Originally posted by Reliant K1000 Welcome
I kind of stumbled into it in a similar way. I have all these old lenses from my Pentax film cameras, and The K-01 piqued my interest. I played with it a few times in stores. I was almost going to buy, but not having a viewfinder made me hesitate. Then the salesman showed me the K-30.
I decided to save some more and get it earlier this year and have not regretted the purchase yet. I went on a vacation in England and by the end of it I was very comfortable with the handling of the camera.
Now, with the K-50 out, you might get yourself a good bargain.
I got a great deal - the $499 kit with the 18-55 WR lens from Hunt's. So about $100 more than deals on a K-1 kit. This was a little bit of an impulse purchase, but decided to take advantage of the deals.
Seems to be a running theme of people being intrigued by the K-01, then stepping up to the K-30 instead. I was really tempted by the 40 lens that comes with the K-01. But in the end, I decided that the weather resistance, view finder, speed, and other small differences were worth it, given the price. Nothing wrong with the K-01, but I think the K-30 is more capable and versatile in the end.