[Joyce Keay]

Hi, I wanted to find some info on the lens that came with my K-70 so I went to the Amazon listing for it and found this as a heading. Does anybody know why this lens was discontinued? Thanks. Joyce Keay

PENTAX DA 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AL Weather Resistant Lens for Pentax Digital SLR Camera (Discontinued by Manufacturer)

[boriscleto]

Because Amazon lists lots of things made by Pentax as "Discontinued".

[BigMackCam]

I believe that model was replaced by this one

[boriscleto]

I believe that model was replaced by this one

The 18-50 RE isn't really a replacement, just a different option Certainly Adam has never added the discontinued tag to the 18-55 WR in the database...and the 18-55 is still listed as a current lens on the Ricoh webpage.

[BigMackCam]

The 18-50 RE isn't really a replacement, just a different option Certainly Adam has never added the discontinued tag to the 18-55 WR in the database...and the 18-55 is still listed as a current lens on the Ricoh webpage.

Oh, I didn't realise that. Thanks for the info!

EDIT: I see that the non-WR version is listed as discontinued. Perhaps that's where my confusion came from...

[aslyfox]

Because Amazon lists lots of things made by Pentax as "Discontinued".

sales technique perhaps????

trying to bump up sales -

it's " discontinued ", better buy quick because all of them will be gone and they ain't making any more

[shiner]

I believe that model was replaced by this one

LOL, looks like that one guy joined the forum solely for the purpose of trashing the RE kit lens in the reviews section- it's the only post he ever made I have one and it most definitely isn't THAT bad- can produce sharp images with great Pentax colors.

[BigMackCam]

LOL, looks like that one guy joined the forum solely for the purpose of trashing the RE kit lens in the reviews section- it's the only post he ever made I have one and it most definitely isn't THAT bad- can produce sharp images with great Pentax colors.

I don't think there's a bad lens in production, frankly... There might be occasional faulty examples (de-centering etc.), but that aside, it's possible to get sharp images from any current lens if you know how to use it. I'm sure the 18-50 is a perfectly decent lens when used properly

[THoog]

sales technique perhaps????

trying to bump up sales -

it's " discontinued ", better buy quick because all of them will be gone and they ain't making any more

Nah, it's just sloppy data entry. Maybe they tried to order more, and the response from Pentax was "more coming, umm - eventually" instead of "shipping on X date", and they don't have a code for that, so it got marked "discontinued". If you go by what the online sellers say, the genuine Pentax M42-K adapter has been "discontinued" dozens of times over the past ten years. Yet it keeps getting restocked.

(Besides, they would have to have the lenses in stock for the scheme to benefit them instead of the 3rd-party sellers.)

"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity"

[aslyfox]

Nah, it's just sloppy data entry. Maybe they tried to order more, and the response from Pentax was "more coming, umm - eventually" instead of "shipping on X date", and they don't have a code for that, so it got marked "discontinued". If you go by what the online sellers say, the genuine Pentax M42-K adapter has been "discontinued" dozens of times over the past ten years. Yet it keeps getting restocked.

(Besides, they would have to have the lenses in stock for the scheme to benefit them instead of the 3rd-party sellers.)

"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity"

[ my apology to those in Sales ]

my experience as a buyer is

Caveat emptor

often the sales person is forced into "whatever it takes " mode to make a sale

by their bosses and or economics

[Na Horuk]

lots of webshops put 'discontinued' by mistake, or simply because they aren't restocking that item at that time, or even to push urgency to sell more. The label 'discontinued' in a shop does not necessarily mean that the lens was discontinued by Ricoh Pentax. Check more sources.

That said, the 18-55mm has been replaced by a new kit lens, the 18-50mm. Either way, if you want the 18-55mm WR, I would generally recommend to buy it used, as prices are much more reasonable. Buy from a reputable place, like the marketplace on this forum or keh com.

[THoog]

I'm not even sure if the 18-55 has been completely replaced by the 18-50. The K-S2 was bundled with the 18-50, but the K-70 is bundled with the 18-55 WR.

(* at B&h and Adorama)

[D1N0]

It might very well be out of production Ricoh didn't offer the K-70 as a kit and it is never sold with the 18-55 but sometimes with the 18-50 (like the K-s2) and often with the 18-135. I think Ricoh isn't offering real kit lenses anymore because they just loose money on them.

[THoog]

It might very well be out of production Ricoh didn't offer the K-70 as a kit and it is never sold with the 18-55 but sometimes with the 18-50 (like the K-s2) and often with the 18-135. I think Ricoh isn't offering real kit lenses anymore because they just loose money on them.

That's not what I'm seeing at B&H, Adorama, and Amazon - the K-70 is usually listed body-only or kitted with the 18-135, sometimes kitted with the 18-55, but never with the 18-50 (not even the DA-L version).

pentax k-70 18-55 | B&H Photo Video
Pentax K-70 DSLR with 18-55mm WR Lens, Black
amazon.com : Pentax 24 Digital SLR Camera Dynamic with 3?tag=pentaxforums-20&" LCD, Black (K-70 18-55mm lens kit black) : Camera & Photo

[chuck_c]

Here's a good place for info on that lens: SMC Pentax-DA 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL WR Reviews - DA Zoom Lenses - Pentax Lens Reviews & Lens Database