Originally posted by HopelessTogger Northrup himself did a vid about this. I'm trying to find it for you. I've known quite a few to dump their FF rigs for crop or even M4/3'rds and they're very happy.
If Pentax can pull it off regards the financials, then great. But TN mentions they have to produce a whole new line up of full frame glass whereas they could have continued crop development. Trying to compete with Canon and Nikon in the FF market is a big jump, maybe.
I'm glad Pentax made the K-1 (although the AF needs work). Got one right here.
That doesn't make it a trend. Especially when such cases are marketed heavily
Do you think the reverse isn't true, that people aren't going from smaller formats to FF? Let me give you a hint: according to CIPA, the FF:APS-C lens ratio increased from about 26% to 31%. Sure, FF lenses can be used on APS-C too.
Pentax did pull it off regarding the financials - they're profitable and growing. As for the need to produce a whole new line up of full frame lenses, I have a solution: they can produce a whole new line up of full frame lenses. As simple as that
Because the need to do something is not a reason not to do it. This way of thinking is stupidly lazy, short term and damaging, the kind which would kill the healthiest company rather than bring success. It's a "problem" which will gradually lessens as Ricoh Imaging launches new lenses.
What is really silly is to not realize that going APS pro route they'd also need a new line of lenses: the DA*s just can't cope. And the cherry on top, they would need a camera like no other Pentax, performance-wise.
This is the more difficult option.
The thing is, at this point we know that expanding the K-mount into FF territory was a good idea (and one long overdue, I'd add, but I can't blame Ricoh for that). The K-1 is successful. The new lenses are well received. People are talking about Pentax, again.
We also have an example of someone doing it successfully: Sony (FE). And, unlike Pentax, they started from scratch.
On the other side, we have this idea of an APS-C-only system competing for the "pro" arena. Vaguely described, and while we don't have an example of it succeeding we have two failures: 4/3 (which, by the way, had the lenses) and Samsung (with an amazingly fast camera).
---------- Post added 06-08-16 at 07:01 PM ----------
Originally posted by Simen1 Pentax biggest mistake was selling the company to Hoya.
For the accuracy sake, Pentax Corporation never sold to Hoya.
It was a hostile takeover, orchestrated by Hoya, SPARX (a major Pentax Corporation shareholder, who wanted to sell badly) and ex-Pentax CEO Fumio Urano. Pentax Corporation tried to resist, but couldn't gather the necessary support.
The timing was impeccable, too - perhaps if done a bit later, when the results of the K10D would be known, things would've been different. But there's no point in crying over spilled milk. Pentax is now free of Hoya.
So I would rephrase that as: "Pentax' biggest mistake was to reach a position where they couldn't resist such a hostile takeover".