[pres589]

It's not an Americanism, there's tech on here from more recently than 40 years ago, and have we seen anything that says Ricoh has committed a single man-hour to a K-1 update or replacement?

The Cocktail Napkin Hall of Fame - Eckel & Vaughan

[KiloHotelphoto]

I don't think I'm going out on a limb saying it will have a Sony sensor, but will it be the 42, 50 or 61MP, I'd guess the 42MP one.

It will finally have a joystick, no GPS and perhaps a less complicated flip out screen. They will probably stick with SD cards but if they go with the 50 or 61MP sensor they should probably go with a CFExpress card in one slot.

It will be $3900 and ship in September of 2024.

[Mikesul]

What is the point of all this baseless speculation? We will know when we know.

[Rondec]

You don't think they'll follow through with the same pentaprism material as the K-3iii?

I don't know. I think it comes down to a question of cost. The K-1 has a decent viewfinder. If scaling up the improvements found in the K-3 III costs an extra 200 dollars and puts the price tag at something like 3700 dollars then probably not. If the work is mostly done and it is relatively cheap to scale it up then I could see them adding it as a feature.

Typically, Pentax builds to a certain price point and figures out what features they can include without going over that price point. I doubt the K-1 III will be different.

[RobA_Oz]

I don't know. I think it comes down to a question of cost. The K-1 has a decent viewfinder. If scaling up the improvements found in the K-3 III costs an extra 200 dollars and puts the price tag at something like 3700 dollars then probably not. If the work is mostly done and it is relatively cheap to scale it up then I could see them adding it as a feature.

Typically, Pentax builds to a certain price point and figures out what features they can include without going over that price point. I doubt the K-1 III will be different.

It’s an interesting question from a couple of viewpoints. Looking at the cross-sections of the prisms in the K-3 versus the K-3iii, the latter’s seems to be taller, so if that’s the case with the K-1iii then that’s extra weight to carry as well as increased material cost. The other cost factor for making the blanks would be the reject rate – a larger mass could involve more defects. Polishing the sides shouldn’t occupy much more time, if any, as with coating deposition. It may be that the success of the K-3iii and K-3iii-mono has allowed Ricoh to recover the cost of developing the prism manufacturing processes, in which case that would help keeping the additional cost for a K-1iii prism to a minimum, whatever that is. There are many unknowns for us in this, of course, but some of us like to ponder the challenges and possible solutions they bring with them.

[robgski]

More snapping, less yapping.

[EssJayEff]

The K-1 has a decent viewfinder.

If I was putting a lot of my products' value in the OVF as a counter-option to mirrorless cameras, then (to me) "decent" isn't enough. I believe Ricoh needs to create the very best OVF experience it can muster. If the K-3 III has its best OVF ever, then leveraging that into an equal or even better experience for the K-1 III is paramount.

[Yaki]

I suppose this might not be the right place but since I didn't find a better place I'll ask here.
I wander will Pentax release a new version of K-1 with improved af comparable to K-3 III?

[pschlute]

I suppose this might not be the right place but since I didn't find a better place I'll ask here.
I wander will Pentax release a new version of K-1 with improved af comparable to K-3 III?

I have moved your question here, which is a more suitable sub-forum for it.

[ffking]

45 megapixels (give or take 15)

I sincerely hope it's not take!

You don't think they'll follow through with the same pentaprism material as the K-3iii?

There was some discussion by Ricoh at the time of the K-3ii release implying it would be prohibitively expensive, but they might have found a better solution to the problems they had with the K-3iii as a result of that experience - or simply changed their minds based of sales of the K-3iii, I suppose?

[RobA_Oz]

There was some discussion by Ricoh at the time of the K-3ii release implying it would be prohibitively expensive, but they might have found a better solution to the problems they had with the K-3iii as a result of that experience - or simply changed their minds based of sales of the K-3iii, I suppose?

I can’t imagine that the machining of the prism would be the problem with expense. After all, it’s just a matter of scale. Casting the blanks might be more of an issue – the greater mass might lead to a higher reject rate. Other than that possibility, I can’t see why they’d be so expensive as to rule them out. The price of the K-1iii is bound to be well above that of its predecessors, if the K-3iii is anything to judge by. Guess we’ll find out eventually.

[Lord Lucan]

I wander will Pentax release a new version of K-1 with improved af comparable to K-3 III?

Just about everyone on the forum has wondered that, and many have posted about it with the consensus that if there is not a significant improvement over the K-1ii in the AF performance then the K-1iii will be dead in the water.

[Lord Lucan]

What is the point of all this baseless speculation? We will know when we know.

1) It's fun.

2) It isn't baseless. There are a few with some inside knowledge on this forum, and there are other clues such as the availablity of sensors in the wholesale market.

3) Ricoh are believed to monitor this forum in order to gauge customer expectations (at least in the world outside Japan) and to get informal feedback. It is not their only source of market research, I'm sure.

[Yaki]

Just about everyone on the forum has wondered that, and many have posted about it with the consensus that if there is not a significant improvement over the K-1ii in the AF performance then the K-1iii will be dead in the water.

I am a little late but I join that consensus.

[pschlute]

I am a little late but I join that consensus.

I will make the same post i made recently in another thread on a similar topic.

The K-1II when combined with a modern DFA lens is very much improved over using a K-1 or K-1 II with an older DA or DA* lens.

I do not do much motorsports, but at this event last year with K-1 II + DFA 150-450 I got these kind of shots using AF-C. They were not a one-off..... over 90% of my shots that day were on target.

Use the latest lenses with your K-1 or K-1 II and you will have improved AF.