New firmware, lens-specific custom image and features for K-1, K-1 II and K-3 III

**ffking** · 10-29-2022, 05:11 AM

Originally posted by shyrsio

I was thinking: this could really help with the red color shift in sunsets. One of the things that really bugs me about the K1 sensor is its inaccuracy on sunset colors, the bright red is blown out early on and turns into yellow, really unrealistic. I have noticed that with abour -2ev the red stays on, but you loose exposure on the rest.
In theory, if the grad ND is simulated as shown on the Japanese site, it should do the work, since it merges the shot with an under exposed shot.
Just my 2 cents.

Interesting thought. I agree about the red-yellow shift - I've not yet found a convincing way of combating it.

Zygonyx · 11-03-2022, 06:21 AM - **4 Likes**

Even if you "spot" exposure and bring back the light via brutal post-processing ?

Like here (sorry for poor compressed jpeg quality) :

hundredf · 11-04-2022, 09:43 PM - **2 Likes**

Has anyone tried to buy the gnd feature outside of Japan? Could I try to buy if I use a VPN, or is their system blocking non-japanese credit card?
I bought a second-hand k-1 from a Japanese retailer, maybe I could give it a try later

hundredf · 11-12-2022, 08:03 AM - **2 Likes**

Ok, I bit the bullet and tried to order. I used a VPN to connect to a japanese server, just in case.
You have to create an account to order. They ask you for a japanese address and you can only input kanji as your name. I entered all the infos of a forwarding inbox I have in Japan (tenso.com) and managed to create an account on Ricoh's japanese website. You're offered to pay in either 3 different ways: paypay (not a typo), credit card or coupon codes.
You need a japanese phone number to use paypay, so I tried to buy using my credit card.
Of course, the payment system triggered an error (obviously because the name and address on my credit card didn't match their infos).

tl;dr: no, you can't buy the GND feature without either a japanese phone number/paypay account or a credit card issued in japan, for now.

Last edited by hundredf; 11-12-2022 at 08:11 AM.

reh321 · 11-12-2022, 09:30 AM

Originally posted by hundredf

Ok, I bit the bullet and tried to order. I used a VPN to connect to a japanese server, just in case.
You have to create an account to order. They ask you for a japanese address and you can only input kanji as your name. I entered all the infos of a forwarding inbox I have in Japan (tenso.com) and managed to create an account on Ricoh's japanese website. You're offered to pay in either 3 different ways: paypay (not a typo), credit card or coupon codes.
You need a japanese phone number to use paypay, so I tried to buy using my credit card.
Of course, the payment system triggered an error (obviously because the name and address on my credit card didn't match their infos).

tl;dr: no, you can't buy the GND feature without either a japanese phone number/paypay account or a credit card issued in japan, for now.

I’m not sure why they are being so insular about this - nor do I understand why people are so determined to send their money to Ricoh/Pentax.

**Mikesul** · 11-12-2022, 09:57 AM - **1 Like**

Patience. They will make it available for the rest of us eventually.

simon_199 · 11-12-2022, 11:26 PM - **2 Likes**

Being a purely "digital" product I see no logical reason to restrict it to a specific market if not that it is to be considered "experimental" and they are still deciding on price/business model/support policies for these paid upgrades. From this perspective, it's logical that they chose their home market as the testing ground, but I would be surprised if it will not be made available everywhere in the future. If the experiment is successful....

pschlute · 11-13-2022, 05:18 AM - **3 Likes**

Originally posted by simon_199

Being a purely "digital" product I see no logical reason to restrict it to a specific market if not that it is to be considered "experimental" and they are still deciding on price/business model/support policies for these paid upgrades. From this perspective, it's logical that they chose their home market as the testing ground, but I would be surprised if it will not be made available everywhere in the future. If the experiment is successful....

Exactly this.

Pentax announced at the start of the year that they are changing their business model to an "e-commerce and studio-style manufacturing" one. They also made clear this would be done in Japan first. So it is not really a surprise that the optional paid-for profiles which are being rolled out under this new business model are Japan only.

When they figure out how to deliver products to the rest of the world under this new model, we will be able to access them too.

jslifoaw · 11-13-2022, 07:53 AM - **2 Likes**

There might be legal / compliance considerations too. As much as it's easy enough to set up a virtual storefront, larger companies are often cautious about tax, licenses/permits, local distribution agreements, etc.

It's much easier to whitelist one country. They might also be worried about piracy (we've already seen a few posts here asking how to obtain it for free) and anecdotally, that is probably more likely to develop outside of Japan.

Andrea K · 11-15-2022, 07:58 AM

Originally posted by Wheatfield

Both of those features are very, very limited unless on a tripod. Possibly at some point in the future they will come up with a way of allowing the digital grad ND to be used in a crippled way without a tripod as well by linking it to the shake reduction system.

DPS can be used only without a tripod...

---------- Post added 15-11-22 at 16:09 ----------

No japanese Pentax Ambassadors review this function?

Wheatfield · 11-15-2022, 08:37 AM

Originally posted by Andrea K

DPS can be used only without a tripod...[COLOR="Silver"]

Yes, and it is a very limited tool compared to using a tripod and regular pixel shift according to what I've read here.

**jersey** · 11-15-2022, 09:53 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by simon_199

Being a purely "digital" product I see no logical reason to restrict it to a specific market if not that it is to be considered "experimental" and they are still deciding on price/business model/support policies for these paid upgrades. From this perspective, it's logical that they chose their home market as the testing ground, but I would be surprised if it will not be made available everywhere in the future. If the experiment is successful....

For digital sales there are mainly license issues that can hinder sales to different regions. Tax issues should be no-existant as they already have shops for EU and I think US so they could add it there as another product. Localization is not an issue as they are already offering various languages in menus and in such feature there are only some phrases to translate.

I think they consciously took the decision to offer it only for Japan, and I am not really sure it will reach other regions.

pschlute · 11-15-2022, 01:25 PM

Originally posted by jersey

I think they consciously took the decision to offer it only for Japan, and I am not really sure it will reach other regions.

Speculation on your part sir. I am quite sure we will get it in time.

**UncleVanya** · 11-15-2022, 06:11 PM

Originally posted by pschlute

Speculation on your part sir. I am quite sure we will get it in time.

It is certainly true that certain jurisdictions may be hard to enable due to legal issues. This may well need to be a limited experiment. I think this is part of why Sony stopped making the PlayMemories apps and selling them (some were free, some were paid).
Ricoh gets credit for trying something new - but it can be murky waters to do this. Here's hoping they figure out a model for payment that works.

**Kevin B123** · 02-21-2023, 02:41 PM

It's been a while since I updated the firmware to enable the GND in camera and still no sign of when I can buy the key to unlock it?
Did I miss something?
What are they up to?

Maybe CP+ 2023 will shine some light on it

11-03-2022, 06:21 AM - 4 Likes	#107
Zygonyx Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Ile de France Posts: 4,033	Even if you "spot" exposure and bring back the light via brutal post-processing ? Like here (sorry for poor compressed jpeg quality) : Last edited by Zygonyx; 11-03-2022 at 06:27 AM.

11-12-2022, 08:03 AM - 2 Likes	#109
hundredf New Member Join Date: Nov 2022 Posts: 3	Doesn't work outside of japan Ok, I bit the bullet and tried to order. I used a VPN to connect to a japanese server, just in case. You have to create an account to order. They ask you for a japanese address and you can only input kanji as your name. I entered all the infos of a forwarding inbox I have in Japan (tenso.com) and managed to create an account on Ricoh's japanese website. You're offered to pay in either 3 different ways: paypay (not a typo), credit card or coupon codes. You need a japanese phone number to use paypay, so I tried to buy using my credit card. Of course, the payment system triggered an error (obviously because the name and address on my credit card didn't match their infos). tl;dr: no, you can't buy the GND feature without either a japanese phone number/paypay account or a credit card issued in japan, for now. Last edited by hundredf; 11-12-2022 at 08:11 AM.

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10-29-2022, 05:11 AM	#106
ffking Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Old South Wales Posts: 6,039	Originally posted by shyrsio I was thinking: this could really help with the red color shift in sunsets. One of the things that really bugs me about the K1 sensor is its inaccuracy on sunset colors, the bright red is blown out early on and turns into yellow, really unrealistic. I have noticed that with abour -2ev the red stays on, but you loose exposure on the rest. In theory, if the grad ND is simulated as shown on the Japanese site, it should do the work, since it merges the shot with an under exposed shot. Just my 2 cents. Interesting thought. I agree about the red-yellow shift - I've not yet found a convincing way of combating it.

11-04-2022, 09:43 PM - 2 Likes	#108
hundredf New Member Join Date: Nov 2022 Posts: 3	Has anyone tried to buy the gnd feature outside of Japan? Could I try to buy if I use a VPN, or is their system blocking non-japanese credit card? I bought a second-hand k-1 from a Japanese retailer, maybe I could give it a try later

11-12-2022, 09:30 AM	#110
reh321 Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: South Bend, IN, USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,185	Originally posted by hundredf Ok, I bit the bullet and tried to order. I used a VPN to connect to a japanese server, just in case. You have to create an account to order. They ask you for a japanese address and you can only input kanji as your name. I entered all the infos of a forwarding inbox I have in Japan (tenso.com) and managed to create an account on Ricoh's japanese website. You're offered to pay in either 3 different ways: paypay (not a typo), credit card or coupon codes. You need a japanese phone number to use paypay, so I tried to buy using my credit card. Of course, the payment system triggered an error (obviously because the name and address on my credit card didn't match their infos). tl;dr: no, you can't buy the GND feature without either a japanese phone number/paypay account or a credit card issued in japan, for now. I’m not sure why they are being so insular about this - nor do I understand why people are so determined to send their money to Ricoh/Pentax.

11-12-2022, 09:57 AM - 1 Like	#111
Mikesul Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 7,594	Patience. They will make it available for the rest of us eventually.

11-12-2022, 11:26 PM - 2 Likes	#112
simon_199 Pentaxian Join Date: Oct 2014 Posts: 614	Being a purely "digital" product I see no logical reason to restrict it to a specific market if not that it is to be considered "experimental" and they are still deciding on price/business model/support policies for these paid upgrades. From this perspective, it's logical that they chose their home market as the testing ground, but I would be surprised if it will not be made available everywhere in the future. If the experiment is successful....

11-13-2022, 05:18 AM - 3 Likes	#113
pschlute Moderator Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Surrey, UK Photos: Gallery Posts: 8,216	Originally posted by simon_199 Being a purely "digital" product I see no logical reason to restrict it to a specific market if not that it is to be considered "experimental" and they are still deciding on price/business model/support policies for these paid upgrades. From this perspective, it's logical that they chose their home market as the testing ground, but I would be surprised if it will not be made available everywhere in the future. If the experiment is successful.... Exactly this. Pentax announced at the start of the year that they are changing their business model to an "e-commerce and studio-style manufacturing" one. They also made clear this would be done in Japan first. So it is not really a surprise that the optional paid-for profiles which are being rolled out under this new business model are Japan only. When they figure out how to deliver products to the rest of the world under this new model, we will be able to access them too.

11-13-2022, 07:53 AM - 2 Likes	#114
jslifoaw Pentaxian Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Toronto/Victoria Posts: 460	There might be legal / compliance considerations too. As much as it's easy enough to set up a virtual storefront, larger companies are often cautious about tax, licenses/permits, local distribution agreements, etc. It's much easier to whitelist one country. They might also be worried about piracy (we've already seen a few posts here asking how to obtain it for free) and anecdotally, that is probably more likely to develop outside of Japan.

11-15-2022, 07:58 AM	#115
Andrea K Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Rome, Italy Posts: 822	Originally posted by Wheatfield Both of those features are very, very limited unless on a tripod. Possibly at some point in the future they will come up with a way of allowing the digital grad ND to be used in a crippled way without a tripod as well by linking it to the shake reduction system. DPS can be used only without a tripod... ---------- Post added 15-11-22 at 16:09 ---------- No japanese Pentax Ambassadors review this function?

11-15-2022, 08:37 AM	#116
Wheatfield Moderator Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: The wheatfields of Canada Posts: 15,987	Originally posted by Andrea K DPS can be used only without a tripod...[COLOR="Silver"] Yes, and it is a very limited tool compared to using a tripod and regular pixel shift according to what I've read here.

11-15-2022, 09:53 AM - 1 Like	#117
jersey Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: 3City agglomeration Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,062	Originally posted by simon_199 Being a purely "digital" product I see no logical reason to restrict it to a specific market if not that it is to be considered "experimental" and they are still deciding on price/business model/support policies for these paid upgrades. From this perspective, it's logical that they chose their home market as the testing ground, but I would be surprised if it will not be made available everywhere in the future. If the experiment is successful.... For digital sales there are mainly license issues that can hinder sales to different regions. Tax issues should be no-existant as they already have shops for EU and I think US so they could add it there as another product. Localization is not an issue as they are already offering various languages in menus and in such feature there are only some phrases to translate. I think they consciously took the decision to offer it only for Japan, and I am not really sure it will reach other regions.

11-15-2022, 01:25 PM	#118
pschlute Moderator Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Surrey, UK Photos: Gallery Posts: 8,216	Originally posted by jersey I think they consciously took the decision to offer it only for Japan, and I am not really sure it will reach other regions. Speculation on your part sir. I am quite sure we will get it in time.

11-15-2022, 06:11 PM	#119
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,459	Originally posted by pschlute Speculation on your part sir. I am quite sure we will get it in time. It is certainly true that certain jurisdictions may be hard to enable due to legal issues. This may well need to be a limited experiment. I think this is part of why Sony stopped making the PlayMemories apps and selling them (some were free, some were paid). Ricoh gets credit for trying something new - but it can be murky waters to do this. Here's hoping they figure out a model for payment that works.

02-21-2023, 02:41 PM	#120
Kevin B123 Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2016 Location: Hampshire Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,187	It's been a while since I updated the firmware to enable the GND in camera and still no sign of when I can buy the key to unlock it? Did I miss something? What are they up to? Maybe CP+ 2023 will shine some light on it