[Zygonyx]

The fact is, nobody or only a minority needs it.

[PentxOrni]

So, now my 50p...assuming the D500/D5 were expexted by Ricoh anyway. If you offer the K-1 at a competitive MSRP (i.e. significantly less when not matching comparable features) then the Pentax product will squeeze in just perfectly well...!
There are always different and mostly high expectations to a new product but you can't beat all features recently released by market leaders when you are a small market participant. Ricoh's estimations should be that realistic. Hence, launch your new device by attaching the right price tag and customers that like your brand and even new potential will be attracted as they have a real choice.

[redpit]

Reading your initial post makes me believe you are a VR expert. You live in a parallel VR world. You are so obviously annoyed by the upcoming FF that your next step is to sabotage the Pentax plant where the FF is being constructed... It's just so meaningless to ever bother again, but here is my post to lengthen your thread...

:-(

[infoomatic]

First, the investment in a full-frame camera is already done. This means that if they pull the emergency break and don't bring it to market they would have zero $ return on investment; this would be stupid, even if they produced your so-sought-after APS-H camera. Second, the market for the theta is considerably smaller, no one would buy this toy for 3k $ or: Ricoh won't sell millions of them to accumulate for a lower margin.
I am really anticipating the full frame camera, though I am not expecting something groundbraking (sensor shift and todays (even the slightly not so recent nikon d810 sensor) sensors paired with pentax knowledge in designing SLRs/UIs is enough for me)

[Rupert]

Otis says he can't beat the cat...he seldom agrees with cats, but says the cat nailed this one! He still found the OP to be worthy of one of his famous awards.......

Congratulations! You are the first to receive this prestigious award! Frame and hang it with pride!



Regards!

[pathdoc]

Here is my look on this subject.

Here is mine... "Boriscleto'd."

[mecrox]

All Ricoh or any other company can do is make their best bets on what they think will figure big in the future of their industry and allocate investment accordingly. I've always seen any move into FF as taking the whole camera division up the market and trying to secure much more of their revenue from the high end, thus having to rely much less on revenue from bargain basement alley where a small operation is at its weakest. There's nothing controversial or unorthodox about this; it's simple prudence. That's especially needed now that China and many developing economies in Asia are starting to wobble like a crazy blancmange.

A missing ingredient is video, imho. I suspect that this is only going to figure larger across all cameras in future. However, that might be a tough nut for Ricoh to crack because buying in sensor and processor chips means you are limited to what their makers serve up. This can be tweaked, I take it, but perhaps not a great deal more. So, breaking free of that and developing your own state-of-the-art video offering from the processor on up would be extremely costly and perhaps simply not worth it for a small outfit. Maybe buying it by acquiring a whole company specializing in video in would be more attractive as an investment. Who knows, though a greater video capability may be needed going forward if the market starts to expect any camera to be equally adept at video as at stills.

If Pentax don't release their much-heralded FF, then I'd assume it would be game over. They'd lose a lot of end-users but more importantly they'd probably lose a lot of retailers and that would force game over upon them. So, TBH, I simply do not see it happening. Too late now for such a major sudden change. More money for FF means more $$$ for the retail trade, too. Important not to forget that.

[RonHendriks1966]

Congratulations! You are the first to receive this prestigious award! Frame and hang it with pride!



Regards!

Thanks you for this prestigious award. No Red Dot, Eisa or TIPA award could give so much honor!

I put it on my facebook as cover image.

[Rupert]

Thanks you for this prestigious award. No Red Dot, Eisa or TIPA award could give so much honor!

Ron, you can also save it for cash value or prize that Otis will be giving out sometime in 2016. All of his awards qualify, even those of a dubious nature!

Good to see you have a sense of humor, some don't! When I saw Otis making this I was certain that I was going to win my first Otis Award for something I did or said....maybe I will be next!

Best Regards!

[pathdoc]

At this stage, if I were the Ricoh CEO and I had been watching this forum, I would come to the release and announce "First the bad news; the K-1 project has been terminated. On the other hand, we finally got all the bugs out of the Phillips sensor and we will be releasing the MZ-D in three weeks."

Then I'd wait for the horrified gasps and screams and give the photographic world about a minute to spread the rumour on the internet (here as well as elsewhere) before taking it all back and unveiling the full-frame DSLR to end all full-frame DSLRs. And everyone who had lost faith and traded in their Pentax gear for a Canon or Nikon FF-DSLR or a FF-MILC could scream in the Outer Darkness forever as far as I was concerned.

[dylansalt]

I still can't see why Pentax users are obsessed with Pentax FF

In many other threads, users of the K3 (the professionals) have stressed that the K3 can easily give the same IQ as a FF aka Nikon/Canon FF

So surely Pentax users can't really be wanting a Pentax FF only to be able to use their old legacy glass?

What other benefits would the Pentax FF actually offer ?

[Rondec]

I still can't see why Pentax users are obsessed with Pentax FF

In many other threads, users of the K3 (the professionals) have stressed that the K3 can easily give the same IQ as a FF aka Nikon/Canon FF

So surely Pentax users can't really be wanting a Pentax FF only to be able to use their old legacy glass?

What other benefits would the Pentax FF actually offer ?

I don't think anyone says that there is no benefit to full frame, they just say that the benefits come at the expensive of more shallow depth of field. For many types of photography, like portraiture, this is not a problem and can even be a benefit for the photographer, but there are times where you do need maximal depth of field and you are less likely to see benefit from shooting full frame there.

I think the biggest problem that I personally have is when folks show up and say that their full frame camera is two or three stops better than their APS-C camera was. The reality is that there is a little better than a stop difference between current generation crop and full frame cameras with regard to noise and dynamic range (D7200 actually matches some Canon models in dynamic range) -- that is a very real difference.

The biggest reason that people want full frame is exactly that -- want. I don't need full frame, but I do want it. I have a lot of full frame glass and I think it would be fun to have a new body and play around with it with the FA limiteds and the other lenses that I have that will work on it. And I do think there are plenty of other folks out there who will be interested in it as well if the price is right.

[npc]

So surely Pentax users can't really be wanting a Pentax FF only to be able to use their old legacy glass?

It used to be their current glass initailly ...

[pathdoc]

So surely Pentax users can't really be wanting a Pentax FF only to be able to use their old legacy glass?

Judging by the number of Pentax lenses that have had their aperture actuation levers irreversibly butchered by Canon FF shooters wanting to use Pentax legacy glass, I don't see a problem with wanting a fully compatible mount; do you?

[discharged]

First off, Ricoh imaging has a small market share, that is correct. But Ricoh is no small company.

Looking at forbes for 2015 Ricoh is placed at number 718 with 108195 employees
The last 10 years Ricoh has made a profit 9 years giving a surplus of $4.675 B

Values for 2015

Sales: $21.3 B
Profit: $771 M
Assets $22.9 B
Market value $8.2 B

Canon is ranked 235
Sales $35.2 B
Profit $2.4 B
Assets $37.2 B
Market value $49.8 B

Nikon isn't ranked

Sony is ranked 478
Sales $76.9 B
Profit $-1.5 B
Assets $135.8 B
Market value $34.2 B

Also, Ricoh is on a positive trend when it comes to profit. The sales and the assets has gone down the last years for Ricoh, canon and Sony. For both Sony and Canon this has made an impact on thier profit (in sonys case a bigger loss than the previous year)... Ricoh on the other hand has increased their profit. So somehow they have found a way in a recession in their niche to generate income.

So to summarize. I think we should let Ricoh decide what to go for, it seems they are fairly successful at making the right decision at the right time...