[ajaya]

Hi All,

Finally Pentax launched KR

K-r - Digital SLR - PENTAX Europe Imaging Systems

????????????PENTAX K-r ??????????

they are in All colors as well
Amazon lists for 850$
Amazon.com: Pentax K-r 12.4 MP Digital SLR Camera with 2.7-Inch LCD and 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens (White): Electronics

[JohnBee]

I am very proud of what Pentax did with this model.
It takes real guts for a company to design an entry level model that outperforms their previous flagship model(see FPS, ISO etc.)
It's not K200D equivalent in terms of ergonomics but it is definitely a worthy upgrade to the lowly Kx!
I will be very happy to offer this as a replacement to my wife's Kx.

[Eagle_Friends]

other than the quicker shooting speed, i see no reason to switch over to a K-r from my K-x. The higher res LCD looks nice too btw.

[future_retro]

I'm very disappointed in it, especially for the price compared to the Kx

I just hope this will send the Kx's price plummeting ever further because the two lens kit is calling my name

[Ash]

Yep, it's already here: K-r Black - Official PENTAX Imaging Web Site
Sure, it's not revolutionising the K-x, but it makes a damn good entry-level camera.
I wouldn't expect many updated models are designed to make the previous model's owners want to go out and buy them straight away...

[Urkeldaedalus]

Is it just me or will the K-r be more attractive to K10D, K20D and K-7 owners than to K-x owners? I already thought the K-x was a half step ahead of the K20D in a lot of ways, but now the K-r has a faster frame rate than the K-7 and new autofocus. If it had two wheels and weather sealing it would be everything the K-7 wasn't.

It's a little expensive now, but that's to give it room to drop down later. I bet the body only models will drop into the $650 range sooner rather than later.

My only disappointment is that Pentax did not implement better video in this camera. That's important at this price range, and it's something they should have looked at. Even simple things like adding a mic input, would that have been so hard?

[future_retro]

Is it just me or will the K-r be more attractive to K10D, K20D and K-7 owners than to K-x owners? I already thought the K-x was a half step ahead of the K20D in a lot of ways, but now the K-r has a faster frame rate than the K-7 and new autofocus. If it had two wheels and weather sealing it would be everything the K-7 wasn't.

It's a little expensive now, but that's to give it room to drop down later. I bet the body only models will drop into the $650 range sooner rather than later.

My only disappointment is that Pentax did not implement better video in this camera. That's important at this price range, and it's something they should have looked at. Even simple things like adding a mic input, would that have been so hard?

I just sold my K7 and would much rather have the Kx over the Kr now, but my uses may vary from others though, I'm trying to downsize and cheapen my set up

[Ash]

Yep, it's clear - the K-r is not going to appeal to existing K-x users as much as it will to the older entry-level and perhaps very early flagship owners. But I reckon it'll be newbies and Canikon entry-level defectors that will be the biggest target audience...

[Boris]

It's not K200D equivalent in terms of ergonomics but it is definitely a worthy upgrade to the lowly Kx!

Just yesterday "lowly" K-x was the best high ISO performer produced by Pentax...

As for the K-r as it is. I wonder if they made a form factor so that K-7's grip can be used on K-r... That would have been a wise move in my opinion. Otherwise - it seems pretty traditional for the lower level camera of the next year to outperform the top level camera of this year (in some areas). So it is the case between K-r and K-7.

Personally, the most important ergonomic features of the camera for me are viewfinder and two wheeled operation. It is therefore that I would let K-r pass as I did for all such models. If my daughter's K10D breaks down (4 years, approaching 23,000 clicks), K-r might be a viable option. However, I should point out that her (formerly mine) K10D goes really strong.

[hangu]

I am very proud of what Pentax did with this model.
It takes real guts for a company to design an entry level model that outperforms their previous flagship model(see FPS, ISO etc.)

Proud? I could barely stifle a yawn half way through the press release.

The improvements are marginal at best and most of it will require comprehensive testing. A higher max ISO means nothing to me until the test photos come out.

It's slightly faster in FPS, higher max-ISO, better LCD screen, looks slightly better with the angular K-7 prism housing design, AF point illumination, possibly better AF and metering and AF assist light. Whoopity doo.

There's no way in hell I'm upgrading from my K-x unless the picture quality were markedly superior in noise control. As an MF user, the AF features are completely lost on me, unfortunately but I'm sure could be of benefit to AF users.

I'm sure it'll be a great camera for the beginner getting his first DSLR but it looks pretty pathetic to a K-x owner like myself.

[lurchlarson]

The Preview video is up!

You Tube

You Tube

[Ash]

Yep, this video was introduced in another thread - not the best plug (I think) for the camera, but they did try and appeal to the newbies out there...

[Ash]

Proud? I could barely stifle a yawn half way through the press release.

The improvements are marginal at best and most of it will require comprehensive testing. A higher max ISO means nothing to me until the test photos come out.

It's slightly faster in FPS, higher max-ISO, better LCD screen, looks slightly better with the angular K-7 prism housing design, AF point illumination, possibly better AF and metering and AF assist light. Whoopity doo.

There's no way in hell I'm upgrading from my K-x unless the picture quality were markedly superior in noise control. As an MF user, the AF features are completely lost on me, unfortunately but I'm sure could be of benefit to AF users.

I'm sure it'll be a great camera for the beginner getting his first DSLR but it looks pretty pathetic to a K-x owner like myself.

Go easy - no point in putting it up against Pentax's current flagship model...
How many revolutionary upgrades do you want in a successor less than 2 years out from the previous model and produced by a MUCH smaller photo company than its competitors?

Then again, even Canikon's entry-level lineup doesn't progress in huge leaps and bounds either...

[hangu]

I forgot to mention that compared to the Canon T2i, it's about the same price, twice as fast in terms of FPS, but loses out in movie/video mode and megapixels department by a long shot to the Canon.

Can't wait to see the test shots at ISO 1600 and ISO 3200.

Now, if it has the same noise reduction performance at ISO 3200 as the K-x at ISO 1600, I'd seriously consider this camera, but I doubt it.

[lurchlarson]

Not that it's THAT important but DPR has a preview up.