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01-20-2022, 12:09 PM - 2 Likes   #46
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QuoteOriginally posted by dlhawes Quote
Rather glaring omission in the gentleman's remarks: they have no plans to actually implement customer support, which I see as their weakest point, and the only reason I have resolved that wouldn't buy anything from them ever again.
Mmmm? It contributes nothing to the subject of the thread.
Is there somewhere written "useless venting" in the thread subject ?

01-20-2022, 01:12 PM - 2 Likes   #47
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QuoteOriginally posted by thibs Quote
Mmmm? It contributes nothing to the subject of the thread.
Is there somewhere written "useless venting" in the thread subject ?
You have to appreciate his commitment.
01-20-2022, 01:42 PM - 2 Likes   #48
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Vent aside, I think it's valid to ask how will the service and customer support look like when this artisan-type manufacturing gets adopted.
01-20-2022, 01:47 PM - 2 Likes   #49
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QuoteOriginally posted by BarneyL Quote
Vent aside, I think it's valid to ask how will the service and customer support look like when this artisan-type manufacturing gets adopted.
IMO, support won't be any different than it is now: official Pentax repair center or the local Ricoh Imaging own shop. For me in EU, Pentax support was always about contacting a distant repair center and shipping the camera/lens for repairs. No change.

01-20-2022, 05:29 PM - 1 Like   #50
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I wouldn't like an online presence only. I've had a hard time finding a place where I could feel and try the DA* 2.8/16-50mm PLM (partly because of a lack of dealers, last few weeks more due to a lockdown that has just ended). My local (big) shop doesn't stock Pentax. But there's no other way to try things out - and there are no Pentax meetings either. I also want to try the new 21mm. I need a physical presence in some sort of way. Only when you already know what you want, online buying makes sense.

I am assuming that ‘mall’ doesn't imply an Apple-like store - just a mistranslation for an online shop?
01-20-2022, 05:43 PM - 5 Likes   #51
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This kind of terrifies me, actually. I love my gear and had just decided to stick with Pentax vs leaping to Sony a7iv. This sort of feels like the last gasp to me, or the beginnings of a company moving in a direction I can’t semi-professionally go. . Think I better wait a bit for the dust to settle before doing anything rash though.
01-20-2022, 06:12 PM - 3 Likes   #52
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QuoteOriginally posted by mcleoud151 Quote
This kind of terrifies me, actually. I love my gear and had just decided to stick with Pentax vs leaping to Sony a7iv. This sort of feels like the last gasp to me, or the beginnings of a company moving in a direction I can’t semi-professionally go. . Think I better wait a bit for the dust to settle before doing anything rash though.
No pro, or semi-pro should touch Pentax gear, regardless of how good the cameras are. Accessible well stocked stores and rapid reliable service and repairs are essential for professional photographers. I love my Pentax gear, but if I ever went professional then it would have to be Canon or Nikon.

01-20-2022, 06:18 PM - 1 Like   #53
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QuoteOriginally posted by mcleoud151 Quote
This kind of terrifies me, actually. I love my gear and had just decided to stick with Pentax vs leaping to Sony a7iv. This sort of feels like the last gasp to me, or the beginnings of a company moving in a direction I can’t semi-professionally go. . Think I better wait a bit for the dust to settle before doing anything rash though.
Indeed. I'm kind of in limbo between staying with Pentax or getting a Nikon Z6II or Sony a7IV. I'm busy playing with the SMC DA Limited primes that I recently got, so I won't be doing anything rash for a while. The DA* zoom lenses have been tempting me, but I think I'm gonna hold off on those for a while.
01-20-2022, 06:25 PM - 6 Likes   #54
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QuoteOriginally posted by TheLastMan Quote
No pro, or semi-pro should touch Pentax gear, regardless of how good the cameras are. Accessible well stocked stores and rapid reliable service and repairs are essential for professional photographers. I love my Pentax gear, but if I ever went professional then it would have to be Canon or Nikon.
I work with Pentax cameras professionally, Although it is true Pentax doesn't have professional services where I'm located but that certainly hasn't stopped me, my solution is to have multiple cameras as back up. I do work with Nikon Mirrorless* and DSLR cameras but a lot of studio work is done on Phase one, Hasselblad, and Leica with my Pentax and Nikon cameras being for on location work as they have stellar durability....and let's not forget about the Pentax Limited lenses that often produce images that catch clients eyes with amusing regularity.

* Yes, I have a Z9 - it's a good camera but I find the ergonomics of the Z cameras a little awkward compared to the utilitarian design approach Pentax uses. A lot of real estate on the top plate of the Z9 is completely absent of controls which really annoys me, also I feel the rear LCD on the Z9 isn't quite as sturdy or as well articulated as the Pentax K-1.
01-20-2022, 06:33 PM - 11 Likes   #55
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01-20-2022, 07:04 PM - 6 Likes   #56
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Sorry, everyone. I bought into Olympus, now it’s a shell of its former self. Then I bought into Pentax, and this happens.

It’s all my fault, I guess.
01-20-2022, 07:16 PM   #57
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I question if this legit. Look at the effective date, April Fool's Day.
01-20-2022, 07:21 PM - 9 Likes   #58
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Nothing has happened. The company just has a change of CEO and some change in sales strategy, mainly in Japan. Note that it does cost a lot to incentives stores to promote Pentax in Japan, and they probably think the balance has shifted towards just handling sales themselves and cutting out the middle-man.

Note that Akahane-san is also a returning leader, and in his former tenure he oversaw the introduction of the K-1 and additional batch of DFA lenses - staples of the professionals who use Pentax.

If the news is that brick and mortar stores are not so important, well that's not news is it? It's just the reality that Ricoh is facing up to with a plan. Those stores never handled servicing and support for Pentax properly anyway. Half the time they pushed customers away from Pentax and to the big brands.

I think it's wrong to assume too much at this stage. And also, if this was really a sign of Ricoh struggling, they wouldn't be making announcements months in advance and linking to the announcement on their Twitter account. There's no sense in teasing bad news. So obviously they think it is a positive thing for customers to look forward to.

---------- Post added 01-21-22 at 11:23 AM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by cdd29 Quote
I question if this legit. Look at the effective date, April Fool's Day.
April 1 is a normal date to start things in Japan. It's probably the most common date to start new business initiatives.
01-20-2022, 07:32 PM   #59
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QuoteOriginally posted by cdd29 Quote
I question if this legit. Look at the effective date, April Fool's Day.
April Fool's Day is not much of a thing in Japan.
01-20-2022, 07:39 PM   #60
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QuoteOriginally posted by JPT Quote
Nothing has happened. The company just has a change of CEO and some change in sales strategy, mainly in Japan. Note that it does cost a lot to incentives stores to promote Pentax in Japan, and they probably think the balance has shifted towards just handling sales themselves and cutting out the middle-man.

Note that Akahane-san is also a returning leader, and in his former tenure he oversaw the introduction of the K-1 and additional batch of DFA lenses - staples of the professionals who use Pentax.

If the news is that brick and mortar stores are not so important, well that's not news is it? It's just the reality that Ricoh is facing up to with a plan. Those stores never handled servicing and support for Pentax properly anyway. Half the time they pushed customers away from Pentax and to the big brands.

I think it's wrong to assume too much at this stage. And also, if this was really a sign of Ricoh struggling, they wouldn't be making announcements months in advance and linking to the announcement on their Twitter account. There's no sense in teasing bad news. So obviously they think it is a positive thing for customers to look forward to.

---------- Post added 01-21-22 at 11:23 AM ----------



April 1 is a normal date to start things in Japan. It's probably the most common date to start new business initiatives.
If they say they are no longer going to be mass manufacturing cameras and relying on cottage style manufacturing then something HAS happened.
There will be no scope for expensive new product development surely?
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