Pentax isnʻt trying to make a "D850 killer". They are keeping what is already successful in the K-1 and making affordable improvements. The implication that Canikony never does this with their models and releases is false. The option to upgrade your current K-1 is innovative, sustainable, and should be applauded.

I also find it annoying that Tony often says "we" instead of "I". Perhaps he is voicing the chatter and comments on his YouTube channel of his subscribers, but then he should say his subscribers instead of "we" or he should just take ownership of his editorial and say "I".

We live in a time where technology gives us many different options for taking photographic images. No single make or model is perfect for everything and everyone, and if a photographer really thinks they need a better DSLR than any of the 50 currently on the market, Iʻd say they need to look in the mirror and realize the photographer needs upgrading, not the camera.

Tony Whatsupʻs channel thrives on gear news, and what I hear in this video is a lot of whining about Pentax at a time when there is no news from his usual Canikony sources.
02-23-2018, 04:42 AM - 8 Likes   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by Andy Fern Quote
My apologies if it seemed provocative. But he did seem to imply that the marketing wasn't alive, as in the example given about how Ricoh hasn't put up a single video on its Youtube channel for over a year. That seems pretty dead imho. But I admit, those are my words not his.
No apology necessary, Andy I agree Ricoh doesn't seem to do much pro-active marketing, although we don't get to see how it engages with distributors and retailers.

I don't know how familiar you and others are with the Morgan Motor Company? It's a small, British niche manufacturer of sports cars founded in 1910, and still going strong today. The cars typically offer very few (if any) state of the art features. Some of the technology is almost agricultural in nature, and there are technically better cars available depending on the driver's priorities. But they're great quality and fantastic fun to drive, and they provide a quite different driving experience to alternative offerings from other manufacturers. The company and its cars have generated and retained a lot of loyalty from owner-drivers over the years. I rarely see any marketing from Morgan, save for its appearance at motor shows. It continues to sell a moderate number of cars every year, and shows no sign of stopping.

Pentax isn't a dissimilar brand, in my opinion. I'd like to see Ricoh push the brand more, but if what it's doing is in line with commercial expectations, that's fine with me. There will, I suspect, be sufficient demand for the products either way.
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