[trixtroll]

My dad had a 1980's Pentax when I was growing up, so I naturally ended up with a ZX-5 when I bought my first 35mm camera (1997ish). For quite a while I was shooting several rolls of Tri-X a week and processing/printing in my parents basement and wore that little camera out.

I bought my first house in January 2008 and didn't have the time/money/space for a darkroom anymore, so I decided to make the move to digital and bought myself a brand new K10 to go with my small collection of K mount lenses. Life got busy and I lost interest in photography for a while, so the K10 has less than 8500 shots on the shutter. The whole pandemic has created the chance for me to work from home and have time to rekindle my interest, but the K10 is often left in the dust by a little pocket sized Fuji that my wife bought to take on a camping trip a few years ago.

I've still got most of the prime lenses from when I was shooting film and they're all KA and KAF, so they should work with the latest models, but I guess I have a few questions:

1) The k70 looks like a logical replacement, but it's been on the market a few years. What's the typical Pentax refresh cycle like? Am I better off waiting until later in the year for a refresh?

2) Based on the spec sheet, the performance and image quality is going to be light years ahead with the K70. Is that an accurate assumption or am I going to be sadly disappointed when it comes to the 5x7s that I usually have printed?

3)The autofocus on the K10 always bothered me and I had become accustomed to traditional 35mm manual focus...The K10 has a little green icon that lights up when things are focused using manual focus, but it's always been delayed and often proves to be slower than just letting AF do it's thing. Is MF better on the current models?

Thanks,
Ryan

[kypfer]

My dad had a 1980's Pentax when I was growing up, so I naturally ended up with a ZX-5 when I bought my first 35mm camera (1997ish). For quite a while I was shooting several rolls of Tri-X a week and processing/printing in my parents basement and wore that little camera out.

I bought my first house in January 2008 and didn't have the time/money/space for a darkroom anymore, so I decided to make the move to digital and bought myself a brand new K10 to go with my small collection of K mount lenses. Life got busy and I lost interest in photography for a while, so the K10 has less than 8500 shots on the shutter. The whole pandemic has created the chance for me to work from home and have time to rekindle my interest, but the K10 is often left in the dust by a little pocket sized Fuji that my wife bought to take on a camping trip a few years ago.

I've still got most of the prime lenses from when I was shooting film and they're all KA and KAF, so they should work with the latest models, but I guess I have a few questions:

1) The k70 looks like a logical replacement, but it's been on the market a few years. What's the typical Pentax refresh cycle like? Am I better off waiting until later in the year for a refresh?

2) Based on the spec sheet, the performance and image quality is going to be light years ahead with the K70. Is that an accurate assumption or am I going to be sadly disappointed when it comes to the 5x7s that I usually have printed?

3)The autofocus on the K10 always bothered me and I had become accustomed to traditional 35mm manual focus...The K10 has a little green icon that lights up when things are focused using manual focus, but it's always been delayed and often proves to be slower than just letting AF do it's thing. Is MF better on the current models?

Thanks,
Ryan

Indeed, the K-70 is light-years ahead of anything that came before it
The up-coming K-3iii will likely knock spots off it, but at what cost? I'd guess twice to three-times the price!
The K-70 was and is excellent value for money. The KP can manage a few tricks that the K-70 can't do, but they're fairly esoteric!
I've no experience with the K-10 specifically, but I've always "let the a/f do it's own thing", when using an a/f lens on any of my Pentax bodies. I've found the "little green icon" to be totally reliable when using manual lenses … of which I've got far too many Also, bear in mind the current Pentax cameras all have "focus peaking" when using "LiveView", so if you're having problems with the "little green icon" there's always a fall-back of using the LCD screen instead of the viewfinder to confirm focus.
My recommendation … unless you really feel you can benefit from the extra features in the KP or even the K-3iii … grab a K-70, you'll not regret it

[aslyfox]

welcome to the forums

you will find friendly members and a lot of knowledge here

you will find quite an improvement should you upgrade

Pentax K10D vs. Pentax K-70 vs. Pentax K-3 II vs. Pentax KP - Pentax Camera Comparison - PentaxForums.com

from your K 10D which is not a bad camera for what it does:

Description:
The Pentax K10D was the first DSLR from Pentax to feature a sensor with a resolution higher than 6 megapixels. It also launched a host of new innovative features which would later become standard on all Pentax bodies, such as Shake Reduction and Dust Removal.

It won the Camera Grand Prix Japan "Camera of the Year" award in 2007, and a special brown version with gold lettering was produced to commemorate this.

Read more at: Pentax K10D - Pentax K-mount DSLRs - Pentax Camera Reviews and Specifications

and has a following due to its CCD sensor

Hello All,
This thread is dedicated to a very important part of the Pentax DSLR history; The venerable K10D.
The 'Ten' is significant in many ways; Introduced in late 2006, it featured a CCD sensor of 10.2MP, ISO range of 100-1600 and had AF assist with SDM lenses. It was the first Pentax DSLR with shake reduction, dust removal, had 2 control wheels and used a D-L150 lithium battery rather than 4 x AA's. These were all upgrades from the previous flagship model, the *ist DS2. It came in a sturdy, somewhat squared-off body design that contrasted with the popular curved designs of the time. There was an optional BG2 battery grip available which doubled the shooting time, had a vertical-position shutter release and duplicated the main exposure controls and wheels in portrait orientation.
The K10D garnered great reviews from many testers and won several major awards, including the 'Best Expert Digital SLR' 2007 from TIPA, European Camera Of The Year, American Photo's Editor's Choice for 'Best Advanced Digital SLR' and the prestigious Camera Grand Prix 'Camera Of The Year' 2007. This award resulted in a limited edition brown 'Grand Prix' version by Pentax, released in 2007.
It was succeeded by the K20D in 2008.
The MSRP for the K10D at launch was $1,379 US and the 'street' price around $900 - $1,000. The kit lens offered was the first version of the DA 18-55mm.
In features, MP and price, it compared to the Sony a100, Nikon D80, Canon Rebel XTi and Olympus E400. But the performance soon had it being tested (favorably!) against higher-priced models of the competition, like the Nikon D200 and Canon EOS 30D.
By modern standards, the specs are quite modest. AF sensitivity -1 to 18 EV, shutter speed 30s to 1/4000s, burst shooting rate 3 fps in jpeg, no HDR, no LV, no video capabilities, no lens correction, no TTL. The high-ISO performance is lacking, compared to the contemporary cameras.
Still, over time the respect for this fine digital body has grown widely. Used within its limitations, the CCD sensor delivers RAW images that are truly magical and if the ISO is kept at the lower end, the colors, saturation and rendering are unmatched for beauty. It can be, under ideal conditions, more film-like in rendering than most CMOS-equipped cameras, even the most modern ones.
Hopefully this thread will provide a place for K10D users to discuss their experiences, and post examples of photos taken with the Ten.
The K10D lives on!
Ron

The K10D Club! - Page 455 - PentaxForums.com

Not too many people shoot them anymore, as no one's making them at this point... but the CCD sensor cameras have a loyal following (some would say obsession) from its fans (crazy? luddites?).

If you love the images you get from your CCD sensor camera, be it a sor camera, be it a tiny point and shoot or a giant sensor 645D or even a full medium format back, post here and wax poetic about the virtues of a technology that was replaced by a lower cost, video-friendly alternative (CMOS)...

The CCD Sensor Cult. I mean Club... - Page 38 - PentaxForums.com

[jatrax]

The k70 looks like a logical replacement, but it's been on the market a few years. What's the typical Pentax refresh cycle like? Am I better off waiting until later in the year for a refresh?

Things have changed a lot in the last 5 years or so and the photography market is not what it was. 5 years ago the Pentax refresh cycle was roughly 18 months. These days it is more like 3 years and slowing. So from that standpoint the K-70 is fairly current if no longer the latest and greatest.

Pentax has three lines of cameras roughly:
1) The K-1 FF series
2) The K-7/K-5/K-3 series which has been the prosumer APS-C line. This has more robust shutters, features and a larger battery than the K-30 series
3) The K-30/K-50/K-70 series of APS-C cameras. These are all great cameras but with slightly smaller feature set and smaller batteries

There are also a few outliers like the KP which is current and features a few things different from the K-70. And of course they have the 645 medium format line.

For your purposes either a K-70 or a KP would be ideal. Depending on your budget you might also want to wait a bit and see what the K-3III brings. It is rumored to be only a month or so from release. But I suspect at a significantly higher price point than the K-70 or KP.

[stevebrot]

1) The k70 looks like a logical replacement, but it's been on the market a few years. What's the typical Pentax refresh cycle like? Am I better off waiting until later in the year for a refresh?

The current refresh cycle is not predictable. The only thing that is known at present is that the KP is at end-of-life, the K-70 and K-1ii continue, and the K-3iii is due to market when COVID impact on manufacturing supply chain subsides. Price point for the K-3iii will likely be in the range of $1700+ USD at release.

Image quality for both the K-70 and KP is comparable except at higher ISOs. The KP has more advanced metering and AF, though both models are competent. With current pricing, my nod would go to the KP unless one really wants the full screen movements of the K-70.

2) Based on the spec sheet, the performance and image quality is going to be light years ahead with the K70. Is that an accurate assumption or am I going to be sadly disappointed when it comes to the 5x7s that I usually have printed?

You will not see much difference with your average 5x7 print except at ISO 800 and higher. The advantages of the 24Mpx sensor show with greater ease when cropping and when doing larger prints. I have not regretted my move some seven years ago from the K10D to the 24Mpx K-3 and I predict you will be pleased overall with the image quality from current model bodies.

3)The autofocus on the K10 always bothered me and I had become accustomed to traditional 35mm manual focus...The K10 has a little green icon that lights up when things are focused using manual focus, but it's always been delayed and often proves to be slower than just letting AF do it's thing. Is MF better on the current models?

AF is considerable better on current models with manual focus being similar to your K10D except that addition of live view makes fine focus with non-AF lenses much easier.


Steve

[aslyfox]

. .. . 3) The K-30/K-50/K-70 series of APS-C cameras. These are all great cameras but with slightly smaller feature set and smaller batteries . . . .

one thing to note is the solenoid problem aka aperture block failure reported by some owners of those cameras

including the K 70 reportedly

I have seen a few posts from K70 users experiencing the black frames characteristic of aperture block failure.

I used the K-50 and had aperture block failure BTW. I am kinda sad about it as it was my first ILC camera.

K30 / K50 aperture issue - PentaxForums.com

[jatrax]

including the K 70 reportedly

Good point. It appeared at first the K-70 was immune but there have been a few reports. Makes the KP a better choice perhaps?

[aslyfox]

Good point. It appeared at first the K-70 was immune but there have been a few reports. Makes the KP a better choice perhaps?

of course, there is really no telling how affected the K 70 is by the problem

but I thought it was worth a mention

I'm partial to a good " experienced " K 3 or K 3 II myself

never had a K 70 and the KP I was lucky enough to win has been " loaned " to my son

[trixtroll]

Thanks all for the input....The KP is definitely in the budget, but I was leaning towards the K70 just for the familiar control layout. I'll have to read up on this aperture block stuff.

[PENTAPSC]

Good point. It appeared at first the K-70 was immune but there have been a few reports. Makes the KP a better choice perhaps?

On that note, be aware of a lawsuit against Ricoh/Pentax re: the "aperture block" issue - not uncommon in the post K-r models K-30, K-50 and apparently some on the K-70.
Pentax Camera Class Action Alleges Aperture Defect | Top Class Actions
The KP (production discontinued recently) and the new K3 Mk III use an electronic version of this action, so one of those may be a better long-term choice.
There are also reports that repair centres are having trouble obtaining parts for the Pentax lines - in fact, the shops I contacted in Canada and the U.S. have unfilled orders for Pentax parts to this day. Canon is currently the "last man standing" in filling parts orders, as per my recent checks and conversations with authorized repair centres on this issue.
I am now reluctant to upgrade from my trouble-free K-r (circa 2011) to a K-70 (Aperture Block issue) or the KP (discontinued), along with the ongoing unavailability of parts going forward.
Good Luck with your choice of upgrade - maybe order a spare "Made in Japan" aperture release part for insurance BEFORE picking up the K-70, which, BTW, is still my first upgrade choice, the AP issue non withstanding.

[Des]

Welcome back to PF after a long absence Ryan.

The KP is definitely in the budget, but I was leaning towards the K70 just for the familiar control layout.

Don't mess around. Get the KP before it disappears. It's a very fine camera, with more robust construction than the K-70, with a wealth of features, from those that you will value every day (better AF, better metering, quiet shutter, three control wheels, better dust removal etc) to those that you might not use often but are invaluable when you do. At the closeout prices (and Adorama was throwing in a free flash) it is the last of the great bargains.

We don't know how prevalent the aperture solenoid problem really is on the K-70, but the problem doesn't occur at all on the KP (it uses a different aperture control mechanism).

[ramseybuckeye]

I would go for the KP or the upcoming K-3III (which will be a lot more money) over the K-70. The possible aperture issue would concern me a little, but I made the decision when I bought the KP based on feature set, mostly I will go with the newest tech I can afford. Overall, yes it will have light years in advancements over your K10, you are picking up advancements from several generations of cameras. Autofocus is much better, it meters better, white balance is better, no anti aliasing filter means picture will be sharper, additional electronic shutter, much better live view. I had a K20D which was similar to the K10. One huge difference with the current cameras is the live view and focus peaking. Now when I shoot from a tripod I use live view and can manually focus using focus peaking and magnification, and to make it even better the KP had a tilting screen, so if I want to shoot from ground level I don't have to be laying down.

[snakebite]

Another vote for the KP. Picked mine up from B&H last year. They thew in a battery grip for no charge. Very impressed with the camera. Easily the best deal out there right now.

[AstroDave]

Easily the best deal out there right now.

Agreed (although I don't have one).

Act fast, though - B&H has it on sale at a great price: Pentax KP DSLR Camera Body with Accessory Kit (Black) B&H Photo I suspect these are the last in stock and when gone, the camera will no longer be available.

I am trying hard to resist!

[stevebrot]

Act fast, though - B&H has it on sale at a great price: Pentax KP DSLR Camera Body with Accessory Kit (Black) B&H Photo I suspect these are the last in stock and when gone, the camera will no longer be available.

Adorama has already finished closing them out.


Steve