[beachgardener]

The answer i got, is that it will most likely come, but they wouldnt tell me when. The same with GR

it makes me think, maybe 12 months from now.

[RuiC]

The K-3 was a departure from the recent norm of biannual flagship releases. The K-5 came out in 2010 and the K-5 II/s in 2012. One could argue that the K-3 was very necessary because the K-5 II was an incremental upgrade over the original K-5, featuring the same sensor with the major feature being the upgraded autofocus module. As wonderful as the K-5 II/s is, it was based on 3+ year old technology and was in much need of a refresh.

If Pentax is to update the K-3, what will they put in it? It's basically a K-3 II situation. There's no higher MP APS-C sensor out there, so it's just a matter of improving performance and autofocus technology. Given that the FF camera is coming this year, there's little reason to release a K-3 II when it would be such a marginal upgrade. I'd expect the AF technology to be overhauled for the FF camera and then put into a new APS-C body along with the inevitable processor upgrade that the higher MP count of the FF camera will require.

What about a FF camera in a K-3 body with rrp$$ marginally higher than the original K-3 price ???

[Na Horuk]

Maybe the K-3 being low priced is not a bad thing. Sure, there is a smaller profit margin, but maybe it gets new people into the system, where Pentax expects to make profits from lenses and upgrades down the line. Sell an affordable K-3 now, then wait for them to start lusting after the FF "if FF costs so much more, it has to be better, right? and K-3 is already great, so that must be amazing!" and buying more lenses for the high pixel density sensor..

[climbertrev]

The answer i got, is that it will most likely come, but they wouldnt tell me when. The same with GR

Listen to the man (or apologies, lady)
He/She knows

[Mike.P®]

Listen to the man (or apologies, lady)
He/She knows

What does he know?

While not wishing to seem rude to Kenspo, on this occasion he has admitted he know nothing

[kenspo]

Listen to the man (or apologies, lady)
He/She knows

I am a he

---------- Post added 02-14-15 at 01:12 PM ----------

What does he know?

While not wishing to seem rude to Kenspo, on this occasion he has admitted he know nothing

That is because i dont pretend to know more then i do. Even though i dont share everything

[savoche]

What does he know?

While not wishing to seem rude to Kenspo, on this occasion he has admitted he know nothing

Ken knows more than most of us What he knows he will tell when he's allowed to. And when he tells us he doesn't know, well, that tells us something, too.

As to the K-3 successor - I'd say Ricoh would not be very smart not to make one. Unless the upcoming FF is priced as the current APS cameras I see no reason to buy one. I find APS to be close to the perfect set of compromises for me.

[reh321]

K3 sequel probably won't come to the early part of 2016, if I read the tea leaves correctly. First of all, there isn't really anything wrong with the K3 -- it matches up well against current high end APS-C cameras. Sure, they could add more focus points, or an articulating screen, but I doubt that most current K3 owners would be particularly interested in those sorts of things if the sensor remains the same. The other factor is what has been mentioned above, which is that Pentax is going to really be focusing resources on the full frame release -- both with regard to the body and the lenses that will follow. We saw this with the 645z release, as it definitely took resources from the other mounts in order to get it out the door.

Anyway, that's my guess.

On those rare occasions when I wonder into food fights between Nikon and Canon, I usually can do as well as their entries with a K5! Other than for marketing reasons, Pentax may not need an upgrade quite yet. Hopefully they have paid off the development costs of the K3 by now, and can collect some actual profits while they collect their breath.

[Mike.P®]

Ken knows more than most of us What he knows he will tell when he's allowed to. And when he tells us he doesn't know, well, that tells us something, too.

Yes, it tells us he doesn't know

Personally I would love a K-3 successor, sooner the better. I have no need for full frame but a K-3II with tilt screen, Wi-fi and improved AF tracking would be very welcome.

[Barry Pearson]

As to the K-3 successor - I'd say Ricoh would not be very smart not to make one. Unless the upcoming FF is priced as the current APS cameras I see no reason to buy one. I find APS to be close to the perfect set of compromises for me.

I suspect that Ricoh is working on the assumption that the majority, probably the vast majority, of people buying entry-level or mid-level K-mount APS-C will never move to FF.

The highly vocal people in forums who crave FF are a tiny minority of the entire Pentax customer base. They are not representative, either of the current customer base or what it will plausibly become over (say) the next 5 years.

I don't think Ricoh wants to (inadvertently) promote the following message to newcomers:

"Buy our entry-level or mid-level APS-C cameras, then enhance your system with our DA and DA* small light lenses, then when you are ready for a top-end APS-C camera, we will force you to buy an FF camera and to replace all your DA and DA* lenses with D-FA lenses".

Ricoh don't promote the Q range as a step on the way to the K range. They don't promote the K range as a step on the way to the 645 range. They promote these as separate comprehensive systems in their own right.

They don't need to promote the K-APS-C range as a step on the way to the K-FF range. That might scare people off the K-APS-C range. They should promote the K-APS-C range as a comprehensive system whose top-end is capable of professional and international-class photography. (Which it most certainly is). And one which has the major benefits of comprising small and light (and good value) cameras and lenses which will be a good investment for the customer to make.

Ricoh should continue to develop the flagship model of the K-APS-C range.

[theperception2008]

I don't think there will be an entirely new "APS-C flagship" model in the near future, in the way that the K-3 was entirely new compared with the K-5/K-5II/K-5IIs series. I agree with the reasoning against this identified by you and others....

Also let us not forget that the origins of the K-5 started in fact with the K-7 which essentially was the beginning of that specific chassis. Like the K-10D and the K-20D the bodies seem to run for 2 iterations before being retooled and a new body developed and released. So we will probably see another model released with a body very similar to the K-3.

---------- Post added 02-14-15 at 03:28 PM ----------

Yes, it tells us he doesn't know

Personally I would love a K-3 successor, sooner the better. I have no need for full frame but a K-3II with tilt screen, Wi-fi and improved AF tracking would be very welcome.

More than likely you will get the things you wish for. they are probably concurrently developing it with the FF to mitigate development costs.

[Jonathan Mac]

As the K3 remains the best APS-C DSLR ever made, there's no great hurry to replace it. Ricoh have their hands full with the new FF and lenses for it. The only things that leap to mind as ways of improving the K3 are:

1. Fix the shoddy build quality of the mode knob
2. Improve the sensor
3. Un-cripple the mount

I'm not sure what other changes might be desired.

[Stone G.]

Sigh, my K1000 was in production from 1976 - 1997 with just incremental changes over the (20!) years. My K-3 (purchased in March last year) was launched around October 2013 - that's less than 1½ years from now.

Why such a hurry to replace something still so new and still so excellent?

[thibs]

As the K3 remains the best APS-C DSLR ever made, there's no great hurry to replace it. Ricoh have their hands full with the new FF and lenses for it. The only things that leap to mind as ways of improving the K3 are:

1. Fix the shoddy build quality of the mode knob
2. Improve the sensor
3. Un-cripple the mount

I'm not sure what other changes might be desired.

fps, AF.
I agree the K-3 is one of the best (if not the best) but people in general and press specially will tell you 7D mk2 (at least) is way way more better than a ..what? a Pentax? C'mon...

[D1N0]

The K-3 is little over a year old. I would not expect a successor just yet. The K-5 got a refresh after two years, but the market and product development is slowing down. So maybe a K-3 II at CP+ 2016?