Below is an exact copy of the email message I sent to the UK magazine Practical Photography. It really angers me to see magazines twisting facts and details to fit a particular bias. We can now all see whether they print the letter and how much they edit it to support their own viewpoints - a common practice.
I was very disappointed to see the Pentax K10D was not included in your August 2007 comparison of "Enthusiast D-SLRS." Instead, the unnamed tester simply decided the Pentax wasn't worthy of more than passing mention based on a notion it wasn't unique enough to warrant inclusion. Of course, the same could easily be said about the Fuji and Nikon cameras, but those two were included. The tester then claimed the Samsung was cheaper, making it a better deal. I just checked and amazon.co.uk sells the K10D for £489.29 and the Samsung for £499.99 (both amazon.co.uk, not independent sellers).
Since those don't hold up, one is clearly left to wonder why the Pentax K10D was specifically excluded. Perhaps the tester was concerned the other cameras would not fair well in a head-to-head competition against the K10D. After all, the Pentax K10D has won numerous awards, including "EISA European Camera of the Year 2007-2008" from the European Imaging & Sound Association, "Best DSLR Expert in Europe 2007" from the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA), and "Camera Grand Prix 2007" winner by the Camera Journal Press Club in Japan (CJPC). According to other reviews, the K10D fairs very well in image comparisions between similarly priced cameras. And the Pentax K10D certainly has more features than the camera ultimately chosen by the tester, including built-in shake reduction (IS), multi-stage sensor dust prevention, 22 bit A/D converter, weather-resistant body construction, and much more.
In the end, there was simply no good reason why the Pentax K10D should have been excluded. Not only that, it would have easily won in a truly fair competition.
stewart
Last edited by stewart_photo; 08-28-2007 at 11:18 PM.
Reason: spelling mistake in introduction