[BarneyL]

Best selling Pentax DSLR on kakaku.com:
https://kakaku.com/camera/digital-slr-camera/ranking_0049/

K-3 III is 25th on this list, below D500, D850 and 90D, unless I'm missing something. edit: now I see, it's best selling Pentax branded SLR. Well, okay...

In my country, K-3 iii sold worse than Canon 90D, 6D II, 250D and Nikon D5600, at least according to one of the major shop chains that decided to publish such results for the year 2021. The results were top 10 of all ILC cameras, so the exact placement of K-3 iii in sales rank in DSLR category is unknown. Could be 5th, could be 10th.

As insider info, I referred to few users here posting those, citing RI representatives as their sources.

Anyway. I'm definitely curious if they are going to show those special editions at coming CP+.

[Kunzite]

In my country, K-3 iii sold worse than Canon 90D, 6D II, 250D and Nikon D5600, at least according to one of the major shop chains that decided to publish such results for the year 2021. The results were top 10 of all ILC cameras, so the exact placement of K-3 iii in sales rank in DSLR category is unknown. Could be 5th, could be 10th.

And... do you think Ricoh Imaging thought they'd suddenly sell better than Canon and Nikon?

[BarneyL]

And... do you think Ricoh Imaging thought they'd suddenly sell better than Canon and Nikon?

Seeing how Nikon and Canon people are moving towards mirrorless and both of those companies keep discontinuing EF and F mount products, I would expect Pentax to fare better in DSLR category, yes.

Well, I guess we can just say that Pentax K-3 III wins in Pentax DSLR category, having 2016-17 cameras as its competitors. Let the champagne flow.

[Rondec]

The fixed LCD on the K3 III has nothing to do with usability. Ricoh made it fixed LCD because some customers buy and own more than one camera, you'd buy a KP or a K1 for the flip screen and a K3III for the speed, so you'd buy two cameras instead of one. Canon are doing the same, the 7D was often sold to customers already using a 5D. All camera brands do the same, they design cameras so that they are complementary and not cannibalize sales. The number of photographers on the planet is fixed and in the ILC business it is difficult to acquire customers from other brands due to proprietary lens mounts, so one way to make more money is to sell more to the same customers. Ideal customer buys a Ricoh Theta (360), and Ricoh GR (small, in the pocket), and a Pentax 645z (nostalgia of medium format), and a Pentax K1II (for using old FF glass) and the Pentax K3III (for the speed), and also a Pentax KP (when speed isn't needed), and also buy apsc and full frame and medium format lenses. Buying all that makes Ricoh (or Canon, or Nikon, or Sony, or..) marketing smile, it's called happy marketing

---------- Post added 07-01-22 at 18:50 ----------


You can do that if that makes sense to you, and gain peace of mind.

I had always assumed that Pentax was building to a specific price point and the flippy screen would push them over that point. Considering the current price for the K-3 III is 2000 dollars, there probably was some concern about going too high with it.

[jpzk]

According to Pentax rumors, Ricoh will release 6 different version of the Pentax K3 mk III. I guess Ricoh didn't know how to decide what variant is best to make, so they decided to do them all, only a guess.

Source: Pentax online event additional coverage: there will be a total of six different versions of the Pentax K-3 Mark III DSLR camera - Pentax Rumors

I don't know if this has been asked: which of the six versions takes the best pictures?

[biz-engineer]

I had always assumed that Pentax was building to a specific price point and the flippy screen would push them over that point. Considering the current price for the K-3 III is 2000 dollars, there probably was some concern about going too high with it.

I'm not sure how many people are aware of the recent inflation trend. I just looked at the price for a new PC, that's almost double the price I paid in 2016. I also see price increases for products other than electronics, I told myself inflation is how we're going to refund the costs of covid.

---------- Post added 07-01-22 at 20:32 ----------

I don't know if this has been asked: which of the six versions takes the best pictures?

The one that gives its owner a kick in photography mojo. One reason why medium format camera take better pictures is because once the owners have spent that much money they have no excuse to not put more efforts into the image creation itself (composition, light etc).

[Kunzite]

Seeing how Nikon and Canon people are moving towards mirrorless and both of those companies keep discontinuing EF and F mount products, I would expect Pentax to fare better in DSLR category, yes.

I would expect Nikon and Canon to fare worse. And they most likely did.

And I can't agree with your forcibly pessimistic way of "interpreting" the data. There are no less than 9 DSLR models announced after 2017. One of them did better than the Pentax: the 90D.
In fact just 3 DSLRs did better than the Pentax. The rest are MILCs, and guess what, there are tons of MILCs which did worse - the X-T4 for example, or the RP, or the Zfc, or the G9. Basically whatever didn't fit into the 24-3 positions.

[luftfluss]

What kind of pricing premium would a monochrome K-3 III command over the original?

Would it be a better bet to revive the KP as a monochrome camera - KP-M? Or is that bandwidth lost due to K-3 III production?

[ZombieArmy]

What kind of pricing premium would a monochrome K-3 III command over the original?

Would it be a better bet to revive the KP as a monochrome camera - KP-M? Or is that bandwidth lost due to K-3 III production?

The cost just comes down to it being a low volume item. IR and mono cameras I'd assume don't have much more intrinsic cost to them. I will however admit ignorance to the process. It could be more cost per unit if the sensors have to be ordered from sony without they beyer filter rather than just leaving something off in assembly. Ricoh would obviously have more information on this.

[luftfluss]

The cost just comes down to it being a low volume item. IR and mono cameras I'd assume don't have much more intrinsic cost to them. I will however admit ignorance to the process. It could be more cost per unit if the sensors have to be ordered from sony without they beyer filter rather than just leaving something off in assembly. Ricoh would obviously have more information on this.

Generally, any exception to the existing manufacturing process incurs cost. Pentax would have to modify the firmware, menu system, "digital filters", Accelerator, AF module, and more. This cost would be spread over relatively few units, so the "intrinsic cost" would be greater on a per unit basis. The question is, how much?

[RobA_Oz]

I would expect Nikon and Canon to fare worse. And they most likely did.

And I can't agree with your forcibly pessimistic way of "interpreting" the data. There are no less than 9 DSLR models announced after 2017. One of them did better than the Pentax: the 90D.
In fact just 3 DSLRs did better than the Pentax. The rest are MILCs, and guess what, there are tons of MILCs which did worse - the X-T4 for example, or the RP, or the Zfc, or the G9. Basically whatever didn't fit into the 24-3 positions.

That’s a remarkable performance, particularly when you line up the relative prices of the camera bodies listed. It’ll be interesting to see how the sales hold up over time. How often is this ranking undertaken? I note this is for the first week of the year.

[Kunzite]

That’s a remarkable performance, particularly when you line up the relative prices of the camera bodies listed. It’ll be interesting to see how the sales hold up over time. How often is this ranking undertaken? I note this is for the first week of the year.

Well, this isn't most likely even representative for Japan (just like BCN Ranking for that matter). Kakaku.com or price.com is getting its data from several suppliers including Map Camera, Rakuten, Camera Kitamura, Amajon.co.jp... I'm not seeing Yodobashi (note that I'm only aware of a few Japanese camera stores).
The time period is mentioned at the top of the list; for example now it's for 1 to 7 January, and the K-3iii is on #27. So I guess, actualized daily?

Oh, wait: at Yodobashi the K-3iii is on #5, just before a K-70, and before all Nikons (in a DSLR-only top this time). Out of stock right not.
https://www.yodobashi.com/category/19055/19056/53151/ranking/

These things... IMO they can only give us a hint, if we consistently see a camera in an upper position - then it couldn't sell poorly, not on that market, right?

[RobA_Oz]

Well, this isn't most likely even representative for Japan (just like BCN Ranking for that matter). Kakaku.com or price.com is getting its data from several suppliers including Map Camera, Rakuten, Camera Kitamura, Amajon.co.jp... I'm not seeing Yodobashi (note that I'm only aware of a few Japanese camera stores).
The time period is mentioned at the top of the list; for example now it's for 1 to 7 January, and the K-3iii is on #27. So I guess, actualized daily?

Oh, wait: at Yodobashi the K-3iii is on #5, just before a K-70, and before all Nikons (in a DSLR-only top this time). Out of stock right not.
https://www.yodobashi.com/category/19055/19056/53151/ranking/

These things... IMO they can only give us a hint, if we consistently see a camera in an upper position - then it couldn't sell poorly, not on that market, right?

Some comment from our Japan-dwelling members should give us an idea of the market share that those suppliers represent there. Nonetheless, they are selling all brands, but you are correct, I think, in saying that consistent performance should give us a better overall idea of how well the K-3iii is selling there.

[Kobayashi.K]

What kind of pricing premium would a monochrome K-3 III command over the original?

Would it be a better bet to revive the KP as a monochrome camera - KP-M? Or is that bandwidth lost due to K-3 III production?

The KP will not be revived because the successor is actually the K3-III after they initially decided to discontinue the K3-line. That's also the reason the KP was discontinued just before the K3-III came out. So, what is actually left is the K-70.

I think that notably the monochrome version would mainly appeal to minimalists. So in my opinion implementing that for the K3-III is not a good idea because it is a heavily dressed up camera with too many buttons, controls and advanced functions. The same for a manual focus version, that would mean downgrading the K3-III to a simpler version.

The solution is to make these two versions for the successor of the K-70. Keep this camera as simple as possible but upgrade it with a metal body, with the viewfinder of the K3-III, and make 3 versions: Standard, Monochrome, and Manual.

If you can make a simple but high quality monochrome successor of the K-70 that would also be a very interesting camera from a price point of view.

There is a possibility Pentax is actually making an inventory what a successor of the K-70 should look like, and disguising that by proposing these versions for K3-III. At least, I hope this is the route they are planning.

[thibs]

The KP will not be revived because the successor is actually the K3-III after they initially decided to discontinue the K3-line. That's also the reason the KP was discontinued just before the K3-III came out. So, what is actually left is the K-70.

I think that notably the monochrome version would mainly appeal to minimalists. So in my opinion implementing that for the K3-III is not a good idea because it is a heavily dressed up camera with too many buttons, controls and advanced functions. The same for a manual focus version, that would mean downgrading the K3-III to a simpler version.

The solution is to make these two versions for the successor of the K-70. Keep this camera as simple as possible but upgrade it with a metal body, with the viewfinder of the K3-III, and make 3 versions: Standard, Monochrome, and Manual.

If you can make a simple but high quality monochrome successor of the K-70 that would also be a very interesting camera from a price point of view.

There is a possibility Pentax is actually making an inventory what a successor of the K-70 should look like, and disguising that by proposing these versions for K3-III. At least, I hope this is the route they are planning.

I'd prefer a Full Frame Monochrome. Ideally a simpler full frame camera (K-2 ?) with monochrome sensor.
I slowly transitioning to full frame. I won't get back to APS just for monochrome. It makes no sense for me.

It doesn't mean there's no sense in a monochrome APS. Just not for my use.