[lotech]

Beside image quality which can be quite subjective, whatelse do you feel Pentax S/DSLR is over others in the design and operations ? I can think of one simple thing it's the lens release button ! It is located at the right side of the body which easily accessible with the same hand holding the camera, without the need of change hand or put down on the table that allows quick lens changes, most of the other made can't do that.

[wadge22]

Backwards compatibility of the K mount for old lenses (and between APSC and FF lenses) is hugely appealing for me.
Don't know if that's entirely the kind of feature you're looking for, but it's an important feature of the brand in my book.

Also the weather sealing.

[pepperberry farm]

Beside image quality which can be quite subjective, whatelse do you feel Pentax S/DSLR is over others in the design and operations ? I can think of one simple thing it's the lens release button ! It is located at the right side of the body which easily accessible with the same hand holding the camera, without the need of change hand or put down on the table that allows quick lens changes, most of the other made can't do that.

build quality, especially in the K-5 and K-3 lines...

backward compatibility with the k-mount...

the lens release button, however, is same on Fuji MILC's also...

[lotech]

Yes all mentioned above !

[ChristianRock]

I find the ergonomics to be just right, and the feel of quality is usually better than the competing level camera. I remember having a D7000 and my K-r in my hands years ago and the K-r felt better built, despite being an entry level camera. But I think other makers like Fuji are also at least as good in that regard.
Backwards compatibility, as was mentioned, is very important to me. Having no-nonsense controls and menus always helps.
I really like the lens lineup as well, especially considering what you get for the price.

[Mooncatt]

IBIS: Sure, other cameras are getting it now, but they had it first long before others, giving you image stabilization no matter what the lens was.

Astrotracer: 'Nuff said.

Pixel Shift: Other cameras have something similar, but they use it to give higher resolutions without really improving image quality. Most people don't need hyper resolutions, but virtually eliminating noise at the base resolution can be a game changer for still life.

[biz-engineer]

I find the ergonomics to be just right, and the feel of quality is usually better than the competing level camera.

Rightly said, mid-range Pentax bodies are generally better designed than competitors' mid-range. I'd add Ricoh are also capable of design flaws due to lack of communication/testing by the customers, I believe the concepts are tested internally only or by trustworthy local Japanese Pentaxians. The K-1 has a couple of basic design flaws, I can imagine it was tested only by people who were already used to the design, not critical. Those flaws were corrected on the K3 III. Beside not having a moveable display, the K3 III design is better than K1, IMO.

[lotech]

Ergonomics is very important to me, I like the comfortable grip of the Ks, and also interested to try something slightly different, the KP if I can find a good used one. I like the slightly retro look of the KP, and frankly I am not 100% fall for the K3-III purely for the look of it, and I can get most of the feature on the KP at much lower cost.

[yucatanPentax]

To me, "the package" is just right.
I like the build quality, the ergonomics and menu system (more logical than some), the IBIS, lens mount compatibility with my very first SLR lenses, weather resistance (although maybe not quite what we were given to believe 8-10 years ago), all of it together. I've used Olympus, Samsung, Canon, and I just prefer Pentax overall.

[jersey]

I suppose Pentax is more or less equal to what other companies are offering in same segment. Bulld quality is ok, Pentax feels different then modern MILC but not worse or better, just different. More old-school. Ergonomics is so-so for me. I like the overall feel in hand, it is very balanced. But I do not like button layout when compared to Olympus or Nikon. Especially Nikon. LV is also so-so when compared to MILC.


What Pentax sucks at is connectivity when compared to others. Being old-school is nice and good but when you fight with supplied software then it is really, really bad sign of company unable to present high-quality, completed product. I think Pentax has a lot to do on this field.

Still overall package is ok, it is better for me then what others offer, but this is individual I suppose.

[Madaboutpix]

The flagship ergonomics and sense of quality build since the K-7 just click with me to a point where the camera feels like an extension of myself, the moron behind the camera. I just like to touch and operate these cameras. Have never experienced anything quite like it before. If Pentax ceased to exist and I decided to change systems, I'd probably look at Nikon for anything remotely close.

I do agree to some extent with those holding that different is not necessarily better, and that some of all this may just come down to taste or personal preference, but then after twelve years of happy use I'm strongly prejudiced towards Pentax, I guess.

I also like the way Pentax design favours ergonomic soundness over retro styling as an end in itself.

[biz-engineer]

I also like the way Pentax design favours ergonomic soundness over retro styling as an end in itself.

Ricoh are a bit forced to play the ergonomics card because they aren't developing their sensors / processors in house like Sony, Canon and Nikon (design), the consequence being that inner Pentax guts are generally 2 to 5 years behind others. Every time I think of switching I am confronted to the same problem, get the latest electronic tech with sub-standard ergo and user interface, or get 2 years, 3 years or older electronic tech in a camera that I can use closed eyes without thinking. I could get a Sony latest model with top notch imaging pipeline 20 FPS & all, but I know it's going to hurt every time I use the camera, the specs are easy to read, the ergonomics not so much.

[BarryE]

The Pentax badge/logo :-) I like it that it doesn't say Nikon/Canon/Sony etc ...

... and the construction, ergonomics, the quirky direction Ricoh is taking the brand and it's generally understated nature. Ok, other brands may have some aspects of their designs that are better than Pentax, but so what.

Guess this might make me sound like a fanboy. Never really thought about that. I've given up caring, to be honest what the others are doing, just so long as Ricoh keep things ticking on as they are (with the GR range too).

[macman24054]

Guess this might make me sound like a fanboy

Suppose I am the same. I'm to bought into the system to switch. At this point, I am just concerned about what Pentax gear is being put out and it's capabilities. The other brands don't concern me. Pentax gear just works right. From build and image quality to ergonomics and menu system I like what I get, For my photography needs, I feel that no other brand would help make my experience any better.

[lotech]

I came across lot of different made of SLR when I start shooting with film long time ago. My first SLR was the Yashica FX-3, a plain simple basic camera like the K1000. Then later the Minolta X-700, similar to the Super A. Then the crazy heavy tank like XM, and I took my very first sharp photo ever due to the heavy and solidly build body absorbed the vibration, it was the film era no vibration reduction such thing !

Nikon was the king back then, Minolta was just a joke to the pros, I was young and silly (still silly now ha !) and can only afford the FM2, and I got the motor drive as well. The combo was heavy and soild enough but oh God it was so chunky uncomfortable to hold, Nikon simply put two pieces of metal together "ergonomics" was not on their dictionary, until after the F3 things started to change.

Then I decided to get something better than the Nikon and relatively affordable than the Lecia, Contax was it. I purchased the 167MT with mix of West Germany and Japan made lenses, also an used RTS II. I was so broke can't sustain any longer and parted with the kit after couple years, but I still keep the FM2 for a while and started to look at the Pentax.

The reason I turned to Pentax was the m42 compatibility, I started to play with CZJ and Russian made vintage lenses back then, where the Russian ones were first available in F and K mount before other made like Canon and OM.

Then after few years I started digital with an used OM E-300 and quite satisfied with it, then after few months I decided to get something brand new either a OM or a Pentax, it was before I know about sensor crops. I was lucky to came across a clearance of a K20D and I grabbed it, it was then I know what is "ergonomics" and weather sealing, I'm glad I picked the right gear and completely fall for it !